Note: These rankings are not neccesarily identical to those I actually posted before the 2001 season. I have subsequently altered my algorithms, and here I show retrospectively what my current methods would have said for the season...
| rank | team | power |
| 1 | Miami | 102.52 |
| 2 | Florida | 99.41 |
| 3 | Nebraska | 98.11 |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 95.16 |
| 5 | Texas | 92.26 |
| 6 | Tennessee | 92.08 |
| 7 | Florida State | 90.94 |
| 8 | Virginia Tech | 89.52 |
| 9 | Oregon | 89.02 |
| 10 | Colorado | 88.29 |
| 11 | Notre Dame | 86.65 |
| 12 | Michigan | 86.60 |
| 13 | Washington | 85.74 |
| 14 | Georgia Tech | 85.65 |
| 15 | UCLA | 84.70 |
| 16 | Stanford | 84.53 |
| 17 | Ohio State | 83.65 |
| 18 | South Carolina | 83.46 |
| 19 | Texas A&M | 83.28 |
| 20 | L.S.U. | 82.44 |
| 21 | Kansas State | 81.99 |
| 22 | Georgia | 81.43 |
| 23 | Clemson | 80.76 |
| 24 | Washington State | 80.38 |
| 25 | Alabama | 80.24 |
| 26 | Syracuse | 80.17 |
| 27 | Wisconsin | 79.30 |
| 28 | North Carolina | 78.97 |
| 29 | Oregon State | 78.92 |
| 30 | Louisville | 78.91 |
| 31 | Mississippi State | 78.38 |
| 32 | Southern Cal | 78.16 |
| 33 | Purdue | 77.96 |
| 34 | Boston College | 77.85 |
| 35 | Illinois | 77.83 |
| 36 | Texas Tech | 77.72 |
| 37 | North Carolina State | 77.65 |
| 38 | East Carolina | 77.13 |
| 39 | Arizona State | 76.93 |
| 40 | Northwestern | 76.63 |
| 41 | Michigan State | 76.48 |
| 42 | Pittsburgh | 75.35 |
| 43 | Fresno State | 75.33 |
| 44 | Auburn | 75.30 |
| 45 | Arizona | 75.25 |
| 46 | West Virginia | 75.24 |
| 47 | Southern Miss | 75.17 |
| 48 | Maryland | 75.08 |
| 49 | Toledo | 74.93 |
| 50 | Arkansas | 74.93 |
| 51 | Iowa State | 74.35 |
| 52 | Colorado State | 73.78 |
| 53 | B.Y.U. | 73.22 |
| 54 | Iowa | 72.60 |
| 55 | Penn State | 72.58 |
| 56 | Ole Miss | 72.54 |
| 57 | Virginia | 72.45 |
| 58 | Marshall | 71.13 |
| 59 | California | 71.04 |
| 60 | T.C.U. | 70.44 |
| 61 | Minnesota | 70.34 |
| 62 | Oklahoma State | 69.86 |
| 63 | Indiana | 69.08 |
| 64 | San Diego State | 68.92 |
| 65 | Kansas | 68.61 |
| 66 | Kentucky | 67.80 |
| 67 | Western Michigan | 66.99 |
| 68 | Boise State | 66.59 |
| 69 | UNLV | 66.42 |
| 70 | New Mexico | 66.21 |
| 71 | Missouri | 65.60 |
| 72 | Memphis | 65.23 |
| 73 | Utah | 64.60 |
| 74 | U.A.B. | 64.39 |
| 75 | Temple | 64.33 |
| 76 | Hawaii | 63.90 |
| 77 | San Jose State | 63.04 |
| 78 | Vanderbilt | 62.97 |
| 79 | Bowling Green | 62.78 |
| 80 | Central Florida | 62.52 |
| 81 | Cincinnati | 62.47 |
| 82 | Rice | 61.27 |
| 83 | Wake Forest | 61.24 |
| 84 | Ball State | 60.35 |
| 85 | Louisiana Tech | 60.13 |
| 86 | Northern Illinois | 60.08 |
| 87 | Air Force | 59.84 |
| 88 | Utah State | 59.73 |
| 89 | Ohio | 59.61 |
| 90 | UTEP | 59.61 |
| 91 | Miami of Ohio | 59.20 |
| 92 | Troy State | 59.03 |
| 93 | S.M.U. | 58.66 |
| 94 | Tulane | 58.09 |
| 95 | Baylor | 57.53 |
| 96 | Nevada | 57.41 |
| 97 | Middle Tennessee St. | 56.83 |
| 98 | Tulsa | 56.36 |
| 99 | Wyoming | 55.76 |
| 100 | Idaho | 54.95 |
| 101 | Duke | 54.41 |
| 102 | Akron | 53.92 |
| 103 | Houston | 53.86 |
| 104 | Central Michigan | 53.49 |
| 105 | South Florida | 53.28 |
| 106 | Army | 53.20 |
| 107 | New Mexico State | 52.81 |
| 108 | North Texas | 51.63 |
| 109 | Rutgers | 50.24 |
| 110 | Kent State | 44.86 |
| 111 | Louisiana-Lafayette | 43.96 |
| 112 | Eastern Michigan | 43.14 |
| 113 | Connecticut | 40.97 |
| 114 | Navy | 40.42 |
| 115 | Louisiana-Monroe | 39.85 |
| 116 | Arkansas State | 38.38 |
| 117 | Buffalo | 37.55 |