re: AP voter who moved Florida up two spots after the USF loss explains decision

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she said the important thing at the end...it doesn't really matter...

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It absolutely matters.

"Top 25 wins" is literally a resume builder for the playoff committee. It also determines metrics like SoS.

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that's the top 25 of their poll...not this loser AP poll

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Where do you think their starting point is and what establishes a team's narrative for the first 7-8 weeks of the season? It's no different than the effect preseason polls have on poll inertia.

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Where do you think their starting point is and what establishes a team's narrative for the first 7-8 weeks of the season? It's no different than the effect preseason polls have on poll inertia.

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there are a ton of polls out there...especially computer polls...that they can use as a baseline.

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there are a ton of polls out there...especially computer polls

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Yet the AP is still the one used as the defacto ranking for the vast majority of college football coverage. The existence of other polls doesn't negate the amount of effect this particular poll has in shaping the narrative of the season. To say it doesn't matter just isn't true.

The perfect example already this year is LSU. A team that was considered a fringe contender at best was vaulted into the top 5 and a playoff frontrunner for beating a Clemson team that is clearly not a top 5 team. Yet because the AP had them ranked in the top 5 to start the season, the entire perception of LSU changed in one week.

She doesn't want to go into her process.