Final Top 25 Rankings: Hail to the Victors! Michigan Reigns Supreme

 It's finally happened! The Michigan Wolverines are at the top of the rankings for the first time in Pool Poll history (since 2000). They overcame a lot of adversity, mostly self-inflicted, but were able to regroup and knock off Ohio State, win the Big Ten, and then claim the National Championship.

The sweet taste of victory.

The Wolverines were one of 12 teams to begin the year in the Top 25 and finish in the Top 25. Those joining them were Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, Oregon, Texas, Washington, Tulane, Notre Dame, Penn State, LSU, and Florida State. The Miami Redhawks had the biggest jump from 86 in the preseason to 17. Memphis and Arizona were the only other teams in the Top 25 that began the season ranked 70th or higher.

It's the end of an era in Tuscaloosa.

The Top 25 was also hit hard by the coaching carousel with five vacancies hitting teams that finished in the Top 15. The biggest shock came when Nick Saban announced his retirement and then Kalen DeBoer was hired away from Washington, fresh off his National Championship appearance.  The Huskies now have a glaring hole to fill before joining the Big Ten in 2024. Tulane, James Madison, and Troy were the three Group of 5 schools that had their coaches raided by Power 5 schools to fix their programs.

Here's a look at the final standings:

1. Michigan (15-0, 56.6 WAA, 0 LAA)

Michigan made it three straight over the Buckeyes.

Preseason Rank: 2

Prediction: 11-1

Hardware: Big Ten Champions, Rose Bowl Champs, National Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: Jim Harbaugh was only 9-0 as the Michigan head coach this season thanks to two separate three-game suspensions; but who's got it better than him right now?

2. Washington (14-1, 48, 2)

The Huskies finished one win short of glory.

Preseason Rank: 6

Prediction: 10-2

Hardware: Pac-12 Championship, Sugar Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Huskies won the last ever Pac-12 Championship as we know it and they are off to the Big Ten in 2024, but without QB Michael Pennix Jr. and head coach Kalen DeBoer.

3. Georgia (13-1, 62.7, 8)

The Bulldogs won the Orange Bowl over FSU in convincing fashion.

Preseason Rank: 1

Prediction: 11-1

Hardware: Orange Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: Forget Florida State, Georgia was number one all season, lost just once in the SEC Championship, and wasn't invited to the College Football Playoffs. 

4. Florida State (13-1, 67.4, 8)

The Seminoles were able to win the ACC Championship, but couldn't finish undefeated.

Preseason Rank: 9

Prediction: 9-3

Hardware: ACC Champions

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Playoff Committee looked pretty justified when FSU got demolished in the Orange Bowl without quarterback Jordan Travis.

5. Liberty (13-1, 90.6, 10)

The Flames won their first-ever appearance in the CUSA Championship.

Preseason Rank: 67

Prediction: 7-5

Hardware: CUSA Championship

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Flames didn't finish undefeated, but they did make their first-ever New Year's Six Bowl.

6. Texas (12-2, 48.7, 6)

The Longhorns won their last appearance in the Big 12 Championship.

Preseason Rank:20

Prediction: 9-3

Hardware: Big 12 Champions

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Longhorns fell just short in their Semifinal matchup with Washington, but will have to focus on winning the SEC in 2024.

7. Alabama (12-2, 58.3, 11)

The Crimson Tide claimed the SEC Championship in Nick Saban's final season.

Preseason Rank: 3

Prediction: 10-2

Hardware: SEC Champions

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Crimson Tide was a defensive stop from making it back to the National Championship, but instead they are in their longest drought (3 years) since they went from 1993 to 2008 without a title.

8. Oregon (12-2, 58.6, 1.5)

Bo Nix could beat everyone in 2023 except the Washington Huskies.

Preseason Rank: 14

Prediction: 9-3

Hardware: Fiesta Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Ducks romped Liberty in the Fiesta Bowl, a game they settled for after failing to beat Washington in the Pac 12 Championship.

9. Ohio State (11-2, 59.9, 11)

Marvin Harrison Jr. was sorely missed in the Cotton Bowl.

Preseason Rank: 4

Prediction: 10-2

Hardware: Biletnikoff Award (Harrison)

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Buckeyes beat the Fighting Irish, but lost to the Wolverines (for the third time in a row), missed the Big Ten Championship (also thrice in a row), and lost their second-straight bowl game.

10. Missouri (11-2, 64.3, 33.5)

Missouri put a makeshift Ohio State offense out of their misery in the fourth quarter of the Cotton Bowl.

Preseason Rank: 60

Prediction: 6-6

Hardware: Cotton Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Tigers went 5-2 against teams with winning records in 2023 and were the surprise of the SEC.

11. James Madison (11-2, 80, 47)

The Dukes were unable to finish their magical run with a bowl win.

Preseason Rank: 59

Prediction: 4-8

Hardware: A litany of denied NCAA waivers to play in a bowl, only to make it to a bowl game because enough eligible teams didn't qualify.

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Dukes were so hot that College Gameday came to town (and jinxed them), and Indiana stole their head coach, Curt Cignetti, away.

12. Ole Miss (11-2, 80.6, 26)

Jaxson Dart and the Rebels took two too many hits to keep them out of the SEC Championship.

Preseason Rank: 29

Prediction: 9-3

Hardware: Peach Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Rebels got the big wins over LSU, Penn State, and a ranked Tulane, but couldn't upend Alabama or Georgia.

13. Troy (11-3, 79.5, 36.7)

Troy dominated in the Sun Belt Championship to win back-to-back titles.

Preseason Rank: 28

Prediction: 10-2

Hardware: Sun Belt Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: Kimani Vidal was one of the nation's leading rushers, and Jon Sumrall was hired away to take on the head coaching job at Tulane.

14. Tulane (11-3, 86.1, 38.7)

Willie Fritz led Tulane to 23 wins in the last two seasons, which got him hired away by Houston.

Preseason Rank: 13

Prediction: 9-3

Hardware: None. They missed a shot at the AAC Championship and lost their bowl game.

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Green Wave picked the wrong time of year to drop back-to-back games and missed out on a chance at another New Year's Six Bowl.

15. SMU (11-3, 89.2, 59)

SMU was more than happy to end Tulane's attempt at repeating their 2022 campaign.

Preseason Rank: 66

Prediction: 8-4

Hardware: AAC Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Mustangs were positioned just behind Liberty as the top Group of 5 teams to just miss out on their first-ever New Year's Six appearance and then lost a rainy Fenway Bowl to Boston College.

16. Miami, OH (11-3, 90.1, 44.3)

The Redhawks leaned on their defense to capture the MAC Championship.

Preseason Rank: 86

Prediction: 8-4

Hardware: MAC Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: Speaking of rainy, the Redhawks and Appalachian State combined for 12 fumbles in Miami's soggy loss to the Mountaineers in the Cure Bowl.

17. Toledo (11-3, 95.5, 34)

The Rockets will greatly miss Dequan Finn after he announced he would be transferring to Baylor.

Preseason Rank: 56

Prediction: 9-3

Hardware: MAC Player of the Year (Finn), MAC Offensive MVP (Penny Boone) MAC Coach of the Year (Jason Candle)

Season Recap in One Sentence: Like the Green Wave, the Rockets picked the wrong time of year to go cold as they dropped the MAC Championship to Miami and then on a last-second field goal to Wyoming in the Arizona Bowl.

18. Arizona (10-3, 65.3, 15)

The Wildcats were the Missouri of the Pac-12.

Preseason Rank: 70

Prediction: 6-6

Hardware: Alamo Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Wildcats finished with as many wins as they had in their previous four seasons combined and had their first winning season since 2017.

19. Oklahoma (10-3, 67.6, 31)

Hard to believe this was as good as it was going to get for Oklahoma.

Preseason Rank: 45

Prediction:8-4

Hardware: They beat Texas and got a silly hat.

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Sooners were coasting until Halloween weekend rolled around and they dropped back-to-back games to Kansas and Oklahoma State to eliminate themselves from their last shot at the Big 12 Championship (joining SEC in 2024).

20. LSU (10-3, 67.7, 18.3)

Too bad the Tigers couldn't play defense because the dynamic duo of Daniels to Nabers should've been in a New Year's Six Bowl.

Preseason Rank: 12

Prediction: 11-1

Hardware: Jayden Daniels (Heisman Trophy), Malik Nabers (MVP of the Citrus Bowl), Citrus Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: Like Ole Miss, they couldn't beat the big dogs they needed to, with losses to Florida State, Alabama, and, well, Ole Miss.

21. Notre Dame (10-3, 74.2, 31.3)

The Fighting Irish finished the season finally beating Oregon State in a bowl game.

Preseason Rank:19

Prediction: 9-3

Hardware: Sun Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: Sam Hartman was not the answer to get them past Ohio State, Louisville, or Clemson, so without him, they scored 40 on Oregon State to win the Sun Bowl.

22. Penn State (10-3, 83.6, 10)

Drew Allar was nowhere to be found in their two Big Ten losses.

Preseason Rank: 5

Prediction: 11-1

Hardware: A fat load of nothing

Season Recap in One Sentence: They did beat Iowa to ensure they wouldn't go winless against ranked opponents in 2023 (1-3).

23. Memphis (10-3, 100, 24.3)

The Tigers stayed home in Memphis to win a bowl game.

Preseason Rank: 78

Prediction: 8-4

Hardware: Liberty Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Tigers whiffed on a chance to make the AAC Championship with losses to Tulane and SMU, but they did beat Iowa State in the Liberty Bowl to get to 10 wins for the first time since 2019.

24. Ohio (10-3, 104.1, 71)

The Bobcats claimed a win for the MAC in the Myrtle Beach Bowl.

Preseason Rank: 61

Prediction: 93

Hardware: Myrtle Beach Bowl

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Bobcats got a big win over Iowa State in Athens and then won their bowl game despite missing their top two quarterbacks, top three running backs, and top three wide receivers.

25. Oklahoma State (10-4, 69.1, 66)

The Cowboys had a strange yet successful season.

Preseason Rank: 48

Prediction: 7-5

Hardware: Texas Bowl Champs

Season Recap in One Sentence: The Cowboys somehow managed to make it to the Big 12 Championship (lost to Texas) despite losing to UCF and South Alabama by a combined score of 78-10.