If you asked an objective college football fan which school has the best team heading into the 2014-15 season, he or she would probably say Florida State.

The Seminoles are the reigning champions, are led by last year’s Heisman Trophy winner, and are ranked first in the preseason Associated Press and coaches’ polls.

But if then asked which school has the best football program, chances are the answer would be different.

That’s what these rankings are about.

In 2005, I came up with the idea of trying define the hierarchy of programs, to not only provide a little perspective on how there are really a couple of top tiers in college football, but also measure how they’re rising and falling.

It highlights 10 categories, five focusing on the previous year with the other half all-time (but slightly weighted to emphasize the modern era), while trying be as opinion-free as possible. They gauge the sport nearly every way possible, measuring the past and present to see which way the college football winds are blowing.

Or in other words, try and answer the question “Who’s No. 1?” because while the national championship may determine the best team of a particular season it doesn’t automatically translate to having the best overall program.

The methodology:

From the previous season:
The final Associated Press poll
Recruiting rankings (247Sports)
Attendance figures (NCAA)
The number of former players on NFL rosters opening weekend
Academics (graduation rates)

As for the All-Time categories:
Bowl appearances
National championships (since 1936)
The All-Time Associated Press Poll (originally devised by former SEC assistant director of media relations Charles Woodroof)
Coaching legacy (see below)
College Football Hall of Fame inductees

For coaching legacy, which is easily the most controversial category, only the top coach in each program was considered. The rankings are a combination of an elaborate survey taken a few years ago, “Dell Presents College Football’s Greatest Coaches,” which included media, coaches, former great players and just about anyone associated with the game, and a point-based formula.

Note: The points system was crucial in pinpointing where Joe Paterno and Penn State placed after NCAA penalties a couple of years ago.

Schools in the top 25 in each category received points similar to the weekly top 25 polls, going from 25-24-23, down to 3-2-1. The points were then added up and the programs listed in order.

Are the numbers perfect? Of course not. It’s definitely the equivalent of throwing everything into a blender and seeing what pours out. However, the wide range of categories appears to balance out the numbers, so while a program may score very well or poorly in one category it’s usually offset by another.

The formula has also been tweaked over the years, and will likely continue to be so as better resources become available.

With all that in mind, this year’s top program was pretty predictable:

2013-14 Top 25
Rank, Team, Total points
1. Alabama 194
2. Ohio State 181.5
3. Notre Dame 162.5
4. Oklahoma 161
5. Southern California 142
6. Tennessee 138
7. Texas 134
8. Florida State 133.5
9. LSU 127
10. Michigan 121.6
11. Penn State 112.5
12. Nebraska 111.6
13. Georgia 110.9
14. Auburn 93.1
15. Miami 92.5
16. Florida 88
17. Stanford 64.1
18. Texas A&M 61.9
19. Army 55.5
20. South Carolina 54
21. Clemson 53.9
22. Michigan State 47
23. UCLA 43.5
24. Minnesota 40.5
25. Oregon 37.5

Also accumulating points: Ole Miss 34; Wisconsin 29.5; Navy 26.6; Arkansas 25; Northwestern 25; California 24; Central Florida 24; Rice 24; Boston College 23; Georgia Tech 22.4; Duke 22; Missouri 22; Washington 21.9; Pittsburgh 21; Yale 20.5; Air Force 20; Princeton 19; Boise State 18; Illinois 17; Chicago 17; Rutgers 17; Iowa 15.5; Wake Forest 15; Pennsylvania 14.5; Northern Illinois 14; Brigham Young 13.4; Baylor 13; Texas Christian 12.9; Harvard 12; Louisville 11; Oklahoma State 9; Utah State 9; Texas Tech 8.5; Arizona State 8; Virginia Tech 8; Vanderbilt 6.5; Tulane 5; Virginia 5; Cornell 4; Kentucky 4; Syracuse 4; West Virginia 2.5; Colorado 1.9; Maryland 1.9; Colorado State 1

NO. 1 TEAMS AND TOTAL POINTS
2005-06 Southern California 176.5
2006-07 Southern California 176
2007-08 Ohio State 182.5
2008-09 Ohio State 194.5
2009-10 Ohio State 186
2010-11 Alabama 204
2011-12 Alabama 184.5
2012-13 Alabama 199.5
2013-14 Alabama 194

SEC RANKINGS
1. Alabama
2. Tennessee
3. LSU
4. Georgia
5. Auburn
6. Florida
7. Texas A&M
8. South Carolina
9. Ole Miss
10. Arkansas
11. Missouri
12. Vanderbilt
13. Kentucky
14. Mississippi State

CONFERENCES
(Based on 2013 conference alignment)
Team (Top 25) Total points
1. SEC (8) 958.4
One-year change +16.4; Two-year +106.9; Three-year +23.42
2. Big Ten (6) 701.7
One-year change -59.3; Two-year -52.8; Three-year +100.2
3. ACC (3) 402.2
One-year change +7.7; Two-year 32.2; Three-year +29.7
4. Pac-12 (4) 342.9
One-year change +5.9; Two-year -3.1; Three-year +25.9
5. Big 12 (2) 306.5 340.9
One-year change +34.4; Two-year -52.1; Three-year 166.1
6. Independents (2) 258
7. Other (0) 87
8. American Athletic (0) 52
9. Mountain West (0) 48
10. Conference USA (0) 29
11. Mid-America (0) 14
12. Sun Belt (0) 0

LAST YEAR’S CATEGORIES

Associated Press Poll
1 Florida State
2 Auburn
3 Michigan State
4 South Carolina
5 Missouri
6 Oklahoma
7 Alabama
8 Clemson
9 Oregon
10 UCF
11 Stanford
12 Ohio State
13 Baylor
14 LSU
15 Louisville
16 UCLA
17 Oklahoma State
18 Texas A&M
19 USC
20 Notre Dame
21 Arizona State
22 Wisconsin
23 Duke
24 Vanderbilt
25 Washington

Recruiting rankings (247Sports)
1. Alabama
2. LSU
3. Ohio State
4. Florida State
5. Texas A&M
6. Auburn
7. Tennessee
8. Georgia
9. Florida
10. Notre Dame
11. Southern California
12. Miami
13. Stanford
14. Oklahoma
15. Ole Miss
16. South Carolina
17. Texas
18. Clemson
19. UCLA
20. Michigan
21. Oregon
22. Kentucky
23. Arizona State
24. Penn State
25. Michigan State

Attendance (NCAA)
Rank, School, Average
1. Michigan 111,592
2. Ohio State 104,933
3. Alabama 101,505
4. Texas 98,976
5. Penn State 96,587
6. Tennessee 95,584
7. Georgia 92,746
8. LSU 91,418
9. Nebraska 90,933
10. Florida 87,440
11. Texas A&M, 87,125
12. Auburn 85,657
13. Oklahoma 84,722
14. South Carolina 82,401
15. Clemson 82,048
16. Notre Dame 80,795
17. Wisconsin 78,911
18. Florida State 75,421
19. Southern California 73,126
20. Michigan State 72,328
21. UCLA 70,285
22. Washington 68,769
23. Iowa 67,125
24. Virginia Tech 63,999
25. Missouri 63,505

Players in the NFL (NFL)
1. Southern California 40
2. LSU 39
3. Miami 38
4. Georgia 36
5. Florida State 31
(tie) Texas 31
7. Alabama 30
(tie) California 30
(tie) Tennessee 30
10. Ohio State 27
(tie) Oregon 27
12. Florida 26
13. Notre Dame 24
(tie) Wisconsin 24
15. Oklahoma 23
(tie) Penn State 23
(tie) South Carolina 23
18. Iowa 22
19. Clemson 21
(tie) Illinois 21
(tie) Mississippi 21
(tie) Rutgers 21
(tie) Virginia 21
24. Auburn 20
(tie) Michigan 20
(tie) Nebraska 20
(tie) Stanford 20
(tie) UCLA 20

Academics (NCAA’s Graduation Success Rate)
1. Northwestern 97
2. Rice 96
3. Boston College 94
4. Notre Dame 94
5. Stanford 93
6. Air Force 93
7. Duke 92
8. Boise State 91
9. Army 89
10. Miami 86
11. Wake Forest 86
12. Northern Illinois 85
13. Penn State 85
14. Rutgers 85
15. Texas Christian 85
16. Navy 84
17. Utah State 84
18. Central Florida 83
19. UCLA 82
20. Georgia 82
21. Tulane 82
22. Vanderbilt 82
23. Iowa 81
24. West Virginia 80
25. Colorado State 80

Last season’s subtotals
1. Alabama 85
2. LSU 79
3. Ohio State 76.5
4. Florida State 76.5
5. Notre Dame 66.5
6. Georgia 64
7. Auburn 58.6
8. Tennessee 57
9. Oklahoma 55
10. South Carolina 54

ALL-TIME CATEGORIES

Coaching legacy
1. Alabama
2. Florida State
3. Notre Dame
4. Ohio State
5. Oklahoma
6. Nebraska
7. Penn State*
8. Michigan
9. Chicago
10. Tennessee
11. Texas
12. Southern California
13. Ole Miss
14. Minnesota
15. Brigham Young
16. Illinois
17. Georgia
18. Army
19. Washington
20. Virginia Tech
21. Arkansas
22. Harvard
23. Florida
24. Auburn
(tie) Georgia Tech
(tie) Vanderbilt
*This category is done through a combination of the “Dell Presents College Football’s Greatest Coaches” poll and a devised points-based formula that rewards national championships. Only the top coach counted per school. Before NCAA penalties and vacated wins, Joe Paterno had Penn State second on this list, but minus wins from 1998-2011 he has fewer points than Tom Osborne. So for the purpose of these rankings he’s placed behind him in the top 10, dropping Penn State from second to No. 7.

National championships (BCS/AP and coaches’ polls)
1. Alabama 10
2. Notre Dame 8
3. Oklahoma 7
4. Southern California 6*
5. Miami 5
(tie) Nebraska 5
(tie) Ohio State 5
8. Minnesota 4
(tie) Texas 4
10. Florida 3
(tie) Florida State 3
(tie) LSU 3
13. Army 2
(tie) Auburn 2
(tie) Michigan 2
(tie) Michigan State 2
(tie) Penn State 2
(tie) Pittsburgh 2
(tie) Tennessee 2
20. Brigham Young 1
(tie) Clemson 1
(tie) Colorado 1
(tie) Georgia 1
(tie) Georgia Tech 1
(tie) Maryland 1
(tie) Syracuse 1
(tie) Texas A&M 1
(tie) Texas Christian 1
(tie) UCLA 1
(tie) Washington 1
*Does not include vacated national title

All-time Associated Press Poll
1. Oklahoma
2. Ohio State
3. Alabama
4. Michigan
5. Notre Dame
6. Nebraska
7. Southern California
8. Texas
9. Tennessee
10. Penn State
11. LSU
12. Florida State
13. Miami
14. Auburn
15. Georgia
16. Florida
17. UCLA
18. Arkansas
19. Michigan State
20. Texas A&M
21. Washington
22. Wisconsin
23. Georgia Tech
24. Iowa
(tie) Clemson

College Football Hall of Fame inductions (Coaches and players)
1. Notre Dame 50
2. Michigan 36
3. Southern California 33
4. Ohio State 30
5. Army 28
(tie) Yale 28
7. Princeton 26
8. Oklahoma 25
9. Tennessee 24
(tie) Navy 24
11. Pennsylvania 23
(tie) Stanford 23
13. Pittsburgh 22
(tie) Alabama 22
(tie) Penn State 22
(tie) Minnesota 2
(tie) Nebraska 22
18. Harvard 20
19. Texas 19
20. California 18
21. Cornell 17
22. Georgia 16
(tie) Texas A&M16
23. Georgia Tech 15
(tie) Illinois 15
(tie) Syracuse 15

All-Time bowl appearances
1. Alabama 60 (34-23-3*)
2. Texas 52 (27-23-2)
3. Nebraska 50 (25-25)
4. Tennessee 49 (25-24)
(tie) Georgia 49 (27-19-3)
6. Southern California 48 (32-16*)
7. Oklahoma 47 (28-18-1)
8. LSU 45 (23-21-1)
9. Ohio State 44 (20-24*)
10. Michigan 43 (20-23)
11. Georgia Tech 42 (23-19)
12. Florida State 41 (25-14-2*)
13. Florida 40 (20-20)
14. Arkansas 39 (13-23-3)
15. Penn State 38 (21-15-2*)
(tie) Auburn 38 (22-14-2)
17. Clemson 36 (18-18)
(tie) Texas Tech 36 (14-21-1)
19. Miami 35 (18-17)
(tie) Texas A&M 35 (16-19)
21. Ole Miss 34 (22-12)
22. UCLA 33 (15-17-1)
(tie) Washington 33 (16-16-1)
(tie) Notre Dame 33 (17-16)
25. West Virginia 32 (14-18)
(tie) Brigham Young 32 (13-18-1)
*-record does not include vacated game

All-Time subtotals
1. Alabama 109
2. Oklahoma 106
3. Ohio State 105
4. Notre Dame 96
5. Nebraska 94
6. Michigan 90
7. Southern California 88
8. Texas 81.5
9. Tennessee 81
10. Penn State 66.5

RANKINGS HISTORY

The 2005-09 rankings first appeared in the Tuscaloosa News.
The 2010-13 versions were published by BamaOnline:

2005-06
In the initial rankings, Southern California, which was coming off a dramatic loss to Texas at the Rose Bowl for the national title, was edged by the narrowest of margins, a half-point, by Ohio State. The first top 25 in annual rankings, as did the subsequent three, appeared in the Tuscaloosa News:

Rank, Team, total points
1. Southern California 176.5
2. Ohio State 176
3. Penn State 167.5
4. Notre Dame 160.5
5. Michigan 155
6. Alabama 149.5
7. Oklahoma 145.5
8. Texas 141
9. Tennessee 138
10. Florida State 137.5
11. Georgia 132.1
12. Florida 129.6
13. Nebraska 113
14. Auburn 110.6
15. LSU 107.1
16. Miami 89
17. Army 52.5
18. Texas A&M 45.6
19. UCLA 44
20. Navy 42.5
21. Pittsburgh 37
22. Stanford 34.5
23. Ole Miss 34
24. Clemson 33.6
25. Wisconsin 33
Also accumulating points: Minnesota 32.5, Boston College 31, Georgia Tech 29.5, Virginia Tech 27, Arkansas 22, Yale 22, Texas Christian 21.6, Washington 21.5, Duke 21, West Virginia 21, Michigan State 20.6, California 20.5, Connecticut 20, Princeton 20, Rice 18.5, Southern Miss 18.5, Chicago 17, Wake Forest 17, BYU 16.6, Air Force 15, Syracuse 15.9, Penn 14.5, Miami (Ohio) 14, North Carolina 14, Vanderbilt 13.5, Carlisle 13, Oregon 13, Texas Tech 12.5, Harvard 12.5, South Carolina 12, Northwestern 11, Rutgers 11, Iowa 10, Cornell 9.5, Colorado 8.6, Arizona 8, Louisville 7.5, Purdue 7, Virginia 4.8, Maryland 4.6, Oklahoma 4, Illinois 3.5, Utah 3, Arizona State 2, Kansas State .3.

2006-07
The second year saw a repeat in the winning margin, only with another team as Michigan finished a half-point behind the Trojans, and the exact same amount over rival Ohio State. Alabama, which hired Nick Saban following the 2006 season, was dangerously close to falling out of the Top 10:

1. Southern California 176
2. Michigan 175.5
3. Ohio State 175
4. Notre Dame 160.5
5. Tennessee 156.5
6. Oklahoma 144
7. Alabama 138
(tie) Florida 138
9. Texas 135
10. Penn State 130.5
11. Nebraska 129.5
12. Georgia 121.5
13. LSU 115
14. Auburn 108
15. Florida State 103
16. Miami 92.5
17. Army 56
18. Navy 42.5
(tie) Wisconsin 42.5
20. Georgia Tech 39.5
21. California 39.2
22. Arkansas 38
23. Texas A&M 37
24. Stanford 36.5
25. Minnesota 34
Also accumulating points: Rutgers 33, Pittsburgh 33, Boston College 27.5, South Carolina 27.2, Clemson 26, BYU 26, UCLA 25, Duke 24, Wake Forest 22.5, Yale 22, Rice 21.5, Boise State 21, Louisville 20, Air Force 20, Princeton 20, Virginia Tech 19.5, North Carolina 19.5, Michigan State 19, Southern Miss 18, TCU 17.5, Chicago 17, West Virginia 16, Ole Miss 15.5, Oregon 15, Penn 14, Carlisle 13, Illinois 12.5, Harvard 11.5, Washington 11.2, Connecticut 10.5, Syracuse 9, Cornell 8.5, Northwestern 8.5, Iowa 8.5, Purdue 8, Virginia 8, Colorado 7.5, Texas Tech 7, Vanderbilt 7, Miami (Ohio) 5.5, Oregon State 5, Maryland 4.2, Arizona State .2.

2007-08
The 2007 season saw the Buckeyes break through despite finishing fifth in the final Associated Press poll while LSU captured the BCS crown. A crucial category was players in the NFL, with Ohio State second only to Miami.

1. Ohio State 182.5
2. Southern California 165
3. Michigan 164.5
(tie) Notre Dame 164.5
5. Oklahoma 157.25
6. Alabama 154
7. Georgia 148.6
8. Tennessee 143.5
9. Texas 132
10. Penn State 128.5
11. Florida 124
11. LSU 119
13. Nebraska 113
14. Miami 108.5
15. Florida State 106.5
16. Auburn 79.6
17. Texas A&M 50.6
18. Army 48
19. Minnesota 42
20. Navy 41
21. Clemson 40.1
22. Stanford 35.5
23. Boston College 34.5
(tie) UCLA 34.5
25. California 33.5
Also accumulating points: Georgia Tech 29.5, Pittsburgh 29.5, BYU 27.6, Virginia Tech 28, Wisconsin 25, Duke 22.5, Rutgers 22.5, Arkansas 22, Missouri 22, Yale 22, Air Force 21, Arizona State 21, West Virginia 20, Rice 20, Princeton 19.5, Kansas 19, Colorado 18.6, Michigan State 18.6, Chicago 17, Northwestern 17, Ole Miss 17, Washington 15.5, Penn 15, Vanderbilt 14.5, Miami (Ohio) 13.5, South Carolina 13.25, Carlisle 13, Maryland 12.1, Texas Tech 12, Wake Forest 11.5, TCU 11.1, Cornell 11, Illinois 10.5, Harvard 10.5, Kentucky 10, Oregon 10, Cincinnati 9, Syracuse 8.1, Hawaii 7, Purdue 6.5, Southern Miss 6, Iowa 5.5, Memphis 4.5, Louisville 3.5, North Carolina 3.5, Boise State 1.5, Oregon State 1, North Carolina State .25, Virginia .25.

2008-09
With a strong recruiting class, Ohio State kept its strong grip on the No. 1 spot and scored the most points in the rankings thus far. Moving up to the No. 3 spot, though, was Alabama, which had just landed its second straight top recruiting class.

1. Ohio State 194.5
2. Southern California 178.5
3. Alabama 168
4. Texas 163
5. Michigan 157.5
6. Oklahoma 151
7. Penn State 150.5
8. Notre Dame 144
9. Georgia 142.1
10. Tennessee 142
11. Florida 127.5
12. Florida State 117.5
13. Nebraska 109.5
14. LSU 106
15. Miami 99.5
16. Auburn 61.1
17. Army 48
18. Stanford 42
19. Texas A&M 40.35
20. Michigan State 38.6
21. Navy 37
22. Georgia Tech 36.25
23. Ole Miss 36
24. California 33.5
25. Arkansas 31.5
Also accumulating points: Minnesota 31, Pitt 29, UCLA 29, Virginia Tech 27, Texas Christian 26.6, Air Force 24, Utah 24, Duke 23.5, Rutgers 23.5, Boise State 23, South Carolina 23, North Carolina 22.5, Texas Tech 22, Yale 22, Boston College 21.5, Rice 21, Princeton 19, Vanderbilt 19, Clemson 17.6, Chicago 17, Brigham Young 16.6, Iowa 16, Oregon 16, Northwestern 15, Penn 15, Maryland 13.6, Carlisle 13, Harvard 11, Wisconsin 11, Cornell 10.5, Oklahoma State 10, Washington 9.5, Cincinnati 9, Miami (Ohio) 8, Oregon State 8, Wake Forest 8, Missouri 7, Purdue 5.5, Tulane 5.5, Colorado 5.1, Syracuse 3.6, West Virginia 3.5, Kentucky 3, Central Florida 2.5, Arizona State 1.75, Louisville 1.75, Illinois 1.5, Mississippi State 1, Indiana .5.

2009-10
For the third straight year Ohio State was first, having finished in the top six in eight categories and top 10 in another, missing out only in recruiting. Since Jim Tressel had taken over the program nine years previous the Buckeyes had been the most consistent of the top-tier programs, having played for three national championships and won one, with seven 10-win seasons, and six Big Ten titles including five straight. Meanwhile, although Alabama beat Texas in the Rose Bowl for the BCS National Championship, the Longhorns kept a narrow lead for second place.

1. Ohio State 186
2. Texas 175.5
3. Alabama 172.5
4. Southern California 166
5. Penn State 154.5
6. Notre Dame 146
7. Tennessee 141.5
8. Michigan 140.5
9. Oklahoma 138.5
10. Florida 132
11. Nebraska 129
12. LSU 118.5
13. Florida State 98
14. Georgia 94.75
15. Miami 74.5
16. Auburn 71.75
17. Georgia Tech 62.25
18. Boise State 46.5
19. Clemson 40.75
20. Ole Miss 40
(tie) Army 40
22. Minnesota 38.5
23. Texas Christian 37.75
24. Iowa 37
25. Pittsburgh 35
(tie) Virginia Tech 35
Also accumulating points: Texas A&M 33.75; UCLA 33.75; California 28; Oregon 28; Brigham Young 27.25; Michigan State 27; Arkansas 26.5; Northwestern 24.5; Northern Illinois 23; Yale 22; Wisconsin 21; Rice 21; Illinois 19; Princeton 19; Air Force 19; Cincinnati 18; Navy 18; Stanford 18; Baylor 17.5; Rutgers 17.5; Chicago 17; Harvard 17; Washington 16.25; Vanderbilt 15; Maryland 14.25; Missouri 13.5; Pennsylvania 13; Texas Tech 13; Central Florida 12; West Virginia 12; Middle Tennessee State 11; Purdue 10; South Carolina 9; Utah 8; Duke 7; North Carolina 6; Virginia 6; Hawaii 5; Cornell 4; Kentucky 4; Colorado 3.25; Central Michigan 3; Wake Forest 2; Marshall 2; Syracuse 1.75.

2010-11
In just his fifth year on the Capstone, Saban had Alabama at the top of the college football world. The Crimson Tide was the only program to score points in all 10 categories, and was in the top five in seven of them. Its worst showing was in players in the NFL, where it placed 14th.
1. Alabama 204
2. Ohio State 182
3. Southern California 153.5
4. Texas 152
5. Oklahoma 144
6. Tennessee 135.5
7. Notre Dame 133
8. Michigan 132
9. Georgia 129.5
10. LSU 126
11. Nebraska 123.5
12. Penn State 119.5
13. Florida State 109
(tie) Auburn 109
15. Florida 94.5
16. Miami 78.5
17. Clemson 55
18. TCU 52
19. Stanford 48
(tie) Arkansas 48
21. Army 42
22. Oregon 40.5
(tie) Boise State 40.5
24. Michigan State 38.5
(tie) Minnesota 38.5
Also accumulating points: Navy 36.5, California 35, Texas A&M 34.5, Ole Miss 34, Georgia Tech 33.5, South Carolina 33.5, Wisconsin 30, Iowa 28, Pittsburgh 23.5, Washington 23, Oklahoma State 22.5, Yale 21.5, Duke 21, Mississippi State 19, Princeton 19, Virginia Tech 19, Chicago 17, Harvard 17, Middle Tennessee 17, Northwestern 17, UCLA 17, Utah State 17, Maryland 16, Nevada 15, Northern Illinois 15, Brigham Young 14.5, Missouri 14.5, Boston College 14, Illinois 14, Pennsylvania 13, Texas Tech 12.5, Toledo 12.5, Wake Forest 12.5, New Mexico 11, North Carolina 8, Central Florida 7, Virginia 6, Cornell 5, Rutgers 4.5, Colorado 3.5, Syracuse3.5, West Virginia 2.5, Purdue 2, Tulsa 2, Kentucky 1, North Carolina State 1, Vanderbilt 1

2011-12
With revamped scoring in a few categories Alabama wasn’t able to approach its previous year’s record points total of 204, but still blew away the field. No program was able to score points in all 10 categories, but Alabama did in nine, placing first in five, and was in the top five in seven categories.

1. Alabama 184.5
2. Ohio State 168
3. Southern California 165.5
4. Michigan 158.5
5. Oklahoma 154.5
6. Notre Dame 148.5
7. Texas 147
8. Tennessee 133.5
9. Penn State 130
10. LSU 125.5
11. Nebraska 118
12. Georgia 111.5
13. Florida State 105.5
14. Miami 101
15. Florida 96.5
16. Auburn 74.5
17. Stanford 68
18. Army 56
19. Arkansas 50
20. Texas A&M 45.5
21. Minnesota 41
22. Oregon 39.5
23. South Carolina 39
24. Michigan State 38.5
25. Navy 36
Also accumulating points: Iowa 35, Clemson 31.5, Wisconsin 30.5, UCLA 27, Northwestern 24, Rutgers 24, California 23.5, Georgia Tech 23.5, Boston College 23, Ole Miss 22.5, Duke 22, Oklahoma State 22, Virginia Tech 22, Pittsburgh 21.5, Rice 21, Yale 20.5, Washington 20, Maryland 19, TCU 18.5, Princeton 18.5, Boise State 18, Chicago 17, Baylor 15, Pennsylvania 15, Brigham Young 14.5, Vanderbilt 14, Miami, Ohio 14, Virginia 13.5, Air Force 12, Harvard 12, West Virginia 11.5, Syracuse 11.5, Kansas State 11, Illinois 11, Southern Miss 10, Wake Forest 10, Cincinnati 9, Central Florida 9, Houston 8, Texas Tech 8, Cornell 5.5, Colorado State 5, Colorado 3.5, North Carolina 3, Marshall 1, Missouri 1

2012-13
The reigning national champions kept their vice-grip at the top spot by winning another crystal football, this time trouncing Notre Dame in the BCS National Championship Game. With its third national title in four years, the Crimson Tide achieved dynasty status, and finished atop these rankings as well for the third straight year.

1. Alabama 199.5
2. Ohio State 196
3. Notre Dame 185.5
4. Michigan 160.5
5. Southern California 153
6. Oklahoma 141
7. Texas 131
8. Georgia 126
9. Nebraska 126
10. LSU 125.5
11. Florida 118
12. Penn State 114
13. Tennessee 114
14. Florida State 111
15. Miami 98
16. Texas A&M 71
17. Auburn 66
18. Clemson 56
19. Army 55
20. Stanford 51
21. Minnesota 41
22. Ole Miss 40
23. UCLA 38
24. Northwestern 34
25. Iowa 33
Also accumulating points: South Carolina 32; Arkansas 31; Oregon 31; Navy 30; Washington 26; Georgia Tech 24.5; Michigan State 23.5; Boston College 23; California 22.5; Pittsburgh 22; Rice 21; Yale 20.5; Duke 20; Illinois 18; Princeton 18; Rutgers 18; Boise State 17; Chicago 17; Utah State 17; Vanderbilt 16; Pennsylvania 15; Wisconsin 15; Brigham Young 14.5; Air Force 14; Kansas State 14; Louisville 13; Wake Forest 13; Miami (Ohio) 11; Maryland 13; Harvard 12; Syracuse 10.5; Texas Tech 8.5; Central Florida 8; Virginia Tech 8; West Virginia 6.5; Colorado State 6; North Carolina 6; Oregon State 6; Utah 6; Texas Christian 5.5; Cornell 5; San Jose State 5; Northern Illinois 4; Colorado 3.5; Missouri 2; Mississippi State 1