OXFORD — With Georgia and Alabama both off this past weekend, there wasn’t a ton of room for movement in the AP top 10. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t a few shake ups here and there.
Tennessee was one of the biggest winners of the weekend, as its victory over then-No. 15 Oklahoma propelled the Volunteers up to No. 5, jumping undefeated Ole Miss despite the Rebels’ blowout win over Georgia Southern. Michigan gained some traction just outside the top 10, moving back up to No. 12 after a nail-biting victory over then-No. 11 USC.
Alabama and Georgia play this weekend in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, which is sure to shake things up in the next edition of this column. For now, though, here is how I voted in the top 25:
- Texas
- Georgia
- Ohio State
- Alabama
- Ole Miss
- Tennessee
- Miami
- Missouri
- Oregon
- Utah
- Penn State
- Michigan
- USC
- LSU
- Notre Dame
- Clemson
- Louisville
- Illinois
- Iowa State
- BYU
- Oklahoma
- Oklahoma State
- Kansas State
- Indiana
- Washington State
The top 10
The top four were unchanged in the actual poll, as Texas took care of business against Louisiana-Monroe, Ohio State dominated Marshall and Georgia and Alabama were idle. The most consequential move of the week was Tennessee jumping Ole Miss following a 25-15 win at Oklahoma. I think Tennessee is really, really good. They are a legitimate national title contender and could very well make a deep run in the postseason. But, at least from my perspective, I am not going to drop a team like Ole Miss after defeating a team by 39 points, regardless of what happened in front of them. If the Volunteers had won by four touchdowns? Maybe that’s a conversation. But a 10-point win isn’t enough for me, at least, to drop Ole Miss after a 52-13 win, regardless of who it came against. So, that’s why I have the Rebels at No. 5 and the Volunteers at No. 6.
Miami crushed South Florida, which moved the Hurricanes up a spot. Oregon was off this week, but I had Missouri above them, despite a close home win against Vanderbilt. I think Vanderbilt is much improved this year — at least from what we have seen so far — and SEC wins are big, regardless of who it’s against and where. Utah, despite not having star quarterback Cam Rising, defeated a ranked Oklahoma State team on the road. The Utes round out my top 10, as well as the actual poll.
The rest
Penn State throttled Kent State, but I still had the Nittany Lions just outside the top 10, largely because of what Utah was able to do in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Michigan — despite throwing for just over 30 yards — defeated USC with a last-second touchdown at the Big House. USC hung tough in its first Big Ten game, so it’s hard to drop them too far. LSU has won three in a row since falling to the Trojans and, since USC won that head-to-head battle in Las Vegas, the Tigers come in right behind them. Notre Dame has won two in a row since losing to Northern Illinois, and Clemson has gone scorched earth since losing to Georgia in its season opener. Clemson is as hot as anyone right now and could be moving up the polls sooner than later. Louisville keeps on rolling, and Illinois won an impressive matchup with Nebraska Friday night; the Illini are quietly 4-0. Iowa State is also undefeated and seems to be flying a bit under the radar, but they are No. 19 for me this week.
BYU dismantled a top-15 Kansas State team Saturday night, and the Cougars improved to 4-0. Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Kansas State all dropped into the 20s because of their respective losses. I have Indiana and Washington State — both undefeated — rounding out my poll. Indiana has been extremely impressive, and Washington State has wins against Texas Tech and Washington and just won a thriller against a scrappy San Jose State team. I went back and forth on whether to put Texas A&M and Boise State, who ended up being No. 24 and No. 25, respectively, in my poll, but I felt like the resumes of the Hoosiers and Cougars were just a bit stronger at the moment.
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