Swinney ranks Ohio State No. 11 in final Coaches Poll

Dabo Swinney has been quite vocal about the number of games played this season, and his rankings, which came out today, prove that he puts his money where his mouth is. Swinney’s Top 4 were No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 Notre Dame, and No. 4 Texas A&M. Ohio State, who Clemson will face in the Sugar Bowl, were all the way down at No. 11.

Swinney wasn’t the only coach who ranked Ohio State outside the Top 4, but he certainly had them further down in the polls than anyone else. Still, several high profile coaches clearly penalized the Buckeyes for playing just six games and being gifted a berth in the Big Ten Championship after the league changed their rules on the fly to allow Ohio State to play for the conference crown.

Alabama head coach Nick Saban also had the Buckeyes outside the Top 4 sitting at No. 5 in his rankings. The only other coaches to place Ohio State lower than No. 4 were Jamey Chadwell (Coastal Carolina), Butch Davis (Florida International), Dana Dimel (Texas-El Paso), Jimbo Fisher (Texas A&M), Gary Patterson (TCU), who also ranked Ryan Day’s squared at No. 5. 

Kirby Smart (Georgia) ranked the Buckeyes at No. 6, joining Swinney as the only other coach to place them outside the Top 5.

While Swinney’s ranking will certainly be seen as a slap in the face from Buckeye Nation, a video circulating of Coach Day yesterday that isn’t family-friendly will also be motivating for the Tigers.

January 1 can’t get here soon enough.

Dabo Swinney’s Top 25

1. Alabama

2. Clemson

3. Notre Dame

4. Texas A&M

5. Florida

6. Georgia

7. Cincinnati

8. Oklahoma

9. Iowa State

10. Coastal Carolina

11. Ohio State

12. North Carolina

13. Brigham Young

14. Indiana

15. Miami (Fla.)

16. Louisiana-Lafayette

17. Oklahoma State

18. North Carolina State

19. Northwestern

20. Southern California

21. Texas

22. Iowa

23. Liberty

24. San Jose State

25. Army