CBSSports.com BlogPoll Ballot - Final edition

Last BlogPoll of the season and it's a lot like hitting the reset button. Pay no mind to the delta's in this case. With four weeks elapsed since the last poll, this was really a re-ranking at the end of the season.

What might make for a more interesting comparison is how this poll looks compared to the first poll of the season. It's not pretty.

Rank	Team
1	Alabama
2	Florida
3	Texas
4	Boise State
5	TCU
6	Ohio State
7	Iowa
8	Cincinnati
9	Oregon
10	Georgia Tech
11	Penn State
12	Brigham Young
13	Virginia Tech
14	Nebraska
15	Pittsburgh
16	Wisconsin
17	Utah
18	Miami (Florida)
19	LSU
20	Mississippi
21	Texas Tech
22	Central Michigan
23	Southern Cal
24	Clemson
25	Navy

METHODOLOGY, ETC.
--Losing Colt McCoy might have lost Texas the national title game, but it solidified their #3 place in my poll. I honestly think Boise State could play with anyone right now. So much so that I was tempted to jump them over the Horns, but then there's that whole McCoy thing. You have a lot of talent if you can almost withstand that loss and get the win.
--Congratulations Big 10. Quietly you were one of the big winners this season with Ohio State, Iowa, Penn St and Wisconsin cracking the Top 25. That said, I still find it unwatchable and that will never change.
--Not so good for the Big 12. More on that in a bit.
--Is Navy really a Top 25 team? Most say no but for me, beating Missouri says yes. I'm vindictive like that.

THE OPTIMISM OF AUGUST
--Of the 25 teams in my final poll, 19 of them appeared in the first poll. Cal was the biggest disappointment going from seventh in the preseason to unranked. Other schools I missed on Oklahoma State (#11), Georgia (#16), Illinois (#17, big whiff), Kansas (#19), and West Virginia (#25) who just missed getting the 25 spot in my final poll.
--As for the Top 5, I only achieved a 40% success rate with both Texas and Florida finishing there. I had Alabama sixth to start the season, Boise State eighth and TCU 13th. One team, Oklahoma, went from preseason Top 5 to unranked. The others, USC and Penn State, finished 23rd and 11th respectively.
--I was way late to the Cincinnati bandwagon. They finished eighth after starting unranked by me.
--Who were the other teams who made their way into the final Top 25 but not the preseason poll? Oregon (#9)--I was wary of the lack of starters returning on offense, but I did predict a loss to Boise--Utah (#17), Texas Tech (#21), Central Michigan (#22), and Navy (#25).
--The lesson, of course, none of us really knows anything in August. Particularly me.