College Football Fan Index presented by Degree is a cumulative data-based ranking of America’s most active and engaged fan bases for the 2014 season, as determined by social media and online polling. Read on for this week’s results, and come back Thursdays for each new Fan Index.
The Fan Index Week 5 Top 10
Scott Olmos-USA TODAY Sports
1. Oregon (268,364 social mentions, 1,271 voting points)
The Ducks barely beat Washington State on Saturday night, but in the middle of their bye week, optimism still reigns. This is the third straight week Oregon has topped the Fan Index poll. Not only are Ducks fans enthusiastic, they’re creative. For example:
2. Michigan (201,145 social mentions, 985 voting points) — Michigan fans have had a rough month. Exhibit A:
3. Texas A&M (276,443 social mentions, 453 voting points) — Texas A&M cadet Ryan Kreider is receiving a well-deserved reward for saving Aggies mascot Reveille VIII from a hard-charging SMU receiver last Saturday.
4. Oklahoma (220,036 social mentions, 480 voting points) — During Oklahoma’s impressive win over West Virginia, Sooners receiver Durron Neal threw a touchdown pass to QB Trevor Knight. It’s my favorite play of the year so far:
5. LSU (190,308 social mentions, 799 voting points) — After the Tigers lost to Mississippi State, I’m sure this glorious piece of tailgating equipment was put to good use:
https://twitter.com/Fancred/status/513373963628474369/photo/1
6. Alabama (428,131 social mentions, 386 voting points) — You think the crowd at Bryant-Denny Stadium enjoyed the 87-yard Blake Sims-to-Kenyan Drake TD hookup last Saturday? Check out the aftermath:
7. USC (371,524 social mentions, 432 voting points) — Lane Kiffin has been gone for a few years, but he continues to haunt the Trojans.
8. Penn State (161,510 social mentions, 1,123 voting points) — Last week, Nittany Lions coach James Franklin called into a Pittsburgh radio station. The host thought it was a prank and hung up.
9. Tennessee (176,257 social mentions, 927 voting points) — Still smarting from the Oklahoma loss Vols fans? Enjoy these cool photos of Neyland Stadium.
10. Georgia (219,538 social mentions, 434 voting points) — This should get you psyched up for Saturday’s Georgia-Tennessee game. Aw.
Interesting takeaways: Despite their teams suffering losses to Utah and Mississippi State, respectively, Michigan and LSU fans remain as supportive as ever. Who’s going to dethrone Oregon? My money’s on Alabama. Notre Dame (No. 11), Florida State (No. 12), and Ohio State (No. 13), are all close to cracking the top 10 again.
The top 5 overperformers and underperformers
Fan support (or the lack thereof) doesn’t always depend on winning and losing. That’s why we’d like to take a moment to praise the fan bases who are supporting their struggling teams, and scold the ones who aren’t supporting their good teams enough.
Below are the the week’s five most overperforming and five most underperforming fan bases. To determine this, we’ve compared each team’s Fan Index ranking to its position in Paul Myerberg’s 1-128 NCAA Re-Rank.
The Overperformers
1. Michigan, +59 (No. 2 in Fan Index, No. 59 in Re-Rank)
2. Texas, +43 (No. 15 in Fan Index, No. 58 in Re-Rank)
3. Kentucky, +38 (No. 40 in Fan Index, No. 78 in Re-Rank)
4. Tennessee, +35 (No. 9 in Fan Index, No. 44 in Re-Rank)
5. South Alabama, +34 (No. 59 in Fan Index, No. 93 in Re-Rank)
Way to go, gang!
The Underperformers
1. Northern Illinois, -67 (No. 116 in Fan Index, No. 49 in Re-Rank)
2. Toledo, -65 (No. 128 in Fan Index, No. 63 in Re-Rank)
3. Marshall, -40 (No. 60 in Fan Index, No. 20 in Re-Rank)
4. Stanford, -38 (No. 52 in Fan Index, No. 14 in Re-Rank)
5 (tie). San Diego State, -36 (No. 88 in Fan Index, No. 52 in Re-Rank)
5 (tie). Memphis, -36 (No. 107 in Fan Index, No. 71 in Re-Rank)
Pick it up, people!
Week 5 poll results: Best stadiums
Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports
1. Clemson, Memorial Stadium (42% of the vote)
Clemson Memorial Stadium is nicknamed “Death Valley” for a reason: It’s a scary place to play. That Tigers fans have rallied around it is no surprise. The venue is big, loud and has no shortage of pageantry. Just watch the way the Tigers enter the stadium before every home game:
Runners-up: Penn State, Beaver Stadium (16%); Georgia, Sanford Stadium (8%); Ohio State, Ohio Stadium (4%)
Interesting takeaways: The Rose Bowl, our top ranked stadium, didn’t receive many votes. Big Ten stalwarts Ohio State and Penn State showed well, as did Georgia. East Carolina’s Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium tallied more votes than North Carolina’s Kenan Memorial Stadium. (Last week, the Pirates rolled over the Tar Heels 71-40.)
Previous poll results: Week 1, best uniforms
Previous poll results: Week 2, best fight songs
Previous poll results: Week 3, best tailgates
Previous poll results: Week 4, best school colors
Week 6 topic: best helmets
Check in with Fan Index on Monday to see our top 10 mascots in the country and vote for your own. Until then, support your school on social media, like a good fan should.
