Where Nebraska Stands in National College Football Rankings in Week 9

Nebraska took a pounding at Minnesota on Friday night and took another one in the national polls and rankings this week.

The 5-2 Huskers, who lost 24-6 to the Golden Gophers, dropped in all seven polls we monitor. The biggest drop was in the AP Top 25, where the Huskers went from 25th last week to not even receiving one vote this week.

Nebraska’s best ranking is 26th in ESPN’s SP+ poll. The Huskers were 20th last week. The Huskers’ highest ranking — other than being dropped in both the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll — is 35th in the CBS Sports 136 rankings.

Each Wednesday, we’ll take a look at where seven national polls place Nebraska’s football team. Nebraska ranks 30.2 in an average of five polls, a steep decrease from last week’s average of 23.5.

The Huskers return to action at Memorial Stadium against Northwestern (5-2) at 11 a.m. CT Saturday. The Wildcats have won four consecutive games.

Nebraska’s odds dropped in all six categories in the ESPN FPI odds. The Huskers’ final record is 7.5 projected wins and 4.5 projected losses. Last week, the Huskers were projected to have 8.5 wins and 3.4 losses. Nebraska was 7-6 last season.

The polls we will monitor all season are:

* Associated Press
* The Athletic
* CBS Sports
* US LBM Coaches Poll
* ESPN’s Football Power Index
* ESPN’s SP+ rankings
* Massey Ratings

Associated Press Top 25

After a one-week residency in the AP Top 25 poll, at 25th, the Huskers received zero votes this week. Ten teams were among “others receiving votes” but not the Huskers. At No. 35 was Minnesota, which garnered one vote.

Cincinnati (6-1), a 20-17 loser to Nebraska in Week One, moved up three spots to No. 21.

The Athletic

Nebraska dropped seven places from 22 to 29. In The Athletic’s preseason rankings, Nebraska was 39th.

CBS Sports 136 Rankings

CBS Sports dropped Nebraska from 25 to 35.

US LBM Coaches Poll

The Huskers dropped entirely out of the poll and were not listed among the 18 teams that were “others receiving votes.” At 43, with one vote, is Northwestern.

Last week, the Huskers were 27th.

ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI)

The Huskers dropped from 23 to 31. In the three previous weeks, Nebraska went from 21 to 22 to 23.

Nebraska dropped in all six FPI odds, the most notable, probably, being the Huskers now having a 0.6 percent chance of making the College Football Playoff after having an 8.1 percent chance last week.

Here are FPI’s odds for Nebraska (with last week’s odds in parentheses):

* 97.8 percent chance of winning six games (99.8 last week)
* 7.5 projected wins to 4.5 projected losses (8.5 wins and 3.4 losses last week)
* 0.0 percent chance of winning the Big Ten (0.4 percent chance last week)
* 0.6 percent chance of making the College Football Playoff (8.1 percent chance last week)
* 0.0 percent chance of making the national championship game (0.3 percent chance last week)
* 0.0 percent chance of winning the national championship (0.1 percent chance last week)

ESPN’s SP+ rankings

The Huskers went from 20 to 26.

As ESPN writer Bill Connelly says about his SP+ ratings: “It’s a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency … SP+ is intended to be predictive and forward-facing.

“It is simply a measure of the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football. If you’re lucky or unimpressive in a win, your rating will probably fall. If you’re strong and unlucky in a loss, it will probably rise.”

Massey Ratings

Massey Ratings are a compilation of 40 different college football rankings. In the consensus of the 40 rankings, the Huskers ranked 30. Last week they were 23.

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