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Daily briefing: On Purdue, the AP poll and the CFP rankings

Ivan Maiselby:Ivan Maisel•11/02/21•

Ivan_Maisel

PurduebeatsIowa
Purdue pulled a shocker when it upset Iowa in early October. Can the Boilermakers pull another shocker this Saturday? (Courtesy of Purdue Athletics)

Ivan Maisel’s “Daily Briefing” for On3:

Can Purdue slay another giant?

Iowa won an emotional home game over Penn State, rose to No. 2 in the polls and one week later fell flat at home against Purdue. Michigan State won an emotional home game over Michigan, rose to No. 5 in the polls and one week later must travel to Purdue. If the Boilermakers (5-3, 3-2 in the Big Ten) can work their underdog magic again, they’ll forever be known as the Giant Killers of 2021. And here’s the thing: Purdue ranks 16th in the nation in passing offense with 307.1 yards per game and has completed at least 65 percent of its passes in seven of eight games. The Spartans’ pass defense is vulnerable. They allow an average of 300.5 yards per game (127th), but their efficiency against the pass is 34th. The Spartans bend and don’t break — so far. I think the upset alert is appropriate.

All hail Wake Forest

Given that this is the last day we’ll pay attention to the AP poll — the first College Football Playoff ranking comes out tonight — and given that Wake Forest made the top 10 this week for the first time in the 85-year history of the poll, I looked up on collegepollarchive.com a few other historical tidbits. Wake is the last Autonomy 5 (or Power 5) school to reach the top 10. The longest drought now belongs to Vanderbilt, which last reached No. 10 (and no higher) in 1947. After that is Duke (No. 8, 1962) and — this really surprised me — Syracuse. The Orange reached No. 9 in 1996. The most prominent, if that’s the right word, team to never appear in the poll? New Mexico.

Where will Cincinnati be in the CFP rankings?

About that College Football Playoff ranking, here are the questions that most interest me: 1. Where is Cincinnati ranked? 2. How high is Cincinnati ranked? 3. Will Cincinnati be ranked in the top four? For the health and well-being of the sport, I hope the Bearcats get an opportunity to earn their way into the Final Four. The win over Notre Dame (No. 8 and still only once-beaten) continues to hold up for Cincinnati, who could use more help from No. 23 SMU, which coughed up its first loss Saturday to Houston in the final minute. The Mustangs head to Nippert Stadium on November 20.