News/Commentary

Super 16 Poll: LSU Stays No. 1 But Loses 9 First-Place Votes To Ohio State

December 1, 2019 by FWAA, NFF and CollegeFootballPoll.com

Heading into the conference championship games, LSU remains the No. 1 team in the FWAA-NFF Super 16 poll which is voted on by a panel of 46 football writers and college football Hall Of Famers.

Ohio State is second, followed by Clemson and Georgia in the same order as last week. All four teams easily won their games during Rivalry Week.

Nine pollsters changed their No. 1 vote from LSU to Ohio State. LSU claimed 29 first-place votes, Ohio State 16 and Clemson one.

Alabama's 48-45 loss at Auburn cost the Crimson Tide three spots, dropping them to No. 8. The other losers among poll members were Minnesota (to Wisconsin) and Michigan (to Ohio State). Minnesota dropped from 8th to 14th after absorbing its second loss of the season, and Michigan fell out of the poll after being ranked 12th a week ago. The Wolverines' exit from the Top 16 allowed Memphis to enter the poll at No. 16.

Utah, Oklahoma and Baylor, in that order, moved into slots 5-7 after all posting impressive victories.

The SEC led all conferences with five teams in the poll, followed by the Big Ten with four. The Big 12 and Pac-12 had two each. The ACC, American and Independents had one each.

NOTE: CollegeFootballPoll.com's Dave Congrove is among the voters. His ballot this week was submitted as follows (last week's rank in parenthesis).

1. LSU (1)
2. Ohio State (2)
3. Clemson (3)
4. Utah (5)
5. Georgia (6)
6. Oklahoma (9)
7. Baylor (10)
8. Alabama (4)
9. Florida (12)
10. Oregon (11)
11. Wisconsin (15)
12. Penn State (7)
13. Notre Dame (14)
14. Auburn (16)
15. Minnesota (8)
16. Michigan (13)
DROPPED OUT: None

About the Poll

The poll was established at the conclusion of the 2013 season by long-time partners, the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and the National Football Foundation (NFF). Voters rank the top 16 teams in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, and the results will be released every Sunday of the 2019 season; the individual votes of all members will also be made public. The pollsters consist of FWAA writers and College Football Hall of Famers who were selected to create a balanced-geographical perspective.

FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll
(For games through November 30, 2019)

  Team Points 1st LW
1. LSU (12-0) 717 29 1
2. Ohio State (12-0) 705 16 2
3. Clemson (12-0) 645 1 3
4. Georgia (11-1) 578 --- 4
5. Utah (11-1) 543 --- 6
6. Oklahoma (11-1) 513 --- 7
7. Baylor (11-1) 399 --- 10
8. Alabama (10-2) 374 --- 5
9. Florida (10-2) 359 --- 9
10. Wisconsin (10-2) 296 --- 14
11. Auburn (9-3) 284 --- 16
12. Penn State (10-2) 252 --- 11
13. Oregon (10-2) 200 --- 13
14. Minnesota (10-2) 142 --- 8
15. Notre Dame (10-2) 127 --- 15
16. Memphis (11-1) 54 --- NR

Others receiving votes:

Michigan (33), Boise State (15), Iowa (13), Cincinnati (4), Texas (3).

Games This Week:
No. 1 LSU vs No. 4 Georgia in Atlanta
No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 10 Wisconsin in Indianapolis
No. 3 Clemson vs. Virginia in Charlotte
No. 5 Utah vs. No. 13 Oregon in Santa Clara (Friday)
No. 6 Oklahoma vs. No. 7 Baylor in Arlington, TX
Cincinnati at No. 16 Memphis