"Well as you would expect, there is a lot of discussion about head-to-head," Long said. "But you have to remember that head-to-head is only one of the criteria we're using. We're also using how those teams performed with the other teams they played on their schedules. So head-to-head is important, but it's not the only factor obviously."
The Oregon Ducks came in at No. 5, significantly higher than a one-loss team that beat them, No. 12 Arizona. Long was asked how that was different from the Ole Miss-Alabama situation.
"You look at Oregon, they not only beat Michigan State, but they went on the road and had a good win at UCLA. So I think their body of work -- as you guys have said and we use a lot in the room as well -- is better than that of (Arizona)."
The Big 12 didn't have a team in the top six of the rankings. TCU was the top-ranked Big 12 team, coming in at No. 7. Long was asked what that means about how they view the strength of the Big 12 as a conference.
"Again, I think it's important for me to point out, we really don't look at is as a conference. We look at the games that Kansas State has played; they played an excellent game at home in a close loss to Auburn and then the Oklahoma win was important for them. So again, we don't analyze it by conference. We look at those teams and evaluate the teams they played and the success they had, or the failures they had."
