U.S. SPORTS col. football • scores • schedules • standings • polls • stats • players • conferences • teams scoreboards baseball S pro football S pro basketball S m. college bb S w. college bb S hockey S golf plus S tennis S soccer S nascar plus outdoor extreme winter salt lake 2002 more sports WORLD SPORT

EVENTS
 Sportsman of the Year
 Heisman Trophy
 Swimsuit 2001

CNNSI.com GROUP
 Sports Illustrated
 Life of Reilly
 SI Women
 SI for Kids
 Press Room
 TBS/TNT Sports
 CNN Languages

COMMERCE
 SI Customer Service
 SI Media Kits
 Get into College
 Sports Memorabilia
 TeamStore

Ivan Maisel's Top 25

Click here for more on this story

Julius Peppers and UNC have won five in a row after shutting down Clemson 38-3. AP

Each week, Sports Illustrated college football writer Ivan Maisel discloses his ballot in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.

Texas played like the team that Longhorn fans hoped it would be. A resounding 41-7 victory over Colorardo should be rewarded, so I moved Texas up from sixth to fourth.

Maryland, unlike Auburn and Georgia, showed that it can stand success. A week after winning at Georgia Tech in overtime, the Terrapins beat Duke, 59-17.

Speaking of Maryland, I'm sorry that it has taken me this long to rank North Carolina. The Tar Heels have won five straight since starting the season 0-3. Those losses, to Oklahoma, the Terps and Texas, disguised how good North Carolina is.

No more Mr. Nice Guy. Fresno State? Dropped to 19th. Oregon falls to 15th, fourth among Pac-10 teams.

I also dropped Washington four spots to 22nd. Washington reminds me of my children: Laugh at one of their jokes and they tell it six more times. Enough already -- the Huskies' last-minute victories are thrilling, yes, but when the last two come against Cal (0-6) and Arizona (3-4), it's time to realize that the Huskies aren't as good as I thought.

Ivan Maisel's Top 25 Ballot
Rank	Team	Record	Pvs
1.	Oklahoma	7-0	1
2.	Miami	5-0	2
3.	UCLA	6-0	3
4.	Texas	6-1	6
5.	Virginia Tech	6-0	4
6.	Nebraska	8-0	5
7.	Florida	5-1	8
8.	Maryland	7-0	14
9.	Georgia	5-1	12
10.	Tennessee	4-1	13
11.	Michigan	5-1	15
12.	Auburn	6-1	11
13.	Washington State	7-0	17
14.	Stanford	4-1	--
15.	Oregon	6-1	7
16.	North Carolina	5-3	--
17.	Florida State	4-2	19
18.	South Carolina	6-1	20
19.	Fresno State	6-1	9
20.	Colorado	5-2	10
21.	Syracuse	6-2	21
22.	Washington	5-1	18
23.	BYU	7-0	24
24.	Illinois	6-1	25
25.	Texas A&M	6-1	--

Sports Illustrated senior writer Ivan Maisel is the co-author of A War in Dixie: Inside Alabama v. Auburn, College Football's Fiercest Rivalry (HarperCollins). Make sure to check out his Top 25 and Heisman Watch every Sunday, his Burning Questions on Tuesdays, and his weekly chat each Friday.

 

Related information
Multimedia
Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video
Search our site	Watch CNN/SI 24 hours a day
	Sports Illustrated and CNN have combined to form a 24 hour sports news and information channel. To receive CNN/SI at your home call your cable operator or DirecTV.

Copyright © 2001 CNN/Sports Illustrated An AOL Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Read our privacy guidelines.