I can tell you exactly why they are picked to finish so high. It's so that people like yourself will talk about it. There are so many media members nowadays who feel the need to create news instead of reporting the news. They need their bosses to see that people are reacting to their story, so they can justify their being, so they can ask advertisers for money.
It's like Nick Saban once said so eloquently about pre-season polls (and for that matter, polls in general) - (and i paraphrase) - "It's someone's OPINION, about what they THINK, MIGHT happen. It means nothing else. Just clutter."