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Two weeks of the 2023 college football season are in the books, and it's still too early to draw conclusions about the ceilings and floors of each program. However, one of the best things about college football is debating which teams are ranked too highly and which teams were slighted in the AP Poll.
Whether a team hasn't faced respectable competition or has looked impressive and exceeded expectations to this point, we have five programs that are improperly ranked this week.
It's time for the second article of a year-long series: Overrated and Underrated College Football Teams after the release of the weekly Associated Press Poll. All rankings listed are based on the AP Poll. When the College Football Playoff Rankings begin dropping ahead of Week 9, we'll pivot to focus on those standings instead.
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Overrated College Football Teams For Week 3
Penn State Nittany Lions: No. 7
Look, I understand Penn State has outscored its opponents 101-22 through two weeks. However, dominance against West Virginia and Delaware doesn't impress anyone.
This Nittany Lion team very well may be a contender in the Big Ten, but teams ranked behind them like Washington and Notre Dame have looked more impressive to this point. This is the second straight week Penn State has made this list in the "overrated" section, so this will age extremely poorly or very well.
That said, Penn State likely won't be tested until late October against Ohio State.
Alabama Crimson Tide: No. 10
Alabama sat at No. 3 in last week's rankings. The Crimson Tide played a close game against the Texans Longhorn in the first half but were blasted and outscored 29-10 in the second half.
Quarterback Jalen Milroe hit a few impressive deep shots, but he was otherwise putrid as a passer, completing just 14 of his 27 attempts for 255 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.
Oooh, another BAD interception for Milroe as his youth shows. Next play is a touchdown for Texas pic.twitter.com/Nt89rRHpHp
— Ian Valentino (@NFLDraftStudy) September 10, 2023
The belief heading into this contest was that Alabama was going back to its old-school ways of pounding the football in the ground game and playing elite defense. Well, Alabama averaged 3.1 yards per carry and allowed 454 yards and 34 points. While Alabama could prove to be a top-1o team later on -- falling further in the rankings would have been appropriate after losing at home.
Underrated College Football Teams For Week 3
Washington Huskies: No. 8
Through two games, Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. has thrown for 859 yards, eight touchdowns, and one interception. He has picked up right where he left off last year when he led the team to the No. 2 total offense in college football.
Michael Penix Jr.
- 28/38
- 409 yards
- 3 TD
- 1 INTJalen McMillan
- 8 catches
- 120 yards
- 1 TDRome Odunze
- 7 catches
- 107 yards
- 1 TD#8 Washington beats Tulsa 43-10
(via @Pac12Network) pic.twitter.com/SZWXXhhF2O
— Ensign Gridiron (@EnsignGridiron) September 10, 2023
Football has never been more of a passing-driven game than it is in 2023, so the Huskies could be legitimate contenders led by Penix and wide receivers Jalen McMillin and Ja'Lynn Polk.
A game on the road against Michigan State this week will give the Huskies a chance to flex their muscles once again and hopefully, move up the rankings.
Ole Miss Rebels: No. 17
It's easy to discredit a win over Tulane, but the Green Wave were ranked No. 24 in the nation and the game was in New Orleans. Ole Miss struggled early in the contest, but ultimately won by a comfortable margin (17 points), outscoring Tulane 20-3 in the fourth quarter.
It's early in the season, but the Rebels have one of the most impressive wins to date. For that reason, they should have probably jumped No. 16 Oregon State and No. 15 Kansas State in the Week 3 AP Poll.
Miami Hurricanes: No. 22
Heading into Saturday's bout with No. 23 Texas A&M, I felt pretty confident that the Hurricanes would come out stale and disappoint, as they have done time and time again over the last decade.
However. Miami was dominant on offense, scoring 48 points behind quarterback Tyler Van Dyke's 374 passing yards and five touchdowns to zero interceptions. The Aggies have a top-five roster in all of college football, and Miami never backed down after facing an early deficit and looked in control thereafter.
TYLER VAN DYKE🎯
— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 9, 2023
Could this Miami team be different and make noise in the ACC? It certainly looks like it after Week 2. The Canes should be comfortably inside the top 20.
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