Although the Week 9 schedule did not have a handful of ranked games scheduled, the results of another chaotic week in college football led to more than a handful of teams in the top 25 losing. These upsets will lead to big changes in the college football rankings, none of which will be more impactful than USC’s victory over Ohio State in Los Angeles.
USC was previously unranked after falling from the AP Top 25 poll following a 17-7 loss to Wisconsin. The Trojans endured immense pressure all week following the loss, feeling the weight of an underperforming offense and the threat of a top-two opponent Ohio State. USC immediately answered its offensive questions and took an early lead, using that momentum to earn an iconic win in the rain for Lincoln Riley. It was his first-ever victory against a top-five opponent as USC’s coach, and it will propel the Trojans into the top-25.
As for Ohio State, they should be among the lucky ones that lost in Week 9, but won’t fall too far, thanks to wins against the likes of Indiana and Iowa in conference play. But with teams like SMU, Northwestern, Arizona, Oklahoma State and Wisconsin all losing on Saturday, the door is open for many newcomers in the rankings.
Here’s what we expect the new AP Top 25 to look like on Sunday after Week 9:
1. Miami (last week – 1): Even though the nation’s No. 1 team trailed in the second half, the upset alert always seemed a little premature as long as Malachi Toney was on the court. Miami’s Heisman Trophy-contending wide receiver was absolutely electric in the Hurricanes’ 38-35 victory, finishing with seven catches for 75 yards and two touchdowns.
2. Georgia (3): The Bulldogs took advantage of Florida’s early miscues for easy points and put together another strong performance from defense to earn a sixth straight victory in the Cocktail Party rivalry. With an overall score of 7-1 thanks to a convincing win against a quality team, Georgia could pick up a few first-place votes, but the overall score will remain unchanged for most voters.
3. Notre-Dame (5): It took Notre Dame a minute to hit its stride, but voters won’t be quick to overreact one way or another to a 35-13 win over Navy. All eyes are on next week’s showdown with Miami, where a firmer judgment on the Fighting Irish as a top-five team can be made.
4. Utah (6): In a week where a few top teams got off to slow starts, credit to Utah for sending an early message against Cincinnati. The Utes took a 42-6 lead into halftime, then cruised through the second half as attention turned to next Saturday’s showdown with BYU. The fact that the Bearcats just upset Texas Tech allowed for a potential disappointment, but also allowed Utah’s dominance to validate an 8-0 record that will garner more respect from voters.
5.UCLA (7): Voters aren’t going to rush into major adjustments to the Bruins’ position after beating Nevada 27-0. The shutout victory, highlighted by four defensive points, keeps the better part of UCLA’s standings intact, and it’s zero in the loss column. UCLA is now 8-0 overall, but its best win was against three-loss Oregon earlier this month.
6. Indiana (4): Last week, the Hoosiers held just a one-point lead over Notre Dame (1,459 to 1,458) and an advantage of less than 50 points over Utah. After another overtime win that was light on offensive production and heavy on scares, Indiana could be on the verge of giving up a few spots to other teams also battling for the top five. Indiana’s resume doesn’t hold up well to scrutiny, with Nebraska and Northwestern being the best wins and mostly a “loss of quality” argument thanks to the four-point loss to Ohio State.
7. BYU (8): It looked like the Cougars were cruising with a dominant early defensive performance and a 17-3 halftime advantage, but a second-half charge by Arizona State had BYU sweating a little at the end of a 27-20 victory. Ultimately, the victory, regardless of the margin, should keep the Cougars solidly ahead of Kentucky and Alabama, both of whom were absent in Week 9.
8. Kentucky (9): The Wildcats were off in Week 9 and will be back in action next week at Tennessee.
9.Alabama (10): The Crimson Tide were off in Week 9 and will be back in action next week at LSU.
10.Texas (11): We don’t expect too much change after the Longhorns took advantage of a Kamario Taylor-less Mississippi State team and rolled to a 31-3 victory to improve to 6-2.
11. Ohio State (2): Ohio State’s drop in the rankings will happen on two fronts. First, Saturday night’s loss came against a previously unranked USC team and changes the analysis for the Buckeyes, as they are now a two-loss team. But the other aspect here is that Week 9 was the first time we saw Ohio State play four quarters without injured quarterback Julian Sayin, and the offensive production numbers reflect a group that isn’t performing at the same level as before. This will impact voters looking to rank Ohio State among other top teams and make them more likely to choose the Texas head-to-head result as the anchor for the Buckeyes’ new ranking position.
12. Ole Miss (12): Playing at home with Georgia coming to town next week, it would have been easy for Ole Miss to get caught in a dogfight with an Auburn team that can clearly throw punches with the SEC heavyweights. So credit must be given to the Rebels for handling business in a 45-17 victory.
13. Texas Technology (13): There’s an argument that Texas Tech’s resume improved noticeably with a win over Arizona, but we also don’t expect voters to overreact to a one-score home win in the top 15. While significant for creating a new Thomas Castellanos-led offense, this win keeps the Red Raiders virtually the same in the rankings.
14. Wake Forest (14): Among Wake Forest’s many highlights in a 51-7 romp over Virginia, there was another stellar day for Carlos Hernandez. The Demon Deacons wide receiver had eight catches on nine targets for 136 yards and a touchdown, marking the fourth time he has reached 100 yards in a game this season. Wake Forest is now 7-1 overall and will face FCS Merrimack next week before traveling to SMU with a chance to play its way to the ACC championship game in November.
15. LSU (15): The Tigers were off in Week 9 and will be back in action next week against Alabama in Baton Rouge.
16.Tennessee (16): The Vols were off in Week 9 and will be back in action next week against Kentucky.
17. USC(NR): Lincoln Riley believes in this team and has now guided the Trojans into the heart of the Big Ten title race with a key head-to-head victory over Ohio State. The challenge for the Trojans now will be to close the deal with more big wins, as they will be on the College Football Playoff selection committee’s radar and likely ranked in Tuesday’s inaugural CFP rankings.
18. Houston (18): The Cougars were off in Week 9 and will be back in action next week against Cincinnati.
19. Boise State (20): The Broncos are currently in action against Texas State.
20.Missouri (23): Ahmad Hardy returned to the lineup and Missouri returned to winning ways with a 34-10 rivalry victory over Arkansas to improve the Tigers to 6-2 on the season. It’s been 21 days since Missouri’s last win, so voters should feel better about having Eli Drinkwitz’s group among the top 25 teams, and that ranked status sets up for a very interesting showdown with Texas back in Columbia next weekend.
21. Iowa (NR): In last week’s voting, Iowa finished 26th in voting points and closer to No. 25 Wisconsin than Wisconsin was to No. 24 Oklahoma. A complete dismantling of the Badgers would result in a move back into the top 25, taking away some of those Wisconsin votes as well as a level of respect for the dominant nature of the win.
22. South Carolina (NR): It feels like three seasons in one for South Carolina, which has now built a three-game winning streak with wins over Florida, Tennessee and Oklahoma after a three-game losing streak that had the hot seat conversation roaring. The Gamecocks crushed the Sooners on Saturday, earning a 42-25 win in Norman behind another stellar performance from LaNorris Sellers.
23. New Mexico (NR): The Lobos had already appeared on several ballots last week, and now, at 7-1, they could emerge as a more attractive option compared to some teams on the cut line with multiple losses.
24. Oregon (NR): The Ducks are carrying a chaotic win-loss streak, with wins over USC and Northwestern, but also weighed down by a trio of losses to UCLA, Oklahoma State and Illinois. Beating the Wildcats in Week 9 could spark a bounce in the rankings as three-loss teams get more consideration, and given some of the other upsets, the door is open for Oregon to be among the top three three-loss teams in the country.
25. Florida (17): The Gators’ dismal offensive performance could lead to a quick rebound from the top 25 even though the Gators have some of the best wins in the country. The reasons to keep Florida in the rankings are high-end wins against Ole Miss and Texas, but in its current form, this team has lost three of its last four and currently seems stuck in the mud offensively.
Planned to give up: No. 19 SMU, No. 20 Northwestern, No. 22 Arizona, No. 24 Oklahoma State, No. 25 Wisconsin
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