How High did Wisconsin Jump in Hockey Polls After Sweeping Michigan State?
The question for the voters wasn't if there would be a new No. 1 team in men's college hockey this week after Michigan State was swept at home over the weekend by Wisconsin. It was how high the Badgers would rise in the rankings.
They went all the way from seventh to No. 2. Michigan, which put on another impressive offensive display with 5-2 and 8-1 home wins against Ohio State, moved up into the top spot for the first time this season after beginning the year No. 12 in the preseason polls (but did receive a first-place vote).
The Wolverines landed 42 of 50 first-place votes in the USCHO.com poll (and all 34 in the USA Hockey rankings) while Michigan State held on to five but slid down to No. 3 overall. Wisconsin received three first-place votes.
It's the second time this season that the Big Ten held the top three spots as it went Michigan State, Michigan and Penn State in the Nov, 3 rankings. Having lost four of their last six games without injured Aiden Fink, a Hobey Baker finalist last season, the Nittany Lions have fallen to No. 9.
Meanwhile, the Wisconsin women's team continued to have a vice grip on No. 1, with 16 of 20 first-place votes. Ohio State moved up a notch ahead of Minnesota at No. 3, with still-undefeated Penn State fourth.
The best in the East is Quinnipiac on the men's side at No. 8, and Cornell at No. 5 for the women. Both polls continued to resemble each other with the top half dominated by Western teams, and the bottom half full of the East.
East-West matchups will be a theme this week as Michigan will take the new No. 1 rankings out for a spin at Harvard for a weekend series, the top team receiving votes but not ranked. No. 2 Wisconsin is off, but Michigan State is hosting Colgate. Penn State, which is located in the East but is considered a Western school due to playing in the Big Ten, is off until Jan. 3.
BOOM 💥 pic.twitter.com/tGRvPTsWc4
— Michigan Hockey (@umichhockey) November 24, 2025
USCHO Men's Poll
November 24, 2025
Rank | Team | Record | Points (1st) | Prv. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Michigan | 13-3-0 | 991 (42) | 2 |
2 | Wisconsin | 10-2-2 | 894 (3) | 7 |
3 | Michigan State | 9-3 | 884 (1) | 1 |
4 | Denver | 9-4-1 | 825 | 3 |
5 | Minnesota Duluth | 12-4-0 | 763 | 4 |
6 | North Dakota | 8-4-0 | 702 | 6 |
7 | Western Michigan | 9-5-0 | 684 | 8 |
8 | Quinnipiac | 9-3-2 | 648 | 9 |
9 | Penn State | 11-5-0 | 626 | 5 |
10 | Maine | 8-5-1 | 513 | 10 |
11 | Northeastern | 8-4-0 | 432 | 12 |
12 | Connecticut | 7-5-2 | 412 | 11 |
13 | Dartmouth | 6-0-0 | 395 | 13 |
14 | Minnesota State | 8-2-4 | 375 | 14 |
15 | Boston College | 7-5-1 | 294 | 15 |
16 | Providence | 6-5-2 | 246 | 16 |
17 | Cornell | 6-2-0 | 242 | 19 |
18 | Massachusetts | 8-7-0 | 167 | 73 |
19 | Boston University | 6-7-1 | 91 | 18 |
20 | Union | 8-3-2 | 73 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Harvard 72, Colorado College 64, Michigan Tech 34, Bemidji State 24, Miami 13, Holy Cross 12, RIT 8, Omaha 5, St. Cloud State 5, Bentley 3, Ohio State 2, Arizona State 1
USA Hockey Poll
November 17, 2025
Rank | Team | Points (1st) | Prv. |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Michigan | 680 (34) | 2 |
2 | Wisconsin | 616 | 8 |
3 | Michigan State | 613 | 1 |
4 | Denver | 580 | 3 |
5 | Minnesota Duluth | 539 | 4 |
6 | North Dakota | 471 | 6 |
7 | Western Michigan | 467 | 7 |
8 | Quinnipiac | 447 | 9 |
9 | Penn State | 435 | 5 |
10 | Dartmouth | 318 | 13 |
11 | Maine | 310 | 11 |
12 | Northeastern | 284 | 12 |
13 | Connecticut | 283 | 10 |
14 | Minnesota State | 237 | 14 |
15 | Boston College | 204 | 15 |
16 | Cornell | 196 | 17 |
17 | Providence | 153 | 16 |
18 | Harvard | 179 | NR |
19 | Massachusetts | 78 | 18 |
20 | Boston University | 44 | 19 |
Others receiving votes: Colorado College 33, Union 28, Ohio State 11, Bemidji State 7, Holy Cross 7, Augustana 6, Miami 4, St. Cloud State 4, Sacred Heart 1.
USCHO Women's Poll
November 24, 2025
Rank | Team | Record | Points (1st) | Prv. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Wisconsin | 14-1-1 | 296 (16) | 1 |
2 | Ohio State | 13-1-0 | 283 (4) | 3 |
3 | Minnesota | 12-4-0 | 246 | 2 |
4 | Penn State | 16-0-0 | 234 | 6 |
5 | Cornell | 9-2-0 | 223 | 4 |
6 | Minnesota Duluth | 10-6-0 | 216 | 5 |
7 | Northeastern | 12-2-0 | 167 | 8 |
8 | Connecticut | 10-3-1 | 153 | 9 |
9 | Quinnipiac | 12-3-1 | 150 | 7 |
10 | Clarkson | 9-5-1 | 106 | 11 |
11 | Brown | 8-3-1 | 63 | 12 |
12 | Colgate | 8-7-1 | 61 | 13 |
13 | Princeton | 8-4-0 | 59 | NR |
14 | St. Cloud State | 5-10-1 | 47 | 10 |
15 | Minnesota State | 8-7-1 | 41 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Yale 33, Boston College 10, St. Thomas 10, Mercyhurst 2
Women's USA Hockey Poll
November 25, 2025
Rank | Team | Points (1st) | Prv. |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Wisconsin | 279 (14) | 1 |
2 | Ohio State | 272 (5) | 3 |
3 | Minnesota | 231 | 2 |
4 | Penn State | 219 | 6 |
5 | Minnesota Duluth | 209 | 4 |
6 | Cornell | 205 | 5 |
7 | Northeastern | 160 | 8 |
8 | Connecticut | 149 | 9 |
9 | Quinnipiac | 144 | 7 |
10 | Clarkson | 98 | 11 |
11 | Brown | 67 | 13 |
12 | Colgate | 54 | 12 |
13 | Princeton | 45 | NR |
14 | St. Cloud State | 42 | 10 |
15 | Minnesota State | 39 | NR |
Others receiving votes: Yale 34, St. Thomas 19, Boston College 7, Mercyhurst 4, RIT 2, Holy Cross 1.
SEEL ALSO: Last week's college hockey polls
Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of Alabama Crimson Tide On SI, which first published as BamaCentral in 2018, and is also the publisher of the Boston College, Missouri and Vanderbilt sites . He's covered the Crimson Tide since 2004 and is the author of 27 books including “100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die” and “Nick Saban vs. College Football.” He's an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.
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