AP Top 25: Miami, LSU Drop, Vanderbilt Makes Big Jump
Miami and LSU dropped in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 poll following an eventful weekend of college football that resulted in significant changes.
One of the season’s biggest surprises occurred Friday night, when Louisville went into Hard Rock Stadium and upset then-No. 2 Miami, 24-21. The Hurricanes trailed the entire game but had a shot to win or go to overtime in the final minutes.
Quarterback Carson Beck marched the Hurricanes down to the Louisville 31-yard line but threw an interception after a miscommunication with his wide receiver. Miami fell seven spots to No. 9. Because the ACC isn’t as talented as other Power Five conferences, this loss sticks out on UM’s résumé.
LSU suffered the largest drop this week, falling 10 spots to No. 20 after its 31-24 loss to Vanderbilt. The Tigers have two losses on the season, and their next two matchups are against No. 3 Texas A&M and No. 4 Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Those games will define LSU’s season in what may be the toughest two-game stretch in the sport.
Vanderbilt’s victory against LSU was one of the biggest in the program’s history and marked the first season since 1956 in which the Commodores defeated two ranked opponents in a season.
Quarterback Diego Pavia has become a fan favorite in Nashville, re-establishing a football culture that hasn’t been seen for decades. This victory moved Vanderbilt up seven spots to No. 10 for its first top-10 appearance since 1947.
Ohio State remains at No. 1, followed by Indiana and Texas A&M to round out the top three teams. The SEC and Big Ten continue to dominate the poll, holding the top six spots and accounting for 15 teams among the top 25.
Down in Athens, Ole Miss was handed its first loss in a 43-35 shootout against Georgia. The Bulldogs faced a nine-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter, but scored 17 unanswered points and showed why their defense has so many players go pro.
The Bulldogs rose four spots to No. 5 entering their bye week and will return to action Nov. 1 against Florida in Jacksonville. Meanwhile, the Rebels dropped just three spots to No. 8. After squeezing out a win against Washington State two weeks ago and losing Saturday, there’s some concern for Ole Miss before its road matchup against No. 13 Oklahoma.
The third and final SEC matchup between ranked opponents wasn’t as close as advertised, as Alabama dominated Tennessee, 37-20. The Crimson Tide have now defeated a ranked SEC opponent in four consecutive weeks and are the hottest team in the nation.
Quarterback Ty Simpson is a Heisman Trophy frontrunner, and, despite starting running back Jam Miller being out, Alabama’s offense totaled 373 yards and went 5 of 11 on third down. Alabama jumped two spots to No. 4, while Tennessee picked up its second loss and dropped six spots to No. 17
Texas Tech fell seven spots to No. 14, Georgia Tech has made its way to No. 7, and Missouri and Texas remain in the Top-25 and more coming from the latest AP poll.
Here are the complete rankings:
- Ohio State
- Indiana
- Texas A&M
- Alabama
- Georgia
- Oregon
- Georgia Tech
- Ole Miss
- Miami
- Vanderbilt
- BYU
- Notre Dame
- Oklahoma
- Texas Tech
- Missouri
- Virginia
- Tennessee
- South Florida
- Louisville
- LSU
- Cincinatti
- Texas
- Illinois
- Arizona State
- Michigan
Category: ACC, Big 10, College Football, Football, NCAA, SEC
