VCI college football conference ratings

[Vort]

Behold Vort's Conference Index! In the VCI, each team ranked in the AP top 25 gains its conference 100 points minus its ranking (e.g. BYU is #11, so it contributes 100 - 11 = 89 points to the Mountain West Conference). Each conference's total is then divided by the number of teams in that conference, yielding the infamous and much-respected VCI. So how, exactly, do the conferences sort out with the VCI?

SEC: 45.3

Big 12: 38.1

Big 10: 31.2

MWC: 27.6

WAC: 17.3

ACC: 13.7

Big East: 10.9

PAC-10: 9.9

C-USA: 6.4

Behold the irrefutable statistical truth: The Mountain West is the fourth-strongest conference in the nation!

Commenting on these numbers, here are the conferences, with the number of teams in parenthesis, then the conference score, followed by the individual team breakdown:

SEC (12): 544/12 = 45.3

East (6): 272/6 = 45.3

Georgia 3 (97)

Florida 4 (96)

Vanderbilt 21 (79)

West (6) : 272/6 = 45.3

LSU 5 (95)

Alabama 8 (92)

Auburn 15 (85)

The East and West divisions are amazingly well-balanced. No doubt about it: The SEC is the toughest conference in the nation.

Big 12 (12): 457/12 = 38.1

North (6): 176/6 = 29.3

Missouri 6 (94)

Kansas 18 (82)

South (6): 281/6 = 46.8

Oklahoma 2 (98)

Texas 7 (93)

Texas Tech 10 (90)

The South division actually has a marginally higher score even than the SEC -- not statistically meaningful, but hey, cool nonetheless -- but the North division brings them down to a still-amazing 38.1.

Big 10 (11): 343/11 = 31.2

Wisconsin 9 (91)

Penn State 12 (88)

Ohio State 14 (86)

Illinois 22 (78)

The misnamed Big 10 gets a powerful score by virtue of putting four teams into the top 25.

MWC (9): 248/9 = 27.6

BYU 11 (89)

Utah 17 (83)

TCU 24 (76)

Ah, yes, the beloved Mountain West. A very strong score, especially for a non-BC$ conference. If we had another in the top 25 -- which some (lone voices in the wilderness) would argue that Air Force deserves -- we would be up in Big 12 territory, score-wise.

WAC (9): 156/9 = 17.3

Boise State 19 (81)

Fresno State 25 (75)

The two juggernauts in the WAC carry it to a strong score, beating out half of the BC$ conferences.

ACC (12): 164/12 = 13.7

Atlantic: 164/6 = 27.3

Wake Forest 16 (84)

Clemson 20 (80)

The Atlantic division alone scores high, almost as well as the MWC, but as a whole the conference doesn't have a strong score. Well, at least they're (barely) in the top 6 conferences, thus being able to argue that they belong in BC$ consideration.

Big East (8): 87/8 = 10.9

South Florida 13 (87)

The Big (L)East lives down to their nickname.

PAC-10 (10): 99/10 = 9.9

USC 1 (99)

They may have the best team in the nation, but this year the PAC-1 is by far the most overrated conference in the nation.

C-USA (12): 77/12 = 6.4

East: 77/6 = 12.8

East Carolina 23 (77)

By virtue of East Carolina's continued position, their East division actually ranks (unfortunate word choice) above the BC$ cellar-dwellers, and the conference as a whole still registers, barely.

[Traveler]

Sorry to burst you bubble but NCAA Football is not about sport, or student athletes. It is about money. Therefore, your rankings are bogus - follow the money is a more accurate way of ranking conferences.

The Traveler

[Palerider]

it figures that while looking at my conference...once again...Kansas is holding us back......GO MISSOURI.....

[Vort]

Palerider, just be glad Mizzou isn't stinking up the B12 as in times past...you have a good team this year. Enjoy it while it lasts.

In other news, the Mountain West is considering asking USC if it would like to leave the PAC-1 and join a real conference.

[goofball]

Go Byu Cougars

[Palerider]

Palerider, just be glad Mizzou isn't stinking up the B12 as in times past...you have a good team this year. Enjoy it while it lasts.

In other news, the Mountain West is considering asking USC if it would like to leave the PAC-1 and join a real conference.

yes they are good....and they finally brought in a coach that could build a team...we have been waiting a long time for this...

[Vort]

Yet another edition of Vort's Amazingly Stupendous College Football Conference Index (or VCI, for short):

Big 12: 546/12 = 45.5

South: 366/6 = 61

1. Oklahoma 99

5. Texas 95

7. Texas Tech 93

21. Oklahoma State 79

North: 180/6 = 30

4. Missouri 96

16. Kansas 84

Wow. Even the weaker North division beats everyone else besides the SEC. Better yet, the B-12 appears to be the real deal, not a paper tiger like I suspect the SEC to be.

SEC: 540/12 = 45

East: 363/6 = 60.5

2. Alabama 98

3. LSU 97

13. Auburn 87

19. Vanderbilt 81

West:177/6 = 29.5

11. Georgia 89

12. Florida 88

In the immortal words of JoePa (at least that's who I have heard them attributed to), nothing succeeds like success. Percentage points behind the Big XII for the strongest conference, and doubtless the favorites of the eastern press.

Big 10: 262/11 = 23.8

6. Penn State 94

14. Ohio State 86

18. Wisconsin 82

Speaking of JoePa...anyone else think that Penn State is the real deal this year? Good times in (the other) Happy Valley.

PS When I was at Penn State back in the early 90s, JoePa still had his telephone number listed in the city directory. Anyone know if it's still there?

Big East: 166/8 = 20.8

10. South Florida 90

24. Connecticut 76

The Big (L)East beats out the MWC in conference strength based on their 8-team conference, compared to the MWC's 9-team league. Doesn't change my opinion of them, though. I bet Air Force beats Conn 6 games out of 10; certainly TCU is a better club.

MWC: 177/9 = 19.7

8. Brigham Young 92

15. Utah 85

Dropped in the coveted VCI standings, but one in the top 10 and another knocking on the door...can't be too upset about that.

WAC: 161/9 = 16.9

17. Boise State 83

22. Fresno State 78

Go, WAC! Nice to see Fresno State back in the mix. This may be the Two Guys Plus Everyone Else conference, but those Two Guys are pretty decent.

PAC-10: 168/10 = 16.8

9. USC 91

23. Oregon 77

Thanks to the mighty Ducks breaking in, the Pac-10 isn't bringing up the rear in this week's index. Enjoy it while it lasts, Paccers. These two teams play next week, and one won't be in the poll any more afterwards...

ACC: 155/12 = 12.9

Coastal: 80/6 = 13.7

20. Virginia Tech 80

Atlantic: 75/6 = 12.5

25. Wake Forest 75

Personally, I'd take the ACC over the Big (L)East, but the VCI never lies.