Hlas' end-of-season AP Top 25 ballot

I feel confident I have No. 1 correct. After that, it's completely fair game for critics. That's why they have these polls in the first place, I think.

1. Alabama (14-0). A nice little season, a nice little team. Nine wins over bowl teams. A resounding win over Florida. A victory over Virginia Tech on a neutral field. And, oh yeah, that BCS title-game thing against Texas.

2. Boise State (14-0). Unbeaten seasons have to count for something. It isn't the Broncos' fault they weren't pitted against a Florida or Iowa in a BCS bowl. Wins over Oregon and TCU are the equal of any two wins any other team can claim outside of Alabama beating Florida and Texas.

3. Texas (13-1): The tie-breaker for No. 3 is how Texas and Florida played vs. Alabama. Texas' second-half without its star quarterback broke the tie.

4. Florida (13-1). See previous comment.

5. Ohio State (11-2): A convincing Rose Bowl performance atop wins over Penn State and Iowa should lock the Buckeyes in at fifth.

6. Iowa (11-2): Ahead of once-beaten TCU and Cincinnati? Is this pure provincialism? I think not. Here's a long-winded explanation:

The Hawkeyes played eight regular-season games against teams that went to bowls, winning six. Included were road victories over Penn State and Wisconsin, which combined to win 21 games and two bowls. Now, Cincinnati played seven such vs. bowl-bound teams and won them all. But I would suggest the teams Iowa beat were superior to those the Bearcats defeated. Plus, Iowa pushed Ohio State to overtime in Columbus, and defeated ACC champion Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl. TCU and Cincinnati lost their bowls and didn't look terribly distinguished in doing so.

Would I have picked Iowa 6th and TCU 7th if I worked in Dallas-Fort Worth? Probably not. Would TCU have gone unbeaten in the regular-season had it played Iowa's schedule? Probably not.

7. TCU (12-1): I was a big TCU fan all season. I did not like what I saw from the Horned

Frogs in their moment of truth, the Fiesta Bowl.

8. Penn State (11-2): The Nittany Lions finished the season strong, with a resounding win at pre-suspensions Michigan State and a victory over LSU in the Capital One Bowl. They went 8-1 after losing at home to Iowa, falling only to Ohio State.

9. Cincinnati (12-1): It wasn't just the 51-24 Sugar Bowl loss to Florida that pushes the Bearcats down this list. They allowed 197 points in their last five games and wobbled before their pratfall in New Orleans.

Now it gets even tougher. I don't find another legitimate Top Ten team out there.

10. BYU (11-2): After wrestling between Oregon, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech, I took a team with a better record that won its last five games, the last three against good teams in Air Force, Utah and Oregon State. The first two of those were bowl-winners themselves. The Cougars were very good in beating Oregon State in the Las Vegas Bowl.

11. Oregon (10-3): The Ducks played eight bowl teams in the regular-season and beat six. They weren't much to watch in the Rose Bowl, though.

12. Virginia Tech (10-3): Ended the season with five straight wins, though East Carolina was probably the best of the five victims. Also defeated Nebraska and Miami.

13. Georgia Tech (11-3): It may be easy to knock down the Yellow Jackets after they mustered just 155 yards against Iowa, but they beat Virginia Tech once and Clemson twice, and are a BCS conference champion.

14. Nebraska (10-4): Came within a foot of winning the Big 12, then clubbed Arizona in the Holiday Bowl. Won six of its final seven games. Had two 1-point losses and another by two.

15. Wisconsin (10-3): After criticism of having no big win in the regular-season, the Badgers smothered Miami in the Champs Sports Bowl.

16. Pittsburgh (10-3): Lost two of its last three, but won the Meineke Car Care Bowl and defeated four teams that won bowls.

17. LSU (9-4): I haven't been impressed with the Tigers all season, but they played Penn State straight-up (almost) in the Capital One Bowl.

18. Utah (10-3): A good season, but without that one big win. Dumping California in the Poinsettia Bowl doesn't qualify as one, though it did add to the Utes' ever-growing postseason lore.

19. Miami (9-4): Why so high after such a dismal effort vs. Wisconsin in the Champs Sports Bowl? Because after the top 18 teams, I'm not thrilled about ranking any of the following except ...

20. Central Michigan (12-2): The Chippewas had a great rally to beat a good Troy team in the GMAC Bowl, won all nine of their conference games, and won at Michigan State back when that meant something. Their only two losses were on the road to BCS-conference teams that went to bowls.

21. Mississippi (9-4): Closed the season by sandwiching a horrific loss to Mississippi State with wins over LSU and Oklahoma State.

22. USC (9-4): The schizo Trojans embarrassed themselves at home against Stanford and Arizona, but did have four regular-season wins over bowl-winners, including Ohio State in Columbus.

23. Texas Tech (9-4): I made this pick while locked in an electrical closet. But the Red Raiders won four of their last five games, played Texas tough in Austin, and crushed Oklahoma.

24. Navy (10-4): An armed forces team that wins 10 games probably should be ranked higher than this. Superb Texas Bowl performance against Missouri.

25. Middle Tennessee State (10-3): Hey, New Orleans Bowl champs, you're probably going to be listed in "also receiving votes" just because of me.