College Football Rankings 2016: Projected AP Top 25 After National Championship
By Zach Bigalke
Florida State capped a season where they went 5-0 in non-conference play with a close victory over Michigan in the Orange Bowl. The Seminoles got 145 rushing yards and a touchdown from Dalvin Cook in the final game of his college career. Deondre Francois completed just nine of his 27 attempts, but connected for 222 yards and two scores when he was on target. FSU held the Wolverines to just 252 yards of total offense, prevailing by a point despite losing the turnover and possession battles.
The Seminoles finished just third in the ACC Atlantic after a huge loss at Louisville and close defeats to North Carolina and Clemson. But as we saw throughout this bowl season, the ACC was the most loaded conference in the country. Their wins included a comeback victory over Ole Miss in the opener, a 20-point road win against solid mid-major South Florida, and a takedown of rival Florida in the regular-season finale.
The end result will likely be a decent climb in the final AP Top 25. They will surely move ahead of the Michigan team they took down in Miami, and will finish as the second-highest team from the ACC in the polls. After ending the year on a five-game winning streak, Jimbo Fisher’s crew should be right back in the national conversation next year.