At this point, one would almost have to be looking for reasons not to have Alabama ranked No. 1 overall.

That’s exactly what happened following the Week 5 games, however. Despite the annihilation of Ole Miss on Saturday, the Tide lost eight votes in the latest AP Top 25 Poll.

Clemson, on the other hand, gained nine votes (it also took Oklahoma’s one vote) after beating No. 12 Virginia Tech on the road 31-17.

The 44 first-place votes Alabama received represented a season-low.

  • Preseason: 52
  • After Week 1: 60
  • After Week 2: 58
  • After Week 3: 45
  • After Week 4: 52
  • After Week 5: 44

Yes, Clemson has looked fantastic despite losing star quarterback Deshaun Watson — as well as several others — but there is no reason for Alabama to have lost ground with the way that they’ve played this season, especially over the course of the past two weeks.

What more do the Crimson Tide have to do to impress voters?

As of right now, Alabama has one of the nation’s most balanced rosters — checking in with a top 10 defense (No. 6) defense and top 15 offense (No. 14). They rank eighth nationally in scoring (46.2), and unlike last year, that total is almost entirely on the strength of the offense.

The Tide's average margin of victory is 37.6 points per game -- more than Clemson is scoring per game (36.4).

As previously mentioned, it’s especially surprising to see Alabama lose ground when you look at what they’ve done over the past two weeks.

The Tide outscored Vanderbilt and Ole Miss a combined 125-3. They averaged 645 yards of offense (214.5 passing, 430.5 rushing) during that span. They dominated the time of possession (79:32 to 40:28) and shut down opposing team’s offense — only giving up 165.5 yards (101.5 passing, 64 rushing).

After struggling to get after the quarterback through the first four weeks — only 5 sacks — Alabama doubled that production against Ole Miss, putting them at 10 total. It can be argued that the struggles prior to Saturday’s game could be attributed to the loss of five linebackers — four in the first game.

Despite not playing much in the second half in four of Alabama’s first five games, star QB Jalen Hurts is still third in the SEC in rushing yards (461) and has the best touchdown-to-interception ratio in the conference (6 touchdowns, 0 interceptions).

Alabama started the season as the top team in the country, and it has done nothing to disprove that. The Tide’s average margin of victory is 37.6 points per game — more than Clemson is scoring per game (36.4).

There is no doubt Clemson is a worthy rival, a legitimate No. 2 and a step above every other team in the country. With Alabama starting the season No. 1, one would think it would have to do something that warranted losing votes.

It seemed more logical after Week 3, when Bama went through the motions in putting away Colorado State. Clemson received 15 first-place votes the following Sunday; Alabama’s total slid to 45.

But Alabama responded with the two highest scoring performances, back-to-back, in the Nick Saban era. And now its first-place vote total is the lowest in the regular season since 2015.

Apparently the 125-3 margin wasn’t enough for some people.