A Recent List of Postseason Top 10 Teams Struggling Against Terrible or Small Schools

[UTRavens]

I wanted to see how common it is for this to happen, so I did a quick search on the Wikipedia machine last night. Only top 10 major conference teams are included and games against especially strong mid-majors like Boise State are left out.

2015 - #4 Ohio State – W 20-13 vs Northern Illinois (8-6)
2015 - #6 Michigan State – W 24-21 vs Purdue (2-10)
2015 - #6 Michigan State - W 24-17 at Rutgers (4-8)
2015 - #7 TCU – W 23-17 vs Kansas (0-12)
2014 - #3 TCU – W 34-30 at Kansas (3-9)
2014 - #7 Baylor – W 48-46 vs Texas Tech (4-8)
2014 - #8 Georgia Tech – W 42-38 vs Georgia Southern (9-3)
2014 - #10 UCLA – W 40-37 at Colorado (2-10)
2013 - #4 South Carolina – W 35-28 vs Kentucky (2-10)
2013 - #4 South Carolina – L 21-23 at Tennessee (5-7)
2013 - #4 South Carolina – W 19-14 vs Florida (4-8)
2013 - #6 Oklahoma – W 20-17 vs TCU (4-8)
2012 - #3 Ohio State – W 35-28 vs Cal (3-9)
2012 - #3 Ohio State – W 52-49 at Indiana (4-8)
2012 - #5 Georgia – W 29-24 at Kentucky (2-10)
2012 - #6 Texas A&M – W 59-57 at Louisiana Tech (9-3)
2012 - #7 Stanford – W 24-17 vs Washington State (3-9)
2012 - #9 Florida – W 27-20 vs Louisiana-Lafayette (9-4)
2011 - #5 Arkansas – W 29-24 at Ole Miss (2-10)
2011 - #6 USC – W 19-17 vs Minnesota (3-9)
2011 - #9 South Carolina – W 24-21 vs Navy (5-7)
2010 - #6 Oklahoma – W 31-24 vs Utah State (4-8)
2010 - #6 Oklahoma – W 27-24 vs Air Force (9-4)
2010 - #6 Oklahoma – W 31-29 at Cincinnati (4-8)
2010 - #8 LSU – W 43-36 vs Ole Miss (4-8)
2009 - #5 Ohio State – W 31-27 vs Navy (10-4)
2009 - #5 Ohio State – L 18-26 at Purdue (5-7)
2009 - #7 Iowa – W 27-26 vs Northern Iowa (7-4)
2009 - #7 Iowa – W 24-21 vs Arkansas State (4-8)
2008 - #10 Oregon – W 32-26 at Purdue (4-8)
2007 - #2 Georgia – W 20-17 at Vanderbilt (5-7)
2007 - #3 USC – L 23-24 vs Stanford (4-8)
2007 - #3 USC – W 27-24 at Washington (4-9)
2007 - #6 West Virginia – L 9-13 vs Pittsburgh (5-7)
2007 - #9 Virginia Tech – W 17-10 vs North Carolina (4-8)
2006 - #1 Florida – W 25-19 vs Vanderbilt (4-8)
2006 - #2 Ohio State – W 17-10 at Illinois (2-10)
2006 - #3 LSU – W 23-20 vs Ole Miss (4-8)
2006 - #7 Wisconsin – W 30-24 vs Illinois (2-10)
2006 - #8 Michigan – W 34-26 vs Ball State (5-7)
2006 - #9 Auburn – W 23-17 at Ole Miss (4-8)

So this is actually really, really common and it happens several times per year, often against far worse teams than App State. While this certainly doesn't excuse last night and it doesn't mean there aren't legitimate concerns, the people going overboard last night and acting like the season is already over or that the major achievements we expected to be possible are suddenly unattainable ....they can go ahead and shut up. That's the nicest way for me to say it, anyway. What it DOES mean is that even the best teams have stinkers, sometimes more than once, yet their struggles didn't rub off on the rest of the season and they were still often able to bear their stiffest comptetition.

 

[05_never_again]

To be fair, I think you have to throw out any game against a Power 5 conference school and especially against other schools in your own conference. There might not be a great excuse for losing to a conference opponent that goes 4-8, but then again they are in your conference so that says something about their program. I just think that not including games against Power 5 opponents makes it more analogous to what happened last night (considering that App State is a Sun Belt team).

If you do that, your list (that is impressive you researched it that much, BTW) gets a lot shorter. Games like Michigan/Ball State in 2006 and South Carolina/Navy in 2011 remain. Not unprecedented, but not all that common either.

 

[UTRavens]

To be fair, I think you have to throw out any game against a Power 5 conference school and especially against other schools in your own conference. There might not be a great excuse for losing to a conference opponent that goes 4-8, but then again they are in your conference so that says something about their program.

If you do that, your list (that is impressive you researched it that much, BTW) gets a lot shorter. Games like Michigan/Ball State in 2006 and South Carolina/Navy in 2011 remain. Not unprecedented, but not all that common either.

An elite G5 is almost certainly better than those weak P5 schools, if not by a large margin. I'll keep them on there.

 

[DCompagnucci]

As opposed to the list of top 10 teams who take care of business and absolutely beat the dog out of inferior competition? That list would be about 2 miles long.

But we all knew some would seek to explain-away last night's embarassment.

 

[bignewt]

I sure see Ohio State on that list a lot, boy what a bunch of chumps they are!

 

[UTRavens]

As opposed to the list of top 10 teams who take care of business and absolutely beat the dog out of inferior competition? That list would be about 2 miles long.

But we all knew some would seek to explain-away last night's embarassment.

If that's the point you derived from this then you deliberately want to be miserable and there's nothing I can do for you.

The whole point is that these teams DID take care of business for the rest of the season. One bad performance doesn't spell doom, not even close.

 

[gobraves101035]

To be fair a lot of those terrible or small schools are a lot bigger than appy state

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

As opposed to the list of top 10 teams who take care of business and absolutely beat the dog out of inferior competition? That list would be about 2 miles long.

But we all knew some would seek to explain-away last night's embarassment.

A win is never embarrassing. If we lost you would be correct.

However, I disagree with you. No one is trying to "explain" anything away. Everyone has said we played VERY BAD.

Those of us trying to bring context to the game are simply arguing that one bad performance in a win doesn't mean the season is over. There are some like yourself that want Tennessee to close the football program today because we didn't win impressively enough for you against a team with a name like Appalachian State.

 

[99gator]

Out of curiosity, how many of those games did the top 10 team not find the end zone until the 4th quarter or not have a lead in regulation?

 

[cwbytruckers]

Appy State is a Sun Belt team with much better talent than their conference. Truth is Appalachian State would beat several power 5 conference teams.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

I wanted to see how common it is for this to happen, so I did a quick search on the Wikipedia machine last night. Only top 10 major conference teams are included and games against especially strong mid-majors like Boise State are left out.

2015 - #4 Ohio State – W 20-13 vs Northern Illinois (8-6)
2015 - #6 Michigan State – W 24-21 vs Purdue (2-10)
2015 - #6 Michigan State - W 24-17 at Rutgers (4-8)
2015 - #7 TCU – W 23-17 vs Kansas (0-12)
2014 - #3 TCU – W 34-30 at Kansas (3-9)
2014 - #7 Baylor – W 48-46 vs Texas Tech (4-8)
2014 - #8 Georgia Tech – W 42-38 vs Georgia Southern (9-3)
2014 - #10 UCLA – W 40-37 at Colorado (2-10)
2013 - #4 South Carolina – W 35-28 vs Kentucky (2-10)
2013 - #4 South Carolina – L 21-23 at Tennessee (5-7)
2013 - #4 South Carolina – W 19-14 vs Florida (4-8)
2013 - #6 Oklahoma – W 20-17 vs TCU (4-8)
2012 - #3 Ohio State – W 35-28 vs Cal (3-9)
2012 - #3 Ohio State – W 52-49 at Indiana (4-8)
2012 - #5 Georgia – W 29-24 at Kentucky (2-10)
2012 - #6 Texas A&M – W 59-57 at Louisiana Tech (9-3)
2012 - #7 Stanford – W 24-17 vs Washington State (3-9)
2012 - #9 Florida – W 27-20 vs Louisiana-Lafayette (9-4)
2011 - #5 Arkansas – W 29-24 at Ole Miss (2-10)
2011 - #6 USC – W 19-17 vs Minnesota (3-9)
2011 - #9 South Carolina – W 24-21 vs Navy (5-7)
2010 - #6 Oklahoma – W 31-24 vs Utah State (4-8)
2010 - #6 Oklahoma – W 27-24 vs Air Force (9-4)
2010 - #6 Oklahoma – W 31-29 at Cincinnati (4-8)
2010 - #8 LSU – W 43-36 vs Ole Miss (4-8)
2009 - #5 Ohio State – W 31-27 vs Navy (10-4)
2009 - #5 Ohio State – L 18-26 at Purdue (5-7)
2009 - #7 Iowa – W 27-26 vs Northern Iowa (7-4)
2009 - #7 Iowa – W 24-21 vs Arkansas State (4-8)
2008 - #10 Oregon – W 32-26 at Purdue (4-8)
2007 - #2 Georgia – W 20-17 at Vanderbilt (5-7)
2007 - #3 USC – L 23-24 vs Stanford (4-8)
2007 - #3 USC – W 27-24 at Washington (4-9)
2007 - #6 West Virginia – L 9-13 vs Pittsburgh (5-7)
2007 - #9 Virginia Tech – W 17-10 vs North Carolina (4-8)
2006 - #1 Florida – W 25-19 vs Vanderbilt (4-8)
2006 - #2 Ohio State – W 17-10 at Illinois (2-10)
2006 - #3 LSU – W 23-20 vs Ole Miss (4-8)
2006 - #7 Wisconsin – W 30-24 vs Illinois (2-10)
2006 - #8 Michigan – W 34-26 vs Ball State (5-7)
2006 - #9 Auburn – W 23-17 at Ole Miss (4-8)

So this is actually really, really common and it happens several times per year, often against far worse teams than App State. While this certainly doesn't excuse last night and it doesn't mean there aren't legitimate concerns, the people going overboard last night and acting like the season is already over or that the major achievements we expected to be possible are suddenly unattainable ....they can go ahead and shut up. That's the nicest way for me to say it, anyway. What it DOES mean is that even the best teams have stinkers, sometimes more than once, yet their struggles didn't rub off on the rest of the season and they were still often able to bear their stiffest comptetition.

You left off #1 Ohio State in 2014 losing to Virginia-Tech.

Sure Va-Tech is a big name program but I believe they only went 6-6 in 2014 and lost a game to Wake Forest 6-3 in double OT.

That's one of the most bizarre losses in the last few years by a team that went on to win the national championship.

 

[dieseldaddy]

I understand the frustration from last night. I didn't watch the game last night i was at work. I did listen. It seems like we were very flat last night & they were playing like it was their national championship. I also think app. State will beat Miami and go 11-1. Our defense looks good as I watch the game now.

 

[carolinaviking]

Typically, I would not bet on Appy State, even in their best years, against Purdue, Washington, La Tech, WSU, Colorado, Kentucky, Cinci, Navy, or any of those other similar schools, even in their down years. But perhaps I am just drinking the Kool-Aid that says bigger programs in tougher conferences are automatically better.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

Out of curiosity, how many of those games did the top 10 team not find the end zone until the 4th quarter or not have a lead in regulation?

#1 NFL super team Ohio State last year versus Northern Illinois.

They also won 20-13. Game winning TD was an INT return for a TD by LB Darron Lee.

Their game didn't exactly mirror ours but it was very similar. Almost no offensive production. Defense bailing out the offense.

Very similar game against a very similar opponent.

 

[Dudley Smith]

I wonder how many of those were in the season openers? It seems pretty clear to me that teams can hit a down week mid-season (the classic "trap game" scenario). What worries me is that in those mid-season games, you already have a sense of whether the team is any good or not. When it's the first game, there's a good chance that the performance could accurately reflect how good the team really is.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

Typically, I would not bet on Appy State, even in their best years, against Purdue, Washington, La Tech, WSU, Colorado, Kentucky, Cinci, Navy, or any of those other similar schools, even in their down years. But perhaps I am just drinking the Kool-Aid that says bigger programs in tougher conferences are automatically better.

Did you not learn anything from Bowling Green blowing out Maryland and Purdue after playing us close last year?

The best teams in the group of 5 are typically better than the bottom teams in the power 5.

 

[MRPRFCT]

How many of the schools listed were FCS just a few years ago?

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

I wonder how many of those were in the season openers? It seems pretty clear to me that teams can hit a down week mid-season (the classic "trap game" scenario). What worries me is that in those mid-season games, you already have a sense of whether the team is any good or not. When it's the first game, there's a good chance that the performance could accurately reflect how good the team really is.

Last year Stanford lost to Northwestern week 1. They finished the year #3 in the country.

North Carolina lost to eventual 3-9 South Carolina week 1. They finished the year in the ACC championship and an onside kick away from beating Clemson.

Clunkers are actually more likely in week 1 than anytime else. Week 1 is also the least likely game to reflect what type of team you will be.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

How many of the schools listed were FCS just a few years ago?

How many went 11-2 in the FBS and return almost all their starters?

We played poorly. No one in their right mind is trying to pretend App State is a top 25 team. The game should not have been that close.

But many teams that finished the year in the top 10 have played this poorly before against teams worse than App State. This is simply one game. Its simply week 1. Nothing more.

 

[Rockytoptalker]

How many of the schools listed were FCS just a few years ago?

Because if they weren't then that would mean they're better than this year's App State.

Oh wait, it wouldn't. I really hope you don't think the likes of Purdue, Vanderbilt, Ball State, Kansas, etc... are better than this Appalachian State team. Being in the FCS a couple of years ago has nothing to do with it.

 

[UTRavens]

To be fair a lot of those terrible or small schools are a lot bigger than appy state

But are they better? I took a quick look at some of the more recent P5 teams from the OP and saw if they played against a similar quality team to App State:

2015 Purdue - L 31-41 at Marshall (10-3)
2015 Purdue - L 28-35 vs Bowling Green (10-4)
2015 Kansas - L 23-55 vs Memphis (9-4)
2014 Colorado - L 17-31 vs Colorado State (10-3)
2013 Tennessee - W 52-20 vs Western Kentucky (8-4)
2013 Kentucky - L 26-35 vs Western Kentucky (8-4)
2012 Indiana - L 39-41 vs Ball State (9-4)
2012 Kentucky - W 47-14 vs Kent State (11-3)
2011 Ole Miss - L 13-14 vs BYU (10-3)
2011 Minnesota - L 24-37 vs North Dakota State (14-1)

I have very little doubt that G5 powers are tougher competition than P5 dregs...and those weren't even close to the only G5s those teams lost to, I just set the cutoff point at 8-4.

 

[UT_King]

A win is never embarrassing. If we lost you would be correct.

However, I disagree with you. No one is trying to "explain" anything away. Everyone has said we played VERY BAD.

Those of us trying to bring context to the game are simply arguing that one bad performance in a win doesn't mean the season is over. There are some like yourself that want Tennessee to close the football program today because we didn't win impressively enough for you against a team with a name like Appalachian State.

LMAO.... riiiight.

 

[fatal1]

Typically, I would not bet on Appy State, even in their best years, against Purdue, Washington, La Tech, WSU, Colorado, Kentucky, Cinci, Navy, or any of those other similar schools, even in their down years. But perhaps I am just drinking the Kool-Aid that says bigger programs in tougher conferences are automatically better.

lets put it this way appy state went 11-2 last year and people say they lost to their best teams they played and beat the cup cakes. now tenn went 9-4 and beat their cup cakes and lost to their best teams. appy state might go undefeated the rest of the season if this game they had won and let it slip away doesn't affect them.

 

[MRPRFCT]

App State beat 2 teams with winning records last year. Let's not pretend they dominated good teams winning 11 games.

 

[bigdaddy]

As opposed to the list of top 10 teams who take care of business and absolutely beat the dog out of inferior competition? That list would be about 2 miles long.

But we all knew some would seek to explain-away last night's embarassment.

It's called a game and it happens. But hey, we all knew some have no clue