Two college football polls for price of one

It's a weird deal in a weird year.

The Associated Press college football poll will come out Monday and there will likely be seven or eight teams ranked that will not be ranked the next time the poll comes out.

 And it won't take any upsets by underdogs to cause the chaos.

The AP asked us to rank the teams the way we planned to rank them before several conferences — including two from the Power 5 — postponed until the spring. There may be another poll then, but it's significance will be lessened by the fact that some team already had a confetti shower and held up the golden trophy.

When our next ranking comes out after a slate of games (the first one is — in theory — 11 days away), we will have to eliminate the teams that are not playing. This is good news for teams like Tennessee and Miami, who can say they found themselves ranked thanks to the purging of teams way better than them.

So here are two polls, the one I submitted last week and the one I have jotted down on a notebook somewhere. Needless to say, as we head to Week 24 of this virus, my home office looks like Oscar Madison and Pigpen moved in here. 

Here is my AP poll (or should I say "here was"?)

1. Ohio State; 2. Alabama; 3. Clemson; 4. Oregon; 5. Oklahoma.

I put a lot of thought into which team to rank No. 1 and I was convinced this summer it was the Buckeyes. Also, I'm bullish on Oregon.

6. Georgia; 7. Florida; 8. Penn State; 9. Notre Dame; 10. LSU.

I'm not sold on LSU the way some people are. Georgia and Florida? You can flip them if you want. I think they're close to even.

11. Wisconsin; 12. Michigan; 13. Oklahoma State; 14. Auburn; 15. Cincinnati.

I'm struggling to figure out Auburn, but in this new world we'll find out quickly with that Week Two game against Georgia.

16. Boise St; 17. Iowa St; 18. North Carolina; 19. Utah; 20. Minnesota.

I might have the Gophers too low, but it doesn't really matter now.

21. Texas A&M; 22. Texas; 23. Appalachian St.; 24. UCF; 25. Arizona State.

I'm always proudest of my final five until someone comes in and starts yelling at me. A&M is too low, I get it. It's my opinion. Now leave me alone.

OK, so there is the one that was tabulated and will appear Monday. Here is the one that really matters and, of course, could change drastically with a lot of movement after the first full weekend of games.

1. Alabama; 2. Clemson; 3. Oklahoma; 4. Georgia; 5. Florida.

Remember that we only have 76 teams to chose from right now so this is going to be tough.

6. Notre Dame; 7. LSU; 8. Oklahoma St.; 9. Auburn; 10. Cincinnati.

No, I don't believe Auburn and LSU are Top 10 teams, but what's a new age voter to do?

11. Iowa State; 12. Texas A&M; 13. Texas; 14. UCF; 15. North Carolina. 

The middle five in this poll may be better than the middle five in the poll that included everybody.

16. Appy State; 17. Kentucky; 18. Pitt; 19. Navy; 20. Virginia.

Two years ago, I put Kentucky in my Top 25 and everyone freaked out. It turned out to be a good choice. I think the Wildcats are sneaky good this year.

21. Baylor; 22. Louisville; 23. Miami; 24, Tennessee; 25. Big Ten parents.

Sorry, I ran out of teams I think belong. And I had to cleanse my palate after ranking the 'Canes and the Vols. That's a little too much orange for me.

So that's the poll that I will keep on this messy desk and use the other one to help me light the grill. Who knows how many games we'll play and what teams will opt out after a three-game losing streak?

We all know 2020 has been the worst. Let's hope for something better.

Contact Pat Dooley at 352-374-5053 or at pat.dooley@gvillesun.com. And follow at Twitter.com/Pat_Dooley.