Oklahoma Sooners finish sixth in AP, Coaches poll

Jan 2, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Derrick Woods (12) is tackled by Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Landon Collins (26) in the first half at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Crystal LoGiudice-USA TODAY Sports
The expectations for the Oklahoma Sooners are to finish near the top of the final polls. Oklahoma isn’t hoisting a crystal ball or a Big 12 for that matter, but that came out as the highest-ranked team from the Big 12 in the last AP poll and Coaches poll.

Both the AP and Coaches voted Oklahoma as the sixth-best team in the country. Following their Sugar Bowl win over Alabama Crimson Tide, which I never get tired of typing, the Sooners jumped to six. The Sooners just barely missed the Top Five.

The Sooners were 11-2, and the two teams that made big leaps in to the four and five spot had similar records. One was the South Carolina Gamecocks, who had an identical record and finished fourth after beating #19 Wisconsin. Then, there’s Missouri who got the fifth spot after finishing 12-2 and beating the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Cotton Bowl.

Thankfully Oklahoma finished above Alabama or there would have been a serious problem. Though, it is still a bit bothersome the Sooners did not get enough love to jump in to the top five after beating the two-time defending champs who were ranked third in the country and in a BCS game.

Not to say there is an SEC bias, but if you’re talking who’s the hotter team at the end of the season; it’s Oklahoma.

Now rankings don’t really matter unless you’re at the top. However, it shows the country was not as impressed with Oklahoma’s upset over Alabama as most of Sooner Nation was last Thursday.

Oklahoma should be a favorite to enter the season a top ten program. Early polls predict Oklahoma could be somewhere around eight.

Regardless of the AP and Coaches, finishing sixth was not where you would have expected OU to finish after losing to Baylor in November, but here we are.

Speaking of which, the Baylor Bears were the second highest ranked team. The Bears finished thirteenth in both polls. Behind them was the only other Big 12 school to finish ranked, which was Oklahoma State. The Cowboys took seventeenth in both after their loss to Missouri.

Florida State, of course, finished at the top of the board. And while a lot of Michigan State supporters believed the Spartans should be in consideration for the second ranked team in the country, the Auburn Tigers took the second spot after letting a second National Title in four years slip out of their hands.

The final AP poll can be seen here. And the Coaches here.