With a convincing victory in the BCS National Championship game, the Alabama Crimson Tide left no doubt that they were the best team in college football during the 2012 season. Every voter in the AP Top 25 and Coaches Poll felt that way, as Alabama received all the first-place votes in both rankings.
Final college football rankings: AP, Coaches Top 25s unanimous for Alabama
There was absolutely no controversy over the national champion this season as the Crimson Tide were dominant on the way to their 15th title.
Notre Dame fell out of the top-two in both polls, dropping all the way to No. 4 in the AP, and to No. 3 in the Coaches Poll. Some may say the voters were nice to the Fighting Irish, after they were completely outmatched by the Crimson Tide on Monday night. Undefeated Ohio State slotted ahead of Notre Dame at No. 3 in the AP.
The Oregon Ducks checked in at No. 2 in both polls following a convincing Fiesta Bowl victory over Kansas State in the most anticipated BCS bowl outside on the title game. The Wildcats were punished more harshly than the Irish for their bowl game failings, as they fell out of the top 10 in both sets of rankings.
The SEC was the dominant conference all season in the polls, and that continued with the final rankings. The conference that has now won seven-straight BCS titles tallied five teams in the top 10 in both polls, and seven teams overall in each. Vanderbilt finished the season ranked No. 20 and No. 23 in the Coaches and AP.
Finally, as most of the WAC sets to head off to greener pastures, the conference garnered more love than any other non-BCS league. Utah State and San Jose State were both ranked in the final polls.
Complete rankings for both polls below:
AP Top 25
| Rank | Team | Record | Points |
| 1 | Alabama (59) | 13-1 | 1475 |
| 2 | Oregon | 12-1 | 1358 |
| 3 | Ohio State | 12-0 | 1302 |
| 4 | Notre Dame | 12-1 | 1288 |
| 5 | Georgia | 12-2 | 1230 |
| 5 | Texas A&M | 11-2 | 1230 |
| 7 | Stanford | 12-2 | 1169 |
| 8 | South Carolina | 11-2 | 1038 |
| 9 | Florida | 11-2 | 933 |
| 10 | Florida State | 12-2 | 922 |
| 11 | Clemson | 11-2 | 889 |
| 12 | Kansas State | 11-2 | 871 |
| 13 | Louisville | 11-2 | 781 |
| 14 | LSU | 10-3 | 756 |
| 15 | Oklahoma | 10-3 | 615 |
| 16 | Utah State | 11-2 | 456 |
| 17 | Northwestern | 10-3 | 443 |
| 18 | Boise State | 11-2 | 419 |
| 19 | Texas | 9-4 | 358 |
| 20 | Oregon State | 9-4 | 303 |
| 21 | San Jose State | 11-2 | 243 |
| 22 | Northern Illinois | 12-2 | 227 |
| 23 | Vanderbilt | 9-4 | 180 |
| 24 | Michigan | 8-5 | 147 |
| 25 | Nebraska | 10-4 | 119 |
Others receiving votes: Baylor 95, Penn State 90, Cincinnati 78, Oklahoma State 42, Tulsa 34, UCLA 31, Arkansas State 28, UCF 9, TCU 9, Wisconsin 6, North Dakota State 1
USA Today Coaches Poll
| Rank | Team | Record | Points |
| 1 | Alabama (56) | 13-1 | 1400 |
| 2 | Oregon | 12-1 | 1322 |
| 3 | Notre Dame | 12-1 | 1253 |
| 4 | Georgia | 12-2 | 1213 |
| 5 | Texas A&M | 11-2 | 1171 |
| 6 | Stanford | 12-2 | 1167 |
| 7 | South Carolina | 11-2 | 1064 |
| 8 | Florida State | 12-2 | 942 |
| 9 | Clemson | 11-2 | 916 |
| 10 | Florida | 11-2 | 886 |
| 11 | Kansas State | 11-2 | 841 |
| 12 | LSU | 11-2 | 775 |
| 13 | Louisville | 10-3 | 772 |
| 14 | Boise State | 11-2 | 633 |
| 15 | Oklahoma | 10-3 | 600 |
| 16 | Northwestern | 10-3 | 580 |
| 17 | Utah State | 11-2 | 444 |
| 18 | Texas | 9-4 | 398 |
| 19 | Oregon State | 9-4 | 366 |
| 20 | Vanderbilt | 9-4 | 248 |
| 21 | San Jose State | 11-2 | 244 |
| 22 | Cincinnati | 10-3 | 186 |
| 23 | Nebraska | 10-4 | 175 |
| 24 | Northern Illinois | 12-2 | 156 |
| 25 | Tulsa | 11-3 | 110 |
Others receiving votes: Michigan 101, UCLA 75, Baylor 52, Oklahoma State 36, Wisconsin 18, UCF 15, Arkansas State 13, Arizona State 10, Rutgers 9, Kent State 5, Louisiana Tech 2, Arizona 1, Ohio 1
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