[Goose]

Cal #1.

What hurts more? Cal first on Forbes or a possible Big Game loss?

Good for Cal. 
Of course, it's all pretty meaningless.
As was the case all those years that Stanford was atop the USN&WR "rankings."  
Just agenda, cloaked in supposed measurable indicia of "greatness."

Whatever.
Does anyone really care about these various publications/rankings?  And if so . . . why?

Very few.  University presidents.  Faculty.  Students.  Alumni.  High school students.  That's all...

I think they care about them for a variety of reasons.  Because they're trying to attract and retain the best and brightest students, and this is one public, easy way to delineate between schools, using a variety of sensical and nonsensical criteria.  But most of all for bragging rights.

Unfortunately the University administrations have convinced themselves these contrived rankings actually mean something. That makes them mean something and from that flows the high school students etc. This is a minor rant, but I believe that anybody who sets up a blog that "rates" something can start a stampede to increase ratings of a particular suppliers something. The suppliers know the ratings are junk but they are afraid that they will lose market share so they react. The public sees them react and concludes the ratings must mean something because the suppliers obviously do (because they reacted). Nobody bothers to ask if any of this is "real", they all assume it must be because of what other people are doing. What nonsense! Critical thinking is not required, just react to others reactions.

[Goose]

Cal #1.

What hurts more? Cal first on Forbes or a possible Big Game loss?

Good for Cal. 
Of course, it's all pretty meaningless.
As was the case all those years that Stanford was atop the USN&WR "rankings."  
Just agenda, cloaked in supposed measurable indicia of "greatness."

Whatever.
Does anyone really care about these various publications/rankings?  And if so . . . why?

Very few.  University presidents.  Faculty.  Students.  Alumni.  High school students.  That's all...

I think they care about them for a variety of reasons.  Because they're trying to attract and retain the best and brightest students, and this is one public, easy way to delineate between schools, using a variety of sensical and nonsensical criteria.  But most of all for bragging rights.

Unfortunately the University administrations have convinced themselves these contrived rankings actually mean something. That makes them mean something and from that flows the high school students etc. This is a minor rant, but I believe that anybody who sets up a blog that "rates" something can start a stampede to increase ratings of a particular suppliers something. The suppliers know the ratings are junk but they are afraid that they will lose market share so they react. The public sees them react and concludes the ratings must mean something because the suppliers obviously do (because they reacted). Nobody bothers to ask if any of this is "real", they all assume it must be because of what other people are doing. What nonsense! Critical thinking is not required, just react to others reactions.