Final coaches poll looks like AP poll
1. Alabama
2. Texas
3. Florida
4. Boise State
5. Ohio State
6. TCU
7. Iowa
Some thoughts:
* Three Big 10 teams made the top 10 in both polls. The reason? Good bowl play. Ohio State's Rose Bowl win helped a two-loss Buckeyes team get ahead of 12-1 TCU. Penn State beat LSU to jump into the top 10. And Iowa's victory over Georgia Tech put the Hawkeyes at No. 7.
* Did Texas finish second because of how well they came back without Colt McCoy? Possibly. Florida had a chance to finsih second in a blowout, but I think the Longhorns deserved it.
* Nebraska, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State made the coaches poll top 25. OSU did not make the AP top 25.
* Boise State finished fourth, which didn't surprise me. Florida's impressive win over Cincinnati was the reason. But I can tell you from seeing the Broncos' live at the Fiesta Bowl that they are a great team. Again, if only we had a playoff.
* TCU has finished seventh or better two consecutive seasons. Gary Patterson has talked about establishing a reputation as a good program. Those kinds of high finishes are how you do it.
* Alabama has a ton of players coming back. There's little doubt they will be preseason No. 1 in 2010.
Richard Durrett
ESPNDallas.comTEAM RESOURCES
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Richard Durrett
Richard Durrett joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. He writes about colleges, the Dallas Stars and the Texas Rangers. Richard spent nine years at The Dallas Morning News covering the Rangers, Stars, colleges, motorsports and high schools.
Tim MacMahon
Tim MacMahon joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. Tim covers the Cowboys and Mavericks. He has covered the local sports scene from high schools to colleges to pros during his six-year tenure at The Dallas Morning News. MacMahon is a graduate of UNT.
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