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Penn State over Georgia highlights 3 mistakes on the AP Poll

Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

With four top-10 teams losing this weekend, there was bound to be some movement in Sunday's AP Poll.

That was certainly the case, as three of the four teams dropped out of the top 10 entirely, and only No. 1 Alabama remained in the top five from the previous week.

While most of the poll is fairly accurate, the AP voters got it wrong in three specific areas.

Here are the three most glaring mistakes:

1. Penn State ahead of Georgia

Penn State entered its bye week one spot ahead of Georgia with a 6-0 record. The Bulldogs pushed their record to 7-0 with a 25-point beatdown of Missouri. Yet for some explicable reason, the Nittany Lions remain ahead of Georgia in the latest poll. Georgia has a road win at No. 16 Notre Dame, accompanied by a plus-125 point differential in conference play. Penn State has a 33-14 non-conference home win over unranked Pitt, and a 3-0 conference record with a plus-57 point differential. There's simply nothing on the Penn State's resume that should have it ranked ahead of Georgia. Penn State plays Michigan, Ohio State, and Michigan State in the next three weeks. If it goes perfect through that stretch it could be the No. 1 team in the country. Right now, however, the Nittany Lions have no business being No. 2.

2. Miami sitting three spots behind Wisconsin

(Photo courtesy: Action Images)

The "U" is back ... in the top 10. Miami leapt into the upper echelon of the AP Poll at No. 8 thanks to its second straight win in the dying seconds. The Hurricanes are being punished for missing a non-conference game against Arkansas State, as they have only played five games. Miami was a double-digit favorite for that contest, and already has two conference road wins over Florida State and Duke on its resume. Wisconsin has the extra win, but it has yet to play anybody of consequence this season. That sixth victory alone should not be worth a place three spots higher than Miami in the rankings.

3. Virginia Tech ranked No. 14 instead of NC State

Virginia Tech wins: vs. West Virginia, vs. Delaware, at East Carolina, vs. Old Dominion, at Boston College
Virginia Tech losses: vs. Clemson

NC State wins: vs. Marshall, vs. Furman, at Florida State, vs. Syracuse, vs. Louisville, at Pitt
NC State losses: vs. South Carolina

This one isn't the worst egregious pick, but NC State should be ahead of Virginia Tech in the poll. The Wolfpack have played one more game and sit at 6-1 on the season. That includes two conference road wins, and two conference victories at home. Their lone loss was a neutral site defeat to South Carolina. Virginia Tech has just one conference win, and fell at home to Clemson earlier in the year. While the opening-week win against West Virginia was noteworthy, it shouldn't be enough to stay ahead of a NC State program with an extra victory on the season.

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