Miami moved back to No. 2 in The Associated Press college football poll on Sunday, Texas Tech has its highest ranking since 2008 and Penn State and Texas fell all the way out of the Top 25 for the first time since 2022 after the two top-10 teams lost to unranked opponents.
No. 1 Ohio State was dominant in its win over Minnesota, but its 40 first-place votes were its fewest since ascending to the top five weeks ago. The Hurricanes, who moved ahead of idle Oregon, went from receiving four first-place votes last week to 21 this week after winning at Florida State.
Miami also had been No. 2 two weeks ago following an open date and gave up that spot last week after Oregon’s overtime win at Penn State.
Oregon, which received the other five first-place votes, was followed by idle No. 4 Mississippi and No. 5 Texas A&M. The Aggies hammered Mississippi State and earned their highest ranking since Jimbo Fisher’s 2021 team was No. 5 in early September.
Oklahoma slipped from No. 5 to No. 6 despite its 44-0 shutout of Kent State. Indiana, which had an open date, is No. 7 and No. 8 Alabama got a two-spot promotion for its 16-point win over Vanderbilt.
No. 9 Texas Tech, which won 35-11 at previously unbeaten Houston, cracked the top 10 for the first time since it was No. 8 in the final regular-season poll in 2008. Georgia moved up two spots to No. 10 after its win over Kentucky.
Texas was the AP’s presesason No. 1 team and Penn State was No. 2. Both are now out of the rankings.
Penn State took one of the biggest falls in the 99-year history of the poll for its loss at previously winless UCLA a week after the Bruins fired their coach. The Nittany Lions had slipped from No. 2 to No. 7 following their loss to Oregon. They went to UCLA as 24.5-point favorites, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, and lost 42-37. Penn State is unranked for the first time since September 2022.
The plunge out of the Top 25 matched 1959 Oklahoma for second-biggest drop out of the rankings, not counting preseason polls or the 2020 pandemic season. The ’59 Sooners went from No. 2 to out of the Top 20 after losing their opener to Northwestern.
Texas lost at Ohio State as the preseason No. 1 and was No. 9 entering its game at Florida. The Longhorns’ 29-21 loss at the Swamp sent it tumbling out of the Top 25. They hadn’t been unranked since November 2022.
Before Sunday, the last time two top-10 teams fell out of the poll the same week was Sept. 16, 1986, when it happened to No. 8 Tennessee and No. 10 Ohio State.
| Rank | Team | Record | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohio State | 5-0 | 1 |
| 2 | Miami | 5-0 | 3 |
| 3 | Oregon | 5-0 | 2 |
| 4 | Ole Miss | 5-0 | 4 |
| 5 | Texas A&M | 5-0 | 6 |
| 6 | Oklahoma | 5-0 | 5 |
| 7 | Indiana | 5-0 | 8 |
| 8 | Alabama | 4-1 | 10 |
| 9 | Texas Tech | 5-0 | 11 |
| 10 | Georgia | 4-1 | 12 |
| 11 | LSU | 4-1 | 13 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 4-1 | 15 |
| 13 | Georgia Tech | 5-0 | 17 |
| 14 | Missouri | 5-0 | 19 |
| 15 | Michigan | 4-1 | 20 |
| 16 | Notre Dame | 3-2 | 21 |
| 17 | Illinois | 5-1 | 22 |
| 18 | BYU | 5-0 | 23 |
| 19 | Virginia | 5-1 | 24 |
| 20 | Vanderbilt | 5-1 | 16 |
| 21 | Arizona State | 4-1 | 25 |
| 22 | Iowa State | 5-1 | 14 |
| 23 | Memphis | 6-0 | NR |
| 24 | South Florida | 4-1 | NR |
| 25 | Florida State | 3-2 | 18 |
In and out
— No. 23 Memphis, four spots out of the Top 25 a week ago, is in for the first time since it was No. 24 in the final poll last season. The Tigers are out to their best start since 2015 and the first team to be 6-0, making them bowl-eligible for the 12th straight year.
— No. 24 South Florida (4-1) has won two straight since its lopsided loss at Miami and is back after a one-month absence.
— Penn State (7) and Texas (9) dropped out.
Poll points
— Ohio State’s 40 first-place votes are fewest for a No. 1 team since Alabama also got 40 in the poll Sept. 29, 2024.
— Miami’s No. 2 ranking is its highest in an October poll since 2003.
— The teams ranked Nos. 14-19 — Missouri, Michigan, Notre Dame, Illinois, BYU and Virginia — each received five-spot promotions, biggest of the week.
— Iowa State took the biggest fall of any team that remained in the Top 25, falling eight spots to No. 22 after losing at Cincinnati.
Conference call
SEC (9) — Nos. 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, 20.
Big Ten (5) — Nos. 1, 3, 7, 15, 17.
Big 12 (4) — Nos. 9, 18, 21, 22.
ACC (4) — Nos. 2, 13, 19, 25.
American (2) — Nos. 23, 24.
Independent (1) — No. 16.
Ranked vs. ranked
— No. 1 Ohio State (5-0) at No. 17 Illinois (5-1): This is the first meeting since 2017 and first Top 25 matchup since 2001. The Buckeyes have won nine straight in the series and haven’t lost in Champaign since 1991. The lone blemish for the Illini was a blowout loss at Indiana.
— No. 7 Indiana (5-0) at No. 3 Oregon (5-0): The Hoosiers didn’t have to play Oregon last year, the Ducks’ first in the Big Ten. Indiana is 0-2 against top-five opponents under second-year coach Curt Cignetti.
— No. 8 Alabama (4-1) at No. 14 Missouri (5-0): The Crimson Tide beat the Tigers 34-0 in Tuscaloosa last year, are on a four-game win streak and looking to knock off a third straight ranked opponent. Huge opportunity here for Missouri for a marquee win in the chase for the SEC title and College Football Playoff seeding.
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