2021 College Football Rankings: CFN Season Formula Top 10
10 San Diego State Aztecs (12-2)
2021 CFN Season Score 19.67
CFN 2021 Preseason Ranking 69
2021 CFN Final Opinion Ranking 25
Best Win UTSA (Frisco Bowl) 38-24
Worst Loss Fresno State 30-20
2021 CFN Combined Final Ranking 17.5
2021 CFN Combined Overall Ranking 14
Coming up with 12 wins was big, the Frisco Bowl victory over a UTSA team that finished 12-2 for an Elite Win was huge, and the five Quality Wins matter. Had the team been healthy and able to field a whole team in the Mountain West Championship against Utah State – and win – the Aztecs would’ve pushed hard for a five-win season.
9 Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (13-1)
2021 CFN Season Score 19.69
CFN 2021 Preseason Ranking 79
2021 CFN Final Opinion Ranking 38
Best Win Appalachian State (Sun Belt Championship) 24-16
Worst Loss at Texas 38-18
2021 CFN Combined Final Ranking 23.5
2021 CFN Combined Overall Ranking T19
Georgia, Cincinnati, Alabama. Those are the only other teams able to come up with at least 13 wins. The Ragin’ Cajuns lost to Texas to start the season, and then they ripped through the rest of the slate with a 13-win run, a Sun Belt Championship over Appalachian State, and a New Orleans Bowl victory over Marshall. The lack of Quality Wins compare to the rest of the top teams – just five – kept the score from being up with the big guys.
8 Michigan State Spartans (11-2)
2021 CFN Season Score 19.95
CFN 2021 Preseason Ranking 54
2021 CFN Final Opinion Ranking 10
Best Win Michigan 37-33
Worst Loss at Purdue 40-29
2021 CFN Combined Final Ranking 9
2021 CFN Combined Overall Ranking 8
Michigan State came up with the most surprising season of 2021 in a positive way, and it showed with the final Season Ranking. The Elite Wins over 12-2 Michigan and Pitt ended up bringing a giant boost to the overall score – it’s fun to come up with huge wins – and the six Quality Wins helped push past some of the top Group of Five programs.
7 Ohio State Buckeyes (11-2)
2021 CFN Season Score 22.33
CFN 2021 Preseason Ranking 6
2021 CFN Final Opinion Ranking 4
Best Win Michigan State 56-7
Worst Loss Oregon 35-28
2021 CFN Combined Final Ranking 5.5
2021 CFN Combined Overall Ranking 7
As any Ohio State fan if it was a successful season, and considering there wasn’t a national title, there wasn’t a Big Ten Championship, there wasn’t a trip to the College Football Playoff, and worst of all, there wasn’t a win over Michigan, the answer is probably, “not really.” By any reasonable standards it was a great year – winning the Rose Bowl is never a bad thing – with the 594 points cranking up the Season Score. On the flip side …
6 Michigan Wolverines (12-2)
2021 CFN Season Score 23.19
CFN 2021 Preseason Ranking 24
2021 CFN Final Opinion Ranking 3
Best Win Ohio State 42-27
Worst Loss at Michigan State 37-33
2021 CFN Combined Final Ranking 4.5
2021 CFN Combined Overall Ranking T4
The 2021 season might have ended with a thud, but the Wolverines beat Ohio State, won the Big Ten Championship, and they broke through and got to the College Football Playoff. Seven Quality Wins – the victories over teams like Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, and Maryland mattered – but the season was about the finishing kick. Who had a more fun season than Michigan? These five …
CFN 2021 Rankings: Season Formula Final
101-130 | 76-100 | 51-75 | 26-50 | 11-25 | Top 10 | Top 5
Combined Opinion & Season Rankings
CFN College Football Season Formula