It's time for a new installment of Deadspin's college football rankings. As always, the teams are ranked according to the logic and values of college football, no matter how bizarre or contradictory they may be.
1. Alabama (6-0) Previous rank: 1
No. 1 in the initial BCS rankings? Check. Beat up on somebody? Check. Held opposition to three rushing yards on 28 carries? Yikes!
2. Oregon (7-0) Previous rank: 3
Uninterested in geographic diversity, the BCS algorithms put the Ducks behind Florida, which ought to be moot if Oregon wins out and Florida plays Alabama for the SEC title. Just in case, the Ducks went out on Thursday night and, after a quick Arizona State touchdown, went on a 43-0 run. Quarterback Marcus Mariota averaged 3.8 yards on his 12 passing attempts, but 13.5 yards on his 10 carries. And he was not Oregon's leading rusher.
3. Florida (6-0) Previous rank: 4
4. Kansas State (6-0) Previous rank: 5
Beat No. 21 Iowa State, on the road, 27-21, running up the clock—40:54 to 19:06 in time of possession—in lieu of running up the score.
5. [vacant] Previous rank: 7
Why are the BCS rankings done as a top 25? What's the point of announcing which team has 23 better teams to climb over if it's going to reach the national championship game? (That team is Texas, by the way.) It's taunting.
6. Oklahoma (4-1) Previous rank: 18
Happily annihilated No. 18 Texas, 63-21.
7. LSU (6-1) Previous rank: 21
Beat No. 2 South Carolina, 23-21, raising the possibility of another late-season SEC dogpile at the top of the rankings.
8. Ohio (7-0) Previous rank: 8
9. Ohio State (7-0) Previous rank: 9
10. Mississippi State (6-0) Previous rank: 10
Traded scores back and forth with Tennessee, at a 1.32:1 exchange rate.
11. South Carolina (6-1) Previous rank: 2
12. Louisville (6-0) Previous rank: 12
13. Oregon State (5-0) Previous rank: 13
Beat BYU in Provo, 42-24. BYU was wearing special head-to-toe black uniforms, so now everyone can stop doing that forever, OK?
14. Texas A&M (5-1) Previous rank: 15
Survived a shootout with No. 11 Louisiana Tech, 59-57.
15. Texas Tech (5-1) Previous rank: 21
Shut down No. 6 West Virginia's pinball offense in a 49-14 win.
16. TCU (5-1) Previous rank: 21
17. Tulsa (6-1) Previous rank: 20
18. Louisiana Tech (5-1) Previous rank: 11
What happens when a WAC powerhouse meets a team from the SEC? Even while losing to Texas A&M, the Bulldogs went from the No. 3 scoring team in the nation to No. 1—outscoring the Aggies 57-30 from the middle of the second quarter on.
19. West Virginia (5-1) Previous rank: 6
20. (tie) USC (5-1) Previously unranked
20. (tie) Boise State (5-1) Previously unranked
22. Northwestern (6-1) Previously unranked
Bowl eligible! If only they played in a glamour conference, the BCS might rank them.
120. Texas (4-2) Previous rank: 18
Of all the sadnesses heaped on the Longhorns by Oklahoma, maybe the saddest was the early blocked-PAT runback that gave Texas two points, which sat awkwardly there on the scoreboard while the number in the other column kept rising: 6-2 ... 13-2 ... 20-2 ... 27-2 ... 29-2 ... 36-2. A little consolation prize at halftime.