Should Clemson drop from No. 1 after 1-point win vs. North Carolina?

After a one-point win at North Carolina, Clemson should drop from the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll and be replaced by Alabama.

Clemson are the reigning national champions but the Tigers shouldn’t be the No. 1 team when the AP Poll is released on Sunday afternoon. Trevor Lawrence and the Tigers have shown flashes of being the best team in the nation but after getting outplayed and outcoached by North Carolina, albeit in a one-point win, should drop from the top spot.

If there was no such thing as preseason rankings, there is no chance you would have Clemson in the top spot based on their wins vs. Georgia Tech, Texas A&M, Syracuse, Charlotte and North Carolina. Yes, they would be in the top five-six teams, but not the top spot due to their lack of consistent dominant play.

There is a case to be made for Ohio State, Oklahoma, LSU, Georgia and Alabama to be ranked ahead of Dabo Swinney’s team.

Alabama should be the new No. 1 team in the AP and Coaches Polls on Sunday. Nick Saban’s team lost to Clemson in the National Championship Game last year but if the two met next Saturday, it would be Alabama who would be favored. Tua Tagovailoa looks on a mission to win the Heisman and national title that eluded him last year.

I don’t vote in the AP Poll but Alabama would get my top spot. I expect many of the AP Poll voters to think similarly. Clemson is still a very great team capable of winning the National Championship in January.

If Clemson does indeed drop out of the top spot, it won’t affect their College Football Playoff chances. The committee determining those four teams are totally separate from the AP and Coaches Polls.

There might be a bit of a wake-up call on the part of Clemson players and coaches to drop out of the top spot. The psychological factor of being not as invincible as you think you are can lead to a renewed effort and focus from the Tigers. Clemson will be off next week before hosting Florida State. Don’t be surprised to see a salty Clemson team wax FSU something like 49-10 and send a message that they are still the best team in the nation and the only rankings that matter are the ones in the second week in January that has seen them at No. 1 in two of the last three years.

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