The Associated Press Top 25 poll underwent a dramatic reshuffling this week after an upset-heavy Saturday across college football, with Georgia claiming the No. 1 ranking for the first time this season.
The Bulldogs earned the top spot after defeating Alabama in Tuscaloosa, a result voters called one of the most impressive wins of the season. Despite the loss, Alabama held steady at No. 6 in the poll, suggesting voters still view Kirby Smart’s team as a measuring stick rather than a sign the Crimson Tide has fallen far.
Texas, which had sat at No. 1 since Week 2, dropped six spots after being upset by unranked Oklahoma at the Cotton Bowl.
The biggest swings in the rankings came out of a single game: Kentucky’s overtime win over LSU. Kentucky jumped from unranked all the way to No. 15, while Lane Kiffin’s LSU squad fell 12 spots to No. 22 after dropping to 4-2 on the season.
Three teams entered the Top 25 for the first time this year — Northwestern, Wake Forest and Kentucky — after each was unranked the week before. Oregon and Florida both dropped out of the rankings entirely. Oregon lost at home to UCLA, and Florida was blown out at home by South Carolina, a steep fall for two teams that had been ranked in the top 16 just a week earlier.
Notre Dame moved up to No. 2 and will face its first real test of the season in Week 7, traveling to take on No. 8 BYU.
What to Watch in Week 7
Several other marquee matchups are on tap heading into next week, including:
- No. 4 Ohio State at No. 5 Indiana
- No. 9 Ole Miss hosting No. 13 Missouri
- No. 6 Alabama traveling to No. 14 Tennessee
- No. 15 Kentucky visiting Oklahoma
- No. 22 LSU hosting No. 16 Mississippi State in Baton Rouge
- No. 20 Houston hosting No. 18 Oklahoma State
With another heavy slate of games on deck, further movement in the rankings appears likely next week.
Add comment