It’s great to be a Gator in the latest AP Top 25 rankings: Florida made a massive jump, landing in the top 10 for the first time in five years.
The Gators’ 24-point win over Mississippi on Saturday earned them a 13-rung promotion to No. 8, their highest since 2020 and first top-10 appearance since 2021.
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Texas, Georgia and Notre Dame held their grip on the top three spots in the poll. Miami was a season-high No. 4, and Ohio State moved up two spots to No. 5.
Indiana, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and BYU rounded out the top 10. That’s a five-spot drop for the Rebels.
By MAURA CAREY
One week after Jeremiah Smith became Ohio State’s all-time leading receiver, he takes over as a Heisman favorite after exploding for 12 receptions, 217 receiving yards and four touchdowns – that’s Jeremiah Smith for you.
Smith’s odds jumped from +950 to +290 to win the award, passing over Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and Miami quarterback Darian Mensah. Mensah has the second-best odds at +450, and Kamario Taylor (+600) jumped over Chambliss (+1150) for the third-best odds.
By TOM MURPHY
Walk us through how you’ve voted No. 1 this season, from the preseason rankings to moving Georgia to the top spot this week.
AP sports editor Dave Zelio
I opted to put ultra-talented Ohio State No. 1 on my preseason ballot for various reasons.
The fall-from-ahead loss, after leading Texas by 20 points, gave an opportunity to move Miami to No. 1 for a couple of weeks.
I dropped the Hurricanes down after their close call against Wake Forest and moved the defending champs Indiana to No. 1 last week. I didn’t feel like the Hoosiers deserved to stay there after their Friday home win against Northwestern. So Georgia is my fourth No. 1 of the year on today’s ballot. — Arkansas sports reporter Tom Murphy has been an AP Top 25 voter since 2007.
By MAURA CAREY
Perhaps no SEC team has been more shocking than No. 24 Mississippi State, which improved to 4-0 with a 31-24 win over No. 19 Missouri this weekend.
Quarterback Kamario Taylor was 27 of 38 for 360 yards, three touchdowns and an interception, boosting his season totals to 1,192 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions.
Taylor taking advantage of upcoming transfer portal opportunities has been a hot topic of conversation lately. But the Mississippi State quarterback responded to that on Saturday: “If you know me, you know I bleed maroon and white.”
Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck’s intensity was on full display after his team’s 27-24 win over Washington on Saturday.
Golden Gophers linebacker Maverick Baranowski was bleeding from his mouth after the final play. Fleck embraced his player, wiped the blood from his mouth, and smeared it on his face.
“He’s a crazy man,” Baranowski said after the game.
Tennessee had all the momentum on its side after the two-minute warning against Texas. Quarterback Faizon Brandon led a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to bring the Vols within three points. Then Arion Carter recovered a fumbled onside kick, giving Tennessee possession at its 49-yard line.
A facemask call brought the Vols to the 40-yard line, but poor clock management and penalties exposed a young Tennessee offense.
Despite the near-loss for Texas, a road win at Neyland Stadium is no easy feat. The Longhorns remained No. 1 for another week, receiving 62 of 69 first-place votes.
Penn State's Happy Valley has seen happier days after a loss to Wisconsin Saturday (and the Nittany Lions entered as 9.5-point favorites).
Wisconsin recovered from a 17-0 first-half deficit and scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to beat Penn State 24-20.
In terms of the rankings, Penn State took one of the hardest falls of the week, dropping from No. 13 to out of the rankings.
The SEC again leads the pack with 10 ranked teams this week: Texas (1), Georgia (2), Alabama (7), Florida (8), Ole Miss (9), LSU (11), Mississippi State (16), Tennessee (17), Kentucky (24), Missouri (25).
The Big Ten has six ranked teams: Ohio State (5), Indiana (6), Iowa (14), Oregon (15), USC (18), UCLA (23).
The Big 12 has five ranked teams: BYU (10), Texas Tech (12), Utah (13), Oklahoma State (19), Houston (20).
The ACC is down to two ranked teams: Miami (4) and SMU (21).
Notre Dame (3) is independent.
And the Group of Six is represented for the first time this season, as the Pac-12’s Boise State debuted in the rankings at No. 22.
One week after Jeremiah Smith became Ohio State’s all-time leading receiver, he takes over as a Heisman favorite after exploding for 12 receptions, 217 receiving yards and four touchdowns – that’s Jeremiah Smith for you.
Smith’s odds jumped from +950 to +290 to win the award, passing over Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and Miami quarterback Darian Mensah.
Mensah has the second-best odds at +450, and Kamario Taylor (+600) jumped over Chambliss (+1150) for the third-best odds.
By TOM MURPHY
I opted to put ultra-talented Ohio State No. 1 on my preseason ballot for various reasons.
The fall-from-ahead loss, after leading Texas by 20 points, gave an opportunity to move Miami to No. 1 for a couple of weeks.
I dropped the Hurricanes down after their close call against Wake Forest and moved the defending champs Indiana to No. 1 last week. I didn’t feel like the Hoosiers deserved to stay there after their Friday home win against Northwestern. So Georgia is my fourth No. 1 of the year on today’s ballot. — Arkansas sports reporter Tom Murphy has been an AP Top 25 voter since 2007.
By MAURA CAREY
Perhaps no SEC team has been more shocking than No. 24 Mississippi State, which improved to 4-0 with a 31-24 win over No. 19 Missouri this weekend.
Quarterback Kamario Taylor was 27 of 38 for 360 yards, three touchdowns and an interception, boosting his season totals to 1,192 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions.
Taylor taking advantage of upcoming transfer portal opportunities has been a hot topic of conversation lately. But the Mississippi State quarterback responded to that on Saturday: “If you know me, you know I bleed maroon and white.”
By DAVE ZELIO
It’s an excellent question, and Top 25 voters are absolutely encouraged to look closely at head-to-head results.
Best guess is that the voters, collectively, recall that Oklahoma State lost to Tulsa before catching fire and Oregon looked more than solid on the road at USC this weekend with a backup QB, and have in hand what looks now like a good win against newly ranked Boise State back in Week 1.
They are also not terribly far apart in poll terms, with the Ducks at No. 15 and the ’Pokes at No. 19.
By MAURA CAREY
Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck’s intensity was on full display after his team’s 27-24 win over Washington on Saturday.
Golden Gophers linebacker Maverick Baranowski was bleeding from his mouth after the final play. Fleck embraced his player, wiped the blood from his mouth, and smeared it on his face.
“He’s a crazy man,” Baranowski said after the game.
Tennessee had all the momentum on its side after the two-minute warning against Texas. Quarterback Faizon Brandon led a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to bring the Vols within three points. Then Arion Carter recovered a fumbled onside kick, giving Tennessee possession at its 49-yard line.
A facemask call brought the Vols to the 40-yard line, but poor clock management and penalties exposed a young Tennessee offense.
Despite the near-loss for Texas, a road win at Neyland Stadium is no easy feat. The Longhorns remained No. 1 for another week, receiving 62 of 69 first-place votes.
Happy Valley has seen happier days after a loss to Wisconsin Saturday (and the Nittany Lions entered as 9.5-point favorites).
Wisconsin recovered from a 17-0 first-half deficit and scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to beat Penn State 24-20.
In terms of the rankings, Penn State took one of the hardest falls of the week, dropping from No. 13 to out of the rankings.
The SEC again leads the pack with 10 ranked teams this week: Texas (1), Georgia (2), Alabama (7), Florida (8), Ole Miss (9), LSU (11), Mississippi State (16), Tennessee (17), Kentucky (24), Missouri (25).
The Big Ten has six ranked teams: Ohio State (5), Indiana (6), Iowa (14), Oregon (15), USC (18), UCLA (23).
The Big 12 has five ranked teams: BYU (10), Texas Tech (12), Utah (13), Oklahoma State (19), Houston (20).
The ACC is down to two ranked teams: Miami (4) and SMU (21).
Notre Dame (3) is independent.
And the Group of Six is represented for the first time this season, as the Pac-12’s Boise State debuted in the rankings at No. 22.
Michigan’s first few weeks in the Top 25 have been turbulent, from entering the season at No. 16 to dropping out of the rankings after a controversial 13-12 win against Western Michigan, to climbing back in at No. 18 after beating Oklahoma and UTEP.
The Wolverines are back out of the rankings after a familiar-looking loss to Iowa. Michigan fell 20-19 on a last-second touchdown, marking its second close call in the past month.
Despite a Week 1 loss to Ole Miss, Louisville appeared on a fast track to the ACC championship in the early weeks of the season. That outlook has changed after a 30-27 upset from Wake Forest.
Louisville kicked a field goal to tie it up at 27-all at the end of the third quarter, but the fourth quarter wasn’t as kind to the Cardinals. Louisville turned the ball over on downs and missed two field goals in its final three drives. Louisville’s final field goal attempt was blocked by Wake Forest’s Gabe Kirschke and set the Demon Deacons up for victory formation.
A once red-hot Louisville team tumbled out of the rankings as a result and made its path to the College Football Playoff much more complicated.
By TOM MURPHY
Truly, the results every weekend show that nobody’s ballot is foolproof, and fortunes for even really strong teams can waver in the course of a week.
The final 10 or so teams every week form such a cluster it’s hard to sort them all.
As an example, I dropped five teams from my ballot this week (Oklahoma, Washington, Louisville, West Virginia, Texas A&M) and upgraded five unbeatens (Miss. State, Duke, Cincinnati, UCLA, Pitt), and there are still a few more teams with no losses. — Arkansas sports reporter Tom Murphy has been an AP Top 25 voter since 2007.
By MAURA CAREY
The Gators cracked the top 10 of the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2021, coming in at No. 8.
That’s one of the biggest jumps of the season and moved Florida up 13 spots from No. 21. The Gators are one of five unbeaten SEC teams alongside Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi State and Texas.
The Rebels’ stint in the top five proved to be short-lived, as Ole Miss fell from No. 4 to No. 9 following a 52-28 loss to Florida.
It was a tough test for Ole Miss coming off its biggest win of the season – a 32-24 triumph over rival LSU that briefly moved the Rebels into the top five.
Ole Miss was unable to carry that momentum into Gainesville, giving up 52 points in its first loss of the season.
Florida improved to No. 8, one spot above the Rebels, and LSU dropped from No. 10 to No. 11.
There’s plenty of turnover in this week’s AP Top 25. Four newcomers are No. 19 Oklahoma State, No. 22 Boise State, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 Kentucky. Boise State is the first Group of Six team to crack the rankings this season, while UCLA is off to its first 4-0 start since 2022.
Penn State, Louisville, Michigan and Texas A&M each fell out of the rankings after Week 4 losses.
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
For decades, voters called, emailed and faxed their votes to the AP and ballots were tabulated by hand.
Now voting happens online, and the count is automated first before AP checks for miscues.
The poll operates on a 1-to-25-point system, with the No. 1 team receiving 25 points down to the 25th team receiving 1 point. In between, the poll lists the teams with the most points from 24 down to 2. Teams that receive votes but not enough to make the top 25 are noted separately.
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
1. Texas
2. Georgia
3. Notre Dame
4. Miami
5. Ohio State
6. Indiana
7. Alabama
8. Florida
9. Ole Miss
10. BYU
11. LSU
12. Texas Tech
13. Utah
14. Iowa
15. Oregon
16. Mississippi State
17. Tennessee
18. USC
19. Oklahoma State
20. Houston
21. SMU
22. Boise State
23. UCLA
24. Kentucky
25. Missouri
By MAURA CAREY
Oregon quarterback Dante Moore went down with a scary injury after USC linebacker Desman Stephens hit him late on a slide on Saturday night.
Moore lay motionless on the field before being carted off and taken to a nearby hospital in an ambulance.
Stephens was ejected for targeting, and the game was delayed 15 minutes as a result.
Oregon backup and former Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola added a spark off the bench, completing 19 of 25 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns and guiding Oregon to a 41-27 win.
“He’s in recovery, so I don’t want to speak too soon, but he’s moving,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said after the game. “We’ll continue to assess him, but I don’t want to speak too soon, but he’s moving.”
No. 21 Florida made its biggest statement yet with a 52-28 win over No. 4 Ole Miss.
The Gators had six rushing touchdowns, with standout running back Jadan Baugh accounting for three of them and 142 rushing yards. Duke Clark added 126 rushing yards and a score. Quarterback Aaron Philo also ran one in and completed 16 of 23 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown.
It’s the first defeat this season for Pete Golding’s Rebels, who took a trip to the swamp after a highly anticipated 32-24 win against rival LSU.
This weekend, Florida outscored Ole Miss 21-7 in the fourth quarter to come out with the win.
“I didn’t come here for us to be average,” Florida coach Jon Sumrall said after the game.
Two of the SEC’s highly ranked College Football Playoff teams — Texas A&M and Oklahoma — each lost this weekend.
Both teams have plummeted in the rankings recently. The Sooners tumbled out of the AP Top 25 after a loss to Michigan and a shaky win against New Mexico in back-to-back weeks. Texas A&M dropped to No. 23 last week following a 31-21 upset loss to Kentucky.
The Aggies lost 35-6 to No. 10 LSU on Saturday, and the Sooners fell 41-13 to No. 2 Georgia.
