BartenderCabbie System College Football Final Top 25 2014 Season

It was a pretty good and entertaining 2014 season. There was, as usual, plenty of surprises, the prowess of TCU and the real weakness of FSU to name a couple. It is also a bit surprising that Ohio State actually lived up to their potential (3 QBs who could start anywhere else is a good thing to have apparently), and of course predictably Oklahoma fell short (way short this time) of their potential. That being said here is the final Bartendercabbie System Top 25 for (as us purists call it) Division I.

1. Ohio State: Proven on the field of play.
2. Oregon: Toss up between this group and the Frogs. A Heisman winning QB who is not a ego maniacal punk or (alleged) criminal? What is up with that?
3. TCU: A team that should have been in the mix in this newfangled college football "playoff system." Fast bunch.
4. Alabama: I don't think the Saban/Kiffin thing will last long term.
5. Michigan State: Another good showing
6. Baylor: Had some ups and downs but a well coached ball club. Has talent
7. Florida State: Finally exposed but did run through their conference somehow. Too many close calls in a rather weak league for them to be considered a top 4 team frankly. Not that they aren't a good team. They are.
8. Georgia Tech: Not quite sure if they deserve to be this high, but they did take care of business when it needed to be done.
9. UCLA: Improving. Will be a force in the PAC 12 and perhaps nationally next season. Well coached.
10. Mississippi State: Frankly a dream season although the faithful are disappointed. Well coached.
11. Mizzou: Good football team in the sort of overlooked SEC East.
12. Georgia: Has talent. Coaching suspect.
13. Boise State: New man moves over from Arkansas State and keeps things moving forward. Funny this ASU seems to be the cradle of top notch coaches here of late.
14. Clemson: Made a statement in their bowl outing. Well coached. A rebuild this season.
15. Ole Miss: Can be a Top 5 team on a good day. Can be fairly horrible on a bad.
16. Kansas State: Snyder again does something with almost nothing.
17. Arizona State: OK
18. Arizona: Ditto
19. Wisconsin: Pretty good. Rather tough schedule.
20. Arkansas: Better than a good many teams with nicer looking records. A team to watch in the SEC next season. Perhaps nationally?
21. Memphis: Keep the staff together and they may be able to build on a great season.
22. USC: Improved since the departure of that damn fool Kiffin.
23. Marshall: Best of CUSA hands down despite the upset by WKU. Should scare any team in the top 25.
24. Auburn: Well coached. Decent team. Fans not happy but a better coach is not likely to be found. Anywhere.
25. Louisville: OK.

On the bubble
Utah: Just not convinced this squad is top 25 material this season.
Air Force: Best of the Service Schools.
Utah State: Perhaps, just perhaps, the best team in the state of Utah when all was said and done.
BYU: Would have been a power had Hill not gone down. Likely would have been a club that finished in the top 15.
Duke: A good season for Blue Devil football. Not quite up to last year's squad but a decent team none the less. Great staff. Can they sustain?
Notre Dame: Most thought they were finally for real. They weren't. Had a nice win over a rebuilding LSU squad over in Nashville to cap off the season.
Georgia Southern: The class of the Sun Belt was not eligible for post season. Pity. Might have surprised some folk.
Louisiana: The Cajuns are a good Sun Belt club. Again.
Northern Illinois: Best of the MAC.
Nebraska: OK. Maybe. A long way to go before anyone takes them real seriously on the national level.
Minnesota:  A good season for Gopher football. Can they keep building on this moderate success?
Louisiana Tech: Looked like a team that can compete some on a bigger stage (the loss to FCS Northwestern State notwithstanding).
UCF: Dangerous to anyone on a good day.
Houston: I would have given the coaching staff a bit more time. Might have made a good hire though. Time will tell.
Stanford: Off year. Will they revert back to the Stanford we know and love after quite a few years of being pretty darn good? Time will tell.
LSU: Hmmmm. Probably not. Maybe
PSU: Ditto
Colorado State: Good MWC team but Top 25 material they are not.
Texas Aggies: A rebuild year. What will Sumlin do without a stellar college QB behind center? This year sort of showed that I guess. Say what you will about Johnny "Football" but he did some amazing stuff in college. Yes I know he's a punk and not NFL material. Perhaps he should change his handle to "Johnny Arena Football?
Oklahoma: What the hell happened? Loaded with talent. Loaded.
Bowling Green: Pretty much time to stop...

It was a super year of college ball and I hope you enjoyed the season as much as I did. Stay tuned. More to come........

FCS Championship Is In The Books

The IAA err FCS Championship is in the books. ND State predictably won but it was not easy. Not by a long shot. The Redbirds came to play......One can only hope the D1 game is as entertaining.
On a side note, one thing that both the Bison and Redbirds had in common this year is that both lost to Northern Iowa. Oh, and both teams are members of the MVC. So in essence the game was both for the FCS Championship and the MVC Championship.

A good game it was.