Here's the Moral Victory Top 25 — of course, Vanderbilt makes it

Here's the first annual post-bowl Moral Victory Top 25. The Commodores are No. 23. How the heck do they make it with six wins? Because they beat a team in the Top 25.

Here's how I decided to do it: I started with the final regular season BCS poll; in order to make the post-season poll, a team had to either beat an existing Top 25 team or be a Top 25 team already and lose to another Top 25 team.

The thinking is that you have to bring it when you play in a bowl; if you don't take your game seriously and you play poorly and lose badly, then you drop way down in the poll (see Cincinnati) or maybe fall out all together (see — or don't see — Georgia Tech). If you had a bunch of losses but you put it together in your bowl game and finished impressively, then you move way up (see Ole Miss) or at least get into the poll (see LSU and Vanderbilt).

Anyway, here it is:

1. Florida, 13-1 (No. 2 previous BCS), beat No. 1 Oklahoma
2. Utah, 13-0 (6), beat No. 4 Alabama
3. Texas, 12-1 (3), beat No. 10 Ohio State
4. USC, 12-1 (5), beat No. 8 Penn State
5. Oklahoma, 12-2 (1), lost to No. 2 Florida
6. Alabama, 12-2 (4), lost to No. 6 Utah
7. TCU, 11-2 (11), beat No. 9 Boise
8. Ole Miss, 9-4 (25), beat No. 7 Texas Tech
9. Penn State, 11-2 (8), lost to No. 5 USC
10. Boise State, 12-1 (9), lost to No. 11 TCU
11. Texas Tech, 12-2 (7), lost to No. 25 Ole Miss
12. Virginia Tech, 10-4 (19), beat No. 12 Cincy
13. Ohio State, 10-3 (10), lost to No. 3 Texas
14. Oregon, 10-3 (17), beat No. 13 Ok State
15. Georgia, 10-3 (15), beat No. 18 Mich State
16. LSU, 8-5 (NR), beat No. 14 Ga. Tech
17. Oregon State, 9-4 (NR), beat No. 20 Pitt
18. Tulsa, 11-3 (NR), beat No. 22 Ball
19. Missouri, 10-4 (21), beat No. 23 NW
20. Arizona, 8-5 (NR), beat No. 16 BYU
21. Oklahoma State, 9-4 (13), lost to No. 17 Oregon
22. Northwestern, 9-4 (23), lost to No. 21 Missouri
23. Vanderbilt, 7-6 (NR), beat No. 24 BC
24. Michigan State, 9-4 (18), lost to No. 15 Georgia
25. Cincinnati, 11-3 (12), lost to No. 19 Va. Tech