Some Associated Press voter ranked North Carolina State 12th while another voter in the coaches poll ranked Harvard after a loss to Holy Cross. So, even after all these years, the Poll Attacks still basically write themselves.
You ready?
Let's get into it!
AP poll: It's hard to quibble too much, at this point, with anybody's ballot because not much has happened in college basketball yet. But that doesn't mean there aren't some inexplicable ballots out there, and the most inexplicable might belong to Cormac Gordon.
I'll show you his ballot first.
Then I'll break it down for you.
Here's Cormac Gordon's AP ballot:
- Kentucky
- Arizona
- North Carolina
- Louisville
- Iowa State
- Wisconsin
- Virginia
- Kansas
- Duke
- Texas
- Florida
- North Carolina State
- Michigan State
- Wichita State
- Gonzaga
- Minnesota
- San Diego State
- Ohio State
- Oklahoma
- VCU
- Utah
- SMU
- Colorado
- Iowa
- Villanova
Oh, where to begin?
Just so we're clear, nobody has a higher opinion of the ACC than me, and I like Mark Gottfried, too. But I can't make sense of any ballot that has N.C. State ranked 12th, and I can't make sense of any ballot like that for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is because N.C. State wasn't even a top-15 team last season, and the best player from that team (T.J. Warren) left for the NBA, which immediately (and sensibly) lowered expectations, which is why the Wolfpack are projected to finish ninth in the ACC this season.
In other words, Gordon has the ACC's projected ninth-best team ranked 12th nationally.
Even worse than that, Gordon's ballot has North Carolina State ranked ahead of Wichita State, Gonzaga, Oklahoma and Villanova, all of which were better than North Carolina State last season, all which returned better pieces from those better teams. So color me confused. And what's hilarious is that the Associated Press doesn't seem to have taken Gordon's ballot any more seriously than I'm taking it, because North Carolina State only officially got six points in this week's Associated Press poll.
Gordon's ballot alone should be worth 14 points.
But the Wolfpack only got six points, according to the AP.
So did the AP just disregard Gordon's ballot entirely?
That's the only explanation, I think.
Looking into it.
I'll let you know what I hear.
Coaches poll: I admit keeping track of college basketball games on Sundays in November is difficult, and I too sometimes find it hard to pay attention. The NFL is on. So is 60 Minutes and Homeland and The Affair and The Walking Dead. Lots of distractions. But it's my job to keep track of college basketball games on Sundays in November. So I do it. And if you're a voter in the coaches poll, it's your job, too. And yet at least one coach clearly failed at his job because Harvard received two points in this week's coaches poll.
That's the same Harvard that's 1-1 after Sunday's loss to Holy Cross.
One coach must've missed that result.
Or else he's on the same pills as Carrie Mathison.
