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CGB Blogpoll Ballot, Week 4 (Final)

Our final blogpoll ballot for the week, complete with opinions and justifications, however flimsy!

By ragnarok
Dave Martin - Getty Images

atomsareenough: Berkelium must have been pretty impressed with Va Tech's 37-0 win over 1-3 Bowling Green to not only trust them enough to put them back in his poll, but to put them at #16 no less. I guess Pitt did blow out Gardner-Webb this week, but.... it's Gardner-Webb.

Berkelium97: I have come to accept that Virginia Tech will completely faceplant once per season against a bottom-feeder like Pitt.

I have also accepted the fact that somehow, someway, Frank Beamer manages to have that team playing like gangbusters for most of the season. The last time Virginia Tech won fewer than 10 games was 2003, when an upstart coach named Jeff Tedford led a tough, disciplined, motivated Cal team to a victory over them in the Insight Bowl.

Considering the team's resume over the past 10 years, I don't think it's unreasonable to expect them to bounce back and produce a solid season. I'm grading them more on predicted finish than current resume.

atomsareenought: That's fair enough. I would agree about their track record, it's just that my skepticism results watching them in the Georgia Tech game and not being exactly impressed. We'll see, though, it's not like the ACC is deep outside of Florida State and Clemson, so they could rack up a bunch of wins yet.

Berkelium97: I’m not sure what to do with Notre Dame (6). They’ve been dominant so far, but Michigan (UR) and Michigan State (22) look worse and worse as the season wears on. For once, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. Notre Dame beat Michigan State by 17 on the road. I think Michigan State is a solid team with one of the best defenses in the nation. The Spartans' offense is starting to look more and more lackluster, but overall I was impressed with their win over Boise State. Notre Dame also was impressive against Michigan. The Wolverines have no business being ranked, but I have to give ND credit for making Denard Robinson look like Brock Mansion.

Norcalnick: I'm pretty comfortable with my top 12 - undefeated teams who have either beaten somebody good or destroyed bad teams. After that it gets murky. I'm not punishing USC, Clemson, or Michigan St. too heavily for losing close games to top 10 teams, and they're followed by a bunch of undefeated BCS teams that haven't played anybody good yet. So basically, three tiers: Undefeated teams with a strong resume, one loss teams that have proven something, then undefeated teams with a weak resume.

atomsareenough: There was a little bit of movement there near the top for me. LSU's uninspiring 12-10 victory at Auburn made me drop them from #2 down to #5 for the time being. Florida State won a thriller against a tough Clemson team that I'd ranked #5 last week. A quality win against a quality opponent, plus LSU's travails, means FSU moves from #3 to #2 for me. I continue to believe the Seminoles have a good chance at going undefeated until the final week against the Florida Gators. The Gators continue to climb, and a 38-0 domination of Kentucky moves them up to #12 on my list. Meanwhile, Clemson's competitive loss knocks them back a bit to #13. Oregon's 49-0 shellacking of last week's #19 Arizona justifies a slide up from #4 to #3 for the Ducks, and it kicks Arizona off the poll entirely. Yeah, Oregon is a top team, but you don't get to be pantsed 49-0 and remain ranked. You just don't. For perspective, Oregon beat Arizona by roughly the same margin that the Wildcats beat South Carolina State by the previous week.

Norcalnick: On a general note, I still hate the Big 12. PLAY SOMEBODY!

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