So I thought I would tackle part of the question - where does LSU fit in the distribution of teams across seasons. I am using the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model, using aggregate data provided from www.cfbstats.com. If you are interested, here are the details of the Complex Invasion College Football production model (except since I am estimating all the seasons since 2008 - I used a panel data regression with clustered standard errors by conference).Do football fans ever create rankings of “best teams” across seasons? If so, where does this years LSU fit in the distribution of best teams? Is Alabama at its best iow going to win or lose last night?— scott cunningham (@causalinf) January 14, 2020
Tomorrow, I will give an answer to Prof. Cunningham's question about "best teams" since 2008.
Below is the results for the Top 25 NCAA FBS best (most productive) Defense's since 2008. For those interested, LSU in 2019 was ranked #610 out of 1503.
| Rank | Season | Name | |
| 1 | 2011 | Alabama | |
| 2 | 2011 | LSU | |
| 3 | 2013 | Louisville | |
| 4 | 2018 | Mississippi State | |
| 5 | 2009 | Alabama | |
| 6 | 2008 | USC | |
| 7 | 2009 | Florida | |
| 8 | 2017 | Alabama | |
| 9 | 2009 | Ohio State | |
| 10 | 2009 | Nebraska | |
| 11 | 2008 | TCU | |
| 12 | 2010 | Ohio State | |
| 13 | 2016 | Michigan | |
| 14 | 2008 | Tennessee | |
| 15 | 2010 | Boise State | |
| 16 | 2013 | Michigan State | |
| 17 | 2009 | Air Force | |
| 18 | 2008 | Florida | |
| 19 | 2009 | Penn State | |
| 20 | 2016 | Alabama | |
| 21 | 2010 | TCU | |
| 22 | 2016 | Ohio State | |
| 23 | 2012 | Alabama | |
| 24 | 2012 | Florida | |
| 25 | 2011 | South Carolina |