:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57054143/usa_today_10268745.0.jpg)
Welcome back to the third edition of the Roberts Poll!
In case you weren’t here the first time, we at Hustle Belt (with the help of yours truly) came up with a formula to rank FBS teams. It basically comes down to a mathematical formula that takes the quality of a win or loss and combines it with margin of victory to assign a team points.
Keep in mind that these are just statistics, not our human rankings. My projections do not take into account any MACtion that makes this conference so much fun to watch.
MAC Standings:
Statistics I made up suggest that you care more about the Mid-American Conference standings, so here it comes first.
This week, we did something different. From now on, I am projecting final records and other fun things. Basically, when a team is scheduled to face another with a lower Roberts Poll score, they win. Those points carry over and so on.
Using this method, I determined that seven teams will be in contention for bowls. It is pure speculation, but the Toledo Rockets may even get a look at a New Years Six bowl if they finish 12-1, as predicted.
Additionally, we were able to predict the contestants for the 2017 MAC Championship Game. If the current pattern holds, Toledo will beat the Ohio University Bobcats for the MAC title.
MAC Standings: Roberts Poll
| Ranking | High | Low | Team | Bowl Week | Total | Overall | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking | High | Low | Team | Bowl Week | Total | Overall | Best |
| 1 | 1 | 3 | Toledo *# | -84 | 542 | #33 | #20 |
| 2 | 1 | 5 | Ohio | 85 | 433 | #39 | #27 |
| 3 | 3 | 8 | Northern Illinois | -62 | 270 | #54 | #37 |
| 4 | 3 | 9 | Central Michigan | -63 | 162 | #66 | #41 |
| 5 | 1 | 10 | Western Michigan | 0 | 89 | #77 | #40 |
| 6 | 4 | 11 | Buffalo | 0 | 24 | #88 | #71 |
| 7 | 1 | 9 | Eastern Michigan | 0 | -27 | #90 | #22 |
| 8 | 5 | 12 | Akron * | -97 | -72 | #93 | #76 |
| 9 | 7 | 10 | Miami | 0 | -106 | #97 | #87 |
| 10 | 10 | 12 | Bowling Green | 0 | -562 | #123 | #115 |
| 11 | 9 | 12 | Kent State | 0 | -628 | #124 | #106 |
| 12 | 4 | 12 | Ball State | 0 | -693 | #128 | #63 |
No team moved more than two spots in this week’s poll, but there were a few interesting moves. The Bowling Green Falcons upset the Miami-Ohio Redhawks 37-29, removing them from last place in the Roberts Poll. When the Kent State Golden Flashes lost to Northern Illinois 24-3, the Golden Flashes actually dropped down to last place.
Oddly enough, the Western Michigan Broncos are ranked higher than Toledo. Based on the match-ups later in the season, Toledo is expected to beat the Broncos and represent the MAC West in the MAC Championship Game.
RP Top 25:
Leading the Roberts Poll through a chaotic week is still the Alabama Crimson Tide.
The Roberts Poll Top 25 sure saw a lot of movement over the past week. When the Iowa St. Cyclones upset the Oklahoma Sooners, the Sooners dropped nine positions from #8 to #17. Plenty of schools saw a benefit from South Florida’s bye week, which dropped them five positions to #14. The biggest change came from the Michigan State Spartans’ upset of the Michigan Wolverines, costing Michigan 10 positions.
Five previously unranked schools moved into the Poll. N.C. State, Stanford, Army, Iowa, and Kentucky moved into the Roberts Poll Top 25.
The five schools they replaced were Louisville, Utah, Duke, California, and Wake Forest.
Roberts Poll Top 25
| Rank | High | Low | Team | Last Week's Result | RP Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | High | Low | Team | Last Week's Result | RP Points |
| 1 | 1 | 4 | Alabama # | W 26-23 vs UGA | 1282 |
| 2 | 2 | 27 | Georgia * | L 23-26 vs Bama | 1175 |
| 3 | 2 | 45 | Ohio State * | W 24-7 vs USC | 1173 |
| 4 | 2 | 25 | Wisconsin | W 34-24 vs MIA-FL | 1118 |
| 5 | 1 | 17 | Oklahoma * | L 48-54 vs UGA | 1043 |
| 6 | 6 | 46 | UCF *# | W 34-27 vs Auburn | 1028 |
| 7 | 1 | 10 | Penn State | W 35-28 vs WASH | 1027 |
| 8 | 2 | 10 | Clemson * | L 6-24 vs Bama | 1016 |
| 9 | 3 | 23 | TCU | W 39-37 vs STAN | 864 |
| 10 | 8 | 48 | Auburn | L 27-34 vs UCF | 845 |
| 11 | 4 | 15 | Washington | L 28-35 vs Penn St | 832 |
| 12 | 8 | 32 | USC * | L 7-24 vs Ohio St | 820 |
| 13 | 5 | 19 | Oklahoma State | W 30-21 vs VT | 783 |
| 14 | 5 | 53 | Notre Dame | W 21-17 vs LSU | 756 |
| 15 | 15 | 76 | Northwestern | W 24-23 vs UK | 749 |
| 16 | 16 | 70 | Boise State * | W 38-28 vs Oregon | 725 |
| 17 | 4 | 74 | Stanford | L 37-39 vs TCU | 685 |
| 18 | 18 | 63 | Michigan State | W 42-17 vs WAZZU | 669 |
| 19 | 9 | 73 | Miami (FL) | L 24-34 vs WIS | 655 |
| 20 | 20 | 122 | Florida Atlantic * | W 50-3 vs Akron | 650 |
| 21 | 21 | 92 | Troy * | W 50-30 vs UNT | 620 |
| 22 | 5 | 35 | South Florida | W 38-34 vs TTU | 607 |
| 23 | 21 | 51 | Army | W 42-35 vs SDSU | 601 |
| 24 | 6 | 52 | Mississippi State | W 31-27 vs LOU | 594 |
| 25 | 20 | 85 | Fresno State | W 33-27 vs HOU | 589 |
Analysis:
Alabama is still the team to beat in the Roberts Poll. They lead the Penn State Nittany Lions by a wide margin of 72 points. By contrast, last place is occupied by Charlotte.
The Ohio State Buckeyes saw the most new points this week, earning 108 points in their 62-14 defeat of the Maryland Terrapins. The biggest loss came from the Connecticut Huskies, losing 89 points in the 70-31 loss to the Memphis Tigers.
Currently, the Big Ten Conference is leading in scoring of all conferences with 2,853 points total. They are followed by the SEC, PAC-12, and ACC. Our favorite conference, the MAC, is currently eighth with -296 points following all the craziness from last week. Last place is the Sun Belt with -964 points.