Most overrated programs in college football

[augolf1716 21,123]

Expectations are always a tricky thing, especially when trying to project how well a team of numerous individuals will come together and fare over a season — now potentially 15 games with the College Football Playoff.

Regardless, we decided to put it to the test, and devise a way to find out which programs have been the most overrated, or under-performed the most on a regular basis.

The methodology was simple — compare each year’s preseason and postseason Associated Press polls. The difference equals a point, plus or minus and anything outside of the top 25 doesn’t count toward anything.

The key’s consistency, because it’s just about the hardest thing to come by in the sport, and why Alabama’s current run has been so impressive under Nick Saban. The Crimson Tide have been ranked in the top five of the preseason Associated Press poll eight straight years, and either No. 1 or No. 2 six times.

Only twice during that stretch has Alabama finished outside of the top four in the final poll, and never below No. 10. Should the voters tab Alabama as the team to beat in 2017, it’ll be the 10^th straight year Saban’s team was No. 1 at some point of the season.

Alabama is anything but overrated.

However, Notre Dame was last season.

The Fighting Irish were ranked 10^th in the preseason, and not in the top 25 at the end of the year. Right behind them were Ole Miss, Michigan State and TCU, while amongst teams that were still ranked Tennessee fell the most from No. 9 to No. 22.

Most overrated team over the last 5 seasons: Georgia

Except for 2001, Georgia has been in the preseason top 25 every year since 1998. It has not been in the final poll five of the last eight years. The biggest drop-off was 2013 when the Bulldogs were No. 5 at the start of the season and went 8-5. They also went 6-7 in 2010.

Since 1997, Georgia has been in the top 10 at some of the season in every year except four.  However, it finished in the top 10 in just six.

Georgia has been ranked No. 1 only once since Herschel Walker’s Heisman Trophy season of 1982, the preseason poll in 2008. After an unimpressive 45-21 victory against Georgia Southern it was leapfrogged by USC, and slid down to No. 3 two weeks later before subsequently losing at home to No. 8 Alabama, 41-30. The Bulldogs finished 10-3 and No. 13 in the final poll.

The next four most overrated programs after the Bulldogs were LSU, USC, Arkansas and UCLA.

Most overrated team over the last 10 seasons: Georgia

See above.

Following the Bulldogs were Oklahoma, LSU, Nebraska, USC and Texas.

Most overrated team over the last 25 seasons: Nebraska

Things haven’t been the same since Tom Osborne left in 1997, and Nebraska has finished out of the top 25 four straight years for the first time since 1959-62 (Bob Devaney’s first year).

The Cornhuskers had a nice run at No. 1 through the first two months of the 2000 season under Frank Solich, but then stumbled at No. 3 Oklahoma and lost at No. 16 Kansas State. They finished 10-2 and ranked eighth.

Only once since then has Nebraska both been in the preseason top 25 and finished with a better ranking at the end of the season, 2009. It began at No. 24 and moved up to No. 14.  It’s also the program’s best result since 2001.

The next four programs were USC, Oklahoma, Florida State, Texas, Tennessee and Notre Dame.

[lionheartkc 6,150]

That's a fun story... and it's just looking at their record.  If you were to factor in strength of schedule there would be a lot of upset fans of historically top teams.

[SumterAubie 3,031]

The buttsniffers immediately came to mind when I saw the title of the thread. It has been so for uga since at least the mid '70s.

[AU80cruiser 1,102]

If we only negative recruited like Kirby this could be a huge talking point.

[aubaseball 2,602]

The saddest part of this is that they have owned us the last ten years 

[GwillMac6 20,671]

8 minutes ago, aubaseball said:

The saddest part of this is that they have owned us the last ten years 

and some of those were some VERY mediocre georgia teams......... last 2 years we gave the game away. They had no business winning either of them. We let some average georgia QBs light us up in this time span as well. Hutson Mason, Joe Cox and Joe Tereshinski?! yuuuuuuuuck.

[augolf1716 21,123]

4 minutes ago, GwillMac6 said:

and some of those were some VERY mediocre georgia teams......... last 2 years we gave the game away. They had no business winning either of them. We let some average georgia QBs light us up in this time span as well. Hutson Mason, Joe Cox and Joe Tereshinski?! yuuuuuuuuck.

sad indeed plus sucks

[GwillMac6 20,671]

I will say Notre Dame besides them getting clobbered by west vance in the title game what exactly have they done since their 89 title??? ummmmmmm a whole lot of mediocrity.

[GwillMac6 20,671]

19 hours ago, augolf1716 said:

sad indeed

we also let another mediocre GA qb beat us in Greyson Lambert  in 2015 but AT LEAST we did not let him light us up. YAY. Moral victory.

[milehighfan 1,240]

You see uga and all the talent they have to choose from in the state and yet they never seem to put it all together. 

I hope that trend continues this year and we reverse the trend they have had against us. 

[Tiger 8,823]

Michigan is also pretty overrated IMO

[JFDTiger80 790]

We need top be careful using anything that shows UGA as the most over rated program in America and use to to any advantage for us. At least until we start beating them again. They have been underwhelming, but we are not winning against them.

[Guest WarEagleSteve]

18 hours ago, aubaseball said:

The saddest part of this is that they have owned us the last ten years 

We've beaten them twice since 2006 (2010,2013) and four of our eight losses have come by a touchdown or less. Les Miles will forever be the king of late game voodoo to beat Auburn but Mark Richt wasn't far behind. 

[GwillMac6 20,671]

4 hours ago, Tiger said:

Michigan is also pretty overrated IMO

that has started and will continue to change under harbaugh. Dude can flat out coach. 

[Tiger 8,823]

53 minutes ago, GwillMac6 said:

that has started and will continue to change under harbaugh. Dude can flat out coach. 

I agree but I meant historically I just get annoyed at the media love they always get

[GwillMac6 20,671]

40 minutes ago, Tiger said:

I agree but I meant historically I just get annoyed at the media love they always get

O I am totally with you fam on this one! The 1 thing I think the NFL has over college football is it is all about the here and now with who gets media coverage and the love and pub. They have this novel concept of you have to be actually good to get the media to fawn over you! I KNOW IT IS WILD! haha.  The only team who constantly gets love no matter what is the cowboys. They are the lone exception. It does not matter that the niners have 5 rings. They have flat out stunk since they canned harbaugh and they get no media coverage or attention on a national stage. In college football notre dame, texas and other blue bloods can have back to back to back season of lets say 3-9, 5-7 and 4-8 and they still will be talked about over most teams who are good but not blue bloods. College football wants the same handful of teams to be good every year. It is a broken system. I HATE HATE HATE college football will be better when *insert blue blood* is good again. Why?! college football should be great regardless.

[WarTiger 3,901]

23 hours ago, JFDTiger80 said:

We need top be careful using anything that shows UGA as the most over rated program in America and use to to any advantage for us. At least until we start beating them again. They have been underwhelming, but we are not winning against them.

Actually, no we don't.  This thread has nothing to do with Auburn.   This is about Georgia underachieving as a program, not about head to head with one team. 

[AUsince72 11,084]

I guess this is about achievement vs expectations but I submit that achievement vs ethical means and a halfway level playing field should be considered.  To me, and my decidedly O & B glasses here, tha tahd IS overrated by a mile.  

Last I checked if the Horse Racing PTB were to let a Ford Raptor race truck run against the horses at The Kentucky Derby or The Belmont Stakes or The Preakness nobody would take it seriously, much yet allow it.  But the NCAA head allows sabear to basically do the same thing and we're supposed to admire and worship him and his minions and their "achievement"?

I wonder if Tiger Woods were to play me in a round of golf, and of course beat me by 37 shots (in 1 round) people would be so impressed?  Of course not!  

But Saban's a god (little g....VERY little g) because he's allowed to cheat more than everyone else because we live in a society now where apparently the ends DO justify the means.  Just win baby...I don't care if it's fair!!!  Competition means NOTHING...just the results on paper.

[Randman5000 4,228]

On 7/7/2017 at 8:50 AM, Tiger said:

Michigan is also pretty overrated IMO

Agreed. They are one of the most overrated programs of all time. 

[Gowebb11 9,320]

1 hour ago, Randman5000 said:

Agreed. They are one of the most overrated programs of all time. 

They certainly haven't hung a lot of National Championship banners, but they are the all-time leader in wins and winning percentage. You're going to get a lot of love when that's the case.