No.7 TCU leads three Big 12 teams in the Associated Press Top 25 college football poll. The Horned Frogs remained the lone undefeated team in the Big 12 after a comeback 38-28 win over No.22 Kansas State on Saturday.
No.9 Oklahoma State moves back into the top 10 after scoring the final 17 points in its 41-34 comeback win over Texas, which dropped just outside the Top 25 after its record fell to 5-3.
The top six teams remained the same, each holding their spots after either winning or not playing this past weekend.
Georgia is No.1 for the third straight week with 31 first-place votes, with No.2 Ohio State gaining ground, receiving 18 first-place votes after blowing out Iowa 54-10.
No.3 Tennessee received 13 first-place votes. No.4 Michigan, No.5 Clemson, and No.6 Alabama also held their places, with Clemson receiving a first-place vote after escaping with a 27-21 home win over No.16 Syracuse.
Oregon jumped two spots to a season-high No.8 after routing No.12 UCLA 45-30, while USC and Wake Forest are tied at No.10.
Two teams are new in this week’s poll. No.18 LSU, in its first season under coach Brian Kelly, handed now-No.15 Mississippi its first loss of the season in dominant fashion, 45-20, and moved back into the rankings ahead of its game against No.6 Alabama on November 5 in Baton Rouge.
LSU’s move back into the rankings ensures that its matchup against Alabama will be a meeting of ranked teams for the first time since the SEC West rivals played a No.1 vs. No.2 game in 2019. Both teams have a bye week before the November 5 game.
After winning the national championship in 2019, LSU has been through two tumultuous seasons and was unranked when they played the Crimson Tide each of the last two seasons.
Before that, the two programs had a string of 14 consecutive seasons in which both were ranked when they played.
No.25 South Carolina, under second-year coach Shane Beamer, is ranked for the first time this season after beating Texas A&M 30-24 to improve to 5-2.
South Carolina had not been ranked since a one-week stint in the Top 25 after the opening week of the 2018 season. They have not been ranked this late in a season since 2013.
South Carolina’s win over Texas A&M was their fourth straight. The Gamecocks went up 17-0 on the Aggies just five minutes into the game, thanks to an opening kickoff return for a touchdown and a fumble and interception deep in Aggies territory that turned into ten more points.
It is the first time South Carolina has beaten Texas A&M since the Aggies joined the SEC in 2014.
For Texas A&M, the loss drops them to 3-4 and puts even more pressure on head coach Jimbo Fisher, whose team started the season ranked No.6. Still, with a contract that runs through 2031 while paying him $9 million a year, Fisher’s job is likely not in jeopardy yet.
Mississippi State joined Texas as the two teams to drop out of the Top 25 this week. Mississippi State was outmatched in a 30-6 defeat to an Alabama team desperate to bounce back from losing the prior week to Tennessee.
Even with Mississippi State dropping out, the additions of LSU and South Carolina in the Top 25 give the SEC seven teams in the poll, two more than any other conference.
After 11 ranked vs. ranked matchups over the past two weeks, this week’s slate is not as enticing, with only three games matching ranked opponents.
No.2 Ohio State will go on the road to face No.13 Penn State in the sixth straight meeting with both ranked. The Buckeyes have won each of the previous five.
No.3 Tennessee will host No.19 Kentucky in the first game with both rivals ranked since 1951.
Finally, No.9 Oklahoma State will go on the road to face No.22 Kansas State, only the second meeting out of 65 all-time matchups with both teams ranked. The other time was in 2011 when Oklahoma State won 52-45.
The Cowboys have won the past three against Kansas State, but this year’s matchup has significant ramifications. Both teams’ only conference loss has been to TCU, so the winner of this one will have an inside track to making the Big 12 championship game.
Full AP Top 25 (First-Place Votes):
1. Georgia (31), 7-0, Last Week: 1
2. Ohio State (18), 7-0, Last Week: 2
3. Tennessee (13) 7-0, Last Week: 3
4. Michigan 7-0, Last Week: 4
5. Clemson (1) 8-0, Last Week: 5
6. Alabama, 7-1, Last Week: 6
7. TCU 7-0, Last Week: 8
8. Oregon 6-1, Last Week: 10
9. Oklahoma State 6-1, Last Week: 11
T10. USC 6-1, Last Week: 12
T10. Wake Forest 6-1, Last Week: 13
12. UCLA 6-1, Last Week: 9
13. Penn State 6-1, Last Week: 16
14. Utah 5-2, Last Week: 15
15. Mississippi 7-1, Last Week: 7
16. Syracuse 6-1, Last Week: 14
17. Illinois 6-1, Last Week: 18
18. LSU 6-2, Last Week: NR
19. Kentucky 5-2, Last Week: 19
20. Cincinnati 6-1, Last Week: 21
21. North Carolina 6-1, Last Week: 22
22. Kansas State 5-2, Last Week: 17
23. Tulane 7-1, Last Week: 25
24. NC State 5-2, Last Week: 23
25. South Carolina 5-2, Last Week: NR
Others receiving votes: Texas 38, Liberty 35, Oregon State 25, Mississippi State 10, Maryland 8, Troy 3, UTSA 1, Arkansas 1, Washington 1, Florida State 1
