Week 9 College Football Top 25

Posted on by thefloorslap
  1. Ohio State (7-0); AP rank: 2
  2. Georgia (7-0); AP rank: 1
  3. Tennessee (7-0); AP rank: 3
  4. Michigan (7-0); AP rank: 4
  5. Clemson (8-0); AP rank: 5
  6. TCU (7-0); AP rank: 7
    • I can already hear the outcry of TCU being ranked ahead of Alabama. But the fact of the matter is TCU has beaten Oklahoma State and Kansas State in back to back weeks thanks to a couple dominant second halves. Their defense certainly needs work, but this offense can score with anyone in the country. At this point in the season, being undefeated is a hard thing to look past. With Alabama still looking very mortal against Mississippi State, I give the nod to the team who’s taken care of business.
  7. Alabama (7-1): AP rank: 6
  8. Oregon (6-1); AP rank: 8
  9. Oklahoma State (6-1); AP rank: 9
  10. USC (6-1); AP rank: 10
    • I am very confident the 4 playoff teams will come from some combination of these top 10 teams. Sure, teams behind USC still have a path. But it would require some unlikely events to happen (Penn State upsettingOhio State, Clemson dropping two more conference games, UCLA beating USC and Oregon in a rematch, Illinois upsetting the Big Ten East champ).
  11. Wake Forest (6-1); AP rank: 11
  12. Penn State (6-1); AP rank: 13
  13. Syracuse (6-1); AP rank: 14
  14. UCLA (6-1); AP rank: 12
    • The Bruins and Orange both went on the road to face top 10 teams this past weekend. UCLA let things get out of hand quickly, while Syracuse was in the game until the final minute. I think Syracuse deserves credit for pushing Clemson like they did, so they are ranked ahead of UCLA.
  15. Illinois (6-1); AP rank: 17
  16. Utah (5-2); AP rank: 15
  17. Cincinnati (6-1); AP rank: 20
  18. LSU (6-2); AP rank: 18
  19. Ole Miss (7-1); AP rank: 15
  20. Kentucky (5-2); AP rank: 19
  21. North Carolina (6-1); AP rank: 21
    • There’s a clear “top 21”, evidenced by the AP having the same top 21 as I have. To be honest, teams 22-28 can be arranged however you like.
  22. Tulane (7-1); AP rank: 23
  23. Liberty (7-1); AP rank: unranked
    • Liberty’s lone loss was by one point at Wake Forest. They’ve won five straight since, most recently a 41-14 beatdown of BYU. They are certainly worthy of being ranked. And with games against Arkansas and Virginia Tech still to come, a NY6 birth is on the table.
  24. Oregon State (6-2); AP rank: unranked
    • The Beavers have one of the best defenses in the Pac-12 and an offense that is finally finding it’s rhythm. Their only two losses are against top-20 teams in USC and Utah – and one could argue they should’ve knocked off the Trojans last month.
  25. Maryland (6-2); AP rank: unranked
    • The Terps were able to pull out a win without their star QB this past weekend. Their only two losses are a nail-biter against Purdue and a tight one on the road against top-5 Michigan. With a bye week upcoming, Taulia should be fully healthy for their final four-game stretch. With the run game finally getting consistent production, this offense seems capable of scoring with anyone.

Number of Ranked Teams by Conference:

ACC: 4, Big 12: 3, Big Ten: 5, Pac 12: 5, SEC: 6, other: 3

Notable Unranked Teams

  1. South Carolina (5-2); AP rank: 25
    • Back-to-back wins over Kentucky and A&M have some people excited for this team. But you have to remember that Kentucky played that game without Will Levis. Also, A&M is a flat out bad football team this year. Great win for the direction of the program, but not a win that catapults them into the top-25. After all, the drubbing they took against Arkansas earlier this is hard to forget. But keep winning, and you’ll crack the top-25 in no time.
  2. Kansas State (5-2); AP rank: 22
    • K-State was man-handled in the second half against TCU. And their “marquee” win was against Oklahoma by seven points – a win that’s hard to write home about now. They can get back into the top-25 with a win against Oklahoma State this weekend, but I don’t think they can pull that one out.
  3. NC State (5-2): AP rank: 24
    • As I mentioned last week, you have to remember they are without QB Devin Leary for the rest of the season. Without him, they weren’t even a match for Syracuse.
  4. Texas (5-3); AP rank: unranked
    • I have to mention them because they are technically 26th in the AP poll – ahead of Oregon State and Liberty. This passing attack has looked completely lost the past two weeks, and their defense has been incapable of making any big plays. While a Big-12 championship is still on the table, this looks like the same old Texas team from the past decade.