clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Taking A Look At Post Week 1 Polls

Let's take a look at where Auburn and the rest of the SEC stand in the polls and how the schedule looks going forward.

By Walt Austin
John Reed-USA TODAY Sports
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" dir="ltr" border="1">
<colgroup> <col width="26"></col> <col width="100"></col> <col width="100"></col> <col width="100"></col> </colgroup>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;AP&quot;]"><b>AP</b></td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Coaches&quot;]"><b>Coaches</b></td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Sagarin&quot;]"><b>Sagarin</b></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,1]">1</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Florida State (46)&quot;]">Florida State (46)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Florida State (57)&quot;]">Florida State (57)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Oregon&quot;]">Oregon</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,2]">2</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Alabama (1)&quot;]">Alabama (1)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Alabama&quot;]">Alabama</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Alabama&quot;]">Alabama</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,3]">3</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Oregon (5)&quot;]">Oregon (5)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Oklahoma (2)&quot;]">Oklahoma (2)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Oklahoma&quot;]">Oklahoma</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,4]">4</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Oklahoma (2)&quot;]">Oklahoma (2)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Oregon (2)&quot;]">Oregon (2)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Florida State&quot;]">Florida State</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,5]">5</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Auburn&quot;]">Auburn</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Auburn&quot;]">Auburn</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Texas A&amp;M&quot;]">Texas A&amp;M</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,6]">6</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Georgia (2)&quot;]">Georgia (2)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Michigan State&quot;]">Michigan State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Georgia&quot;]">Georgia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,7]">7</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Michigan State&quot;]">Michigan State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Ohio State&quot;]">Ohio State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Stanford&quot;]">Stanford</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,8]">8</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Ohio State&quot;]">Ohio State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Georgia (1)&quot;]">Georgia (1)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Baylor&quot;]">Baylor</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,9]">9</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Texas A&amp;M (2)&quot;]">Texas A&amp;M (2)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Baylor&quot;]">Baylor</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Auburn&quot;]">Auburn</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,10]">10</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Baylor&quot;]">Baylor</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Stanford&quot;]">Stanford</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Michigan State&quot;]">Michigan State</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,11]">11</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;UCLA&quot;]">UCLA</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;UCLA&quot;]">UCLA</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;UCLA&quot;]">UCLA</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,12]">12</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;LSU (1)&quot;]">LSU (1)</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;LSU&quot;]">LSU</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Ohio State&quot;]">Ohio State</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,13]">13</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Stanford&quot;]">Stanford</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Texas A&amp;M&quot;]">Texas A&amp;M</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;LSU&quot;]">LSU</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,14]">14</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;USC&quot;]">USC</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;USC&quot;]">USC</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;USC&quot;]">USC</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,15]">15</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Ole Miss&quot;]">Ole Miss</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Notre Dame&quot;]">Notre Dame</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Notre Dame&quot;]">Notre Dame</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,16]">16</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Notre Dame&quot;]">Notre Dame</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Arizona State&quot;]">Arizona State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Wisconsin&quot;]">Wisconsin</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,17]">17</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Arizona State&quot;]">Arizona State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Ole Miss&quot;]">Ole Miss</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Florida&quot;]">Florida</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,18]">18</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Wisconsin&quot;]">Wisconsin</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Nebraska&quot;]">Nebraska</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Kansas State&quot;]">Kansas State</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,19]">19</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Nebraska&quot;]">Nebraska</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Wisconsin&quot;]">Wisconsin</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;South Carolina&quot;]">South Carolina</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,20]">20</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Kansas State&quot;]">Kansas State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Kansas State&quot;]">Kansas State</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Clemson&quot;]">Clemson</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,21]">21</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;South Carolina&quot;]">South Carolina</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;South Carolina&quot;]">South Carolina</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Ole Miss&quot;]">Ole Miss</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,22]">22</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;North Carolina&quot;]">North Carolina</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Missouri&quot;]">Missouri</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Washington&quot;]">Washington</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,23]">23</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Clemson&quot;]">Clemson</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;North Carolina&quot;]">North Carolina</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Oklahoma State&quot;]">Oklahoma State</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,24]">24</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Missouri&quot;]">Missouri</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Clemson&quot;]">Clemson</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Texas&quot;]">Texas</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,3,null,25]">25</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Louisville&quot;]">Louisville</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Texas&quot;]">Texas</td>
<td data-sheets-value="[null,2,&quot;Arizona State&quot;]">Arizona State</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

Auburn: Auburn moved up a spot in the AP Poll to #5; the same spot they hold in the Amway Coaches Poll. I'm not going to moan about this at all. Of course, whining about polls this early in the season bears only slightly more purpose than whining about preseason polls. Sure, we beat Arkansas by the same score that Georgia beat Clemson, but we still don't know how good Arkansas or Clemson are. It will take a few weeks to get it all sorted out. The odds say that there will only be 1-2 (or maybe even zero) undefeated teams at the end of the season, so if Auburn wins out, then sitting at #5 after week one is a great place to be in order to lay claim to one of those coveted playoff spots.

The Rest of the SEC: Alabama is still ranked #2. I don't know that Alabama did enough to show that they should be ranked that high, but oh well. I think that's more a product of my thoughts on preseason polls in general: they didn't lose, so we have to justify that we were right in placing them there! Georgia is ranked in the Top 10 in both polls. Texas A&M made a giant leap in both polls to #9 in the AP and #13 in the Coaches Poll to present the biggest spread between rankings in the SEC. LSU sits at #12 in both, Ole Miss at #15 in AP and #17 in the Coaches Poll, South Carolina stayed in the Top 25 in spite of their dismantlement by Texas A&M at #21, and Missouri rounds it out with #24 in the AP and #22 in the Coaches Poll.

The Schedule: Still looks brutal. I mean horrifying. Auburn still faces seven teams currently in the Top 25 of each poll. Six are from the SEC with the seventh being that pesky little Kansas State game at Kansas State on a Thursday night. According to the AP, Auburn will play three teams currently ranked in the Top 10, with two of those being road games.

The good news is that from what I saw on Saturday, I'm confident that Auburn can win all of those games. I'm not saying that Auburn will win all of them. I'm just saying that Auburn can. It's going to be an exciting ride.


Next Up In Auburn Football