Week 7 AP Top 25: Overrated and underrated teams in new college football rankings

College football rankings reveal who is overrated and underrated in the new AP Top 25. Is Alabama overrated? Is Notre Dame underrated?

Florida has a quarterback (Kyle Trask) for the first time since Tim Tebow but is missing a defense. Texas reminded us all that they are still not back. So far this bizarre season has delivered incredible upsets and proven the gap between the top tier and the second tier is as large as ever.

Clemson looks like Clemson, after leaving some room for doubt against UVA. The Tigers thoroughly dismantled an explosive Miami Hurricanes team that looked like it would be able to hang. The only team left on the schedule that looks like it has any chance of winning (a whopping 27.9 percent chance, per ESPN) is Notre Dame.

Alabama has no defense for Lane Kiffin’s Ole Miss Rebels but still got the win thanks to 63 points from the offense. Georgia looks good, but it might have a quarterback controversy once J.T. Daniels is healthy. Stetson Bennett is a wonderful story (and he’s winning) but he is a very limited passer. Although that hasn’t stopped Kirby Smart before. Assuming Ohio State plays to expectations, Georgia and Alabama might still round out the Playoff.

AP Top 25 college football rankings

1. Clemson
2. Alabama
3. Georgia
4. Notre Dame
5. North Carolina
6. Ohio State
7. Oklahoma State
8. Cincinnati
9. Penn State
10. Florida
11. Texas A&M
12. Oregon
13. Miami
14. Auburn
15. BYU
16. Wisconsin
17. SMU
18. Tennessee
19. Michigan
20. Iowa State
21. Louisiana
22. Kansas State
23. Virginia Tech
24. Minnesota
25. USC

Overrated: No. 2 Alabama

Yes, the Tide have a better offense than they had a right to expect moving from Tua to Mac Jones. But Lane Kiffin is still scoring on them. They aren’t wildly overrated, but Georgia looks better to this point. We’ll know next week when the two meet in the biggest game of the year.

Underrated: No. 4 Notre Dame

This might be the first time in the history of the universe that Notre Dame is underrated. The Irish are 3-0 and haven’t had to call on Ian Book to do more than he can, this past weekend riding its ground game (353 yards!) to steamroll the floundering Seminoles.

Overrated: No. 5 North Carolina

The Tar Heels have Mac Brown. They have the preseason cache of the “next big quarterback” Sam Howell. And yet, UNC has largely underwhelmed, despite their 3-0 record. Howell has yet to eclipse 300 yards passing, despite playing Syracuse (1-3) and a Virginia Tech secondary down two starters.

Underrated: No. 15 BYU

No, the Cougars did not continue their demolition tour of their 2020 opponents. But as lesser teams (ahem Texas, cough UNC) got the preseason hype, BYU continues to look like the real deal on the field. Zach Wilson is a relatively unsung stud, and he’s proving to be what Howell was supposed to be coming into this season.

Overrated: No. 18 Tennessee

So far the Vols have beaten the teams they were supposed to in South Carolina and Missouri, which admittedly is more than LSU can say. However, Tennessee got shellacked by Georgia. If they could have kept it respectable on Saturday, maybe they earn this spot, but they didn’t. No thanks.

For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.