Reacting to AP Top 25 Poll After More College Football Chaos

The No. 15 USC Trojans debuted at No. 20 in the first College Football Playoff rankings of the season despite being higher in the AP Top 25 Poll, but the team is expected to move up after a rather chaotic weekend of college football.

Because they started the season in week 0, the Trojans had two bye weeks instead of the typical one that most teams enjoy. USC was off in week 10 ahead of a ranked showdown with No. 6 Indiana, but enough losses occurred ahead of Trojans coach Lincoln Riley and company that they moved up from No. 18 to No. 15 in the AP Poll.

ap top 25 poll rankings reaction usc trojans mario cristobal miami hurricanes notre dame fighting irish marcus freeman cfp — Oct 31, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts after the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Big Ten standings are crowded with six teams with two conference losses: Oregon, No. 21 Ohio State, No. 16 Iowa, Wisconsin, USC, and Illinois. The No. 4 UCLA Bruins stand alone atop the conference as one of two remaining undefeated teams in the FBS, and No. 2 Utah is the other after taking down No. 7 BYU.

Then-No. 1 Miami lost to then-No. 4 Notre Dame on the road in what was arguably the biggest game of the weekend, but a number of ranked matchups in the SEC changed the outlook of that conference as well.

Then-No. 8 Kentucky lost to then-No. 16 Tennessee 34-6, No. 2 Georgia beat No. 12 Ole Miss 42-7, and No. 9 Alabama took down No. 15 LSU 31-13 in three of the more lopsided outcomes from the SEC.

After the Trojans beat the Buckeyes at home, the unranked Oregon Ducks beat Ohio State 41-28 in Columbus, handing coach Ryan Day and company a third loss on the season.

AP Poll voters also have a new data point available with College Football Playoff rankings now released, and the AP Top 25 Poll shifted a little closer to the CFP Selection Committee's decisions.

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AP Top 25 Poll Week 10

1. Georgia
2. Utah
3. Notre Dame
4. UCLA
5. Miami
6. Indiana
7. Alabama
8. Texas
9. Tennessee
10. Texas Tech
11. Wake Forest
12. BYU
13. Kentucky
14. Houston
15. USC
16. Iowa
17. Boise State
18. Oregon
19. Ole Miss
20. South Carolina
21. Ohio State
22. Arizona
23. New Mexico
24. LSU
25. SMU

AP Poll Movers

Tennessee was placed a few spots higher in the CFP rankings than the previous AP Poll, and the Volunteers took a big step up after taking down Kentucky on Saturday. Tennessee moved up seven spots to crack the top 10.

No. 18 Oregon entered the AP Poll after being unranked yet appearing in the CFP's rankings.

Despite not playing, the Trojans could have expected to move up slightly with teams like Ole Miss, Ohio State, and maybe even Kentucky dropping. However, USC was not going to be part of the biggest mover group.

No. 8 Texas beat then-No. 19 Missouri, and the Longhorns should be primed to move up slightly on Sunday. Meanwhile, Missour

AP Top 25 Poll Prediction

1. Georgia
2. Utah
3. Notre Dame
4. UCLA
5. Indiana
6. Alabama
7. Miami
8. Texas
9. Tennessee
10. Texas Tech
11. BYU
12. Wake Forest
13. Kentucky
14. Houston
15. USC
16. Iowa
17. Ole Miss
18. Boise State
19. South Carolina
20. Oregon
21. Ohio State
22. New Mexico
23. Missouri
24. LSU
25. Arizona

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