First of all, I want to thank all of the CFRA voters and followers who make this poll possible. We could not do it without your enthusiasm and support for this great game. As expected, Alabama was selected as the CFRA national champion for the 2017 season marking the 13th time they have claimed this honor and the 148th overall national champion selected by the College Football Researchers Association. Interestingly, UCF made a valiant run at the title by claiming 40% of the first-place votes. However, the Knights couldn’t rise any higher to # 3 in the poll thanks to two voters who ranked UCF outside the top 5 and one who ranked them outside the top 10. “I think the UCF national championship campaign may have backfired and caused voters who did not think they were fit to be champion to discriminate against them on their final ballots,” said CFRA Commissioner Brad Matthews. “Even though I personally voted UCF # 1, Alabama is a deserving champion,” Matthews went on to say. Here is this year’s complete final poll.
1. Alabama (6)– 245 points
2. Georgia– 233 points
3. UCF (4)– 226 points
4. Oklahoma– 217 points
5. Clemson– 210 points
6. Ohio State- 206 points
7. Wisconsin– 192 points
8. Penn State– 182 points
9. Notre Dame– 156 points
10. TCU– 150 points
11. Auburn– 129 points
12. Oklahoma State– 124 points
13. Southern California– 112 points
13. Miami (FL)– 112 points
15. Washington– 106 points
16. Michigan State– 100 points
17. Northwestern– 79 points
18. Mississippi State– 53 points
19. NC State– 51 points
20. LSU– 48 points
20. South Florida– 48 points
22. Stanford– 41 points
23. Virginia Tech– 28 points
24. Memphis– 27 points
25. Boise State– 25 points
Others Receiving Votes: Army 23, South Carolina 23, Iowa 20, Navy 14, Iowa State 12, Florida Atlantic 12, Troy 10, Georgia Tech 8, Washington State 8, Wake Forest 7, Utah 5, Wyoming 4, Louisville 3, Kansas State 1
Dropped Out: Washington State 21
Teams Ranked Higher in CFRA than Final AP and Coaches Polls: UCF (3), Notre Dame (9), Oklahoma State (12), Mississippi State (18), NC State (19), USF (20), Virginia Tech (23).
Teams Ranked Lower in CFRA than Final AP and Coaches Polls: Oklahoma (4), Clemson (5), Ohio State (6), TCU (10), Southern California (13), LSU (20), Stanford (22), Boise State (25).
Teams Ranked Exactly the Same in All 3 Major Human Polls (AP, CFRA, and Coaches): Alabama (1), Georgia (2), Penn State (8), Miami-FL (13), Northwestern (17).
The College Football Researchers Association 