AP top 25 poll: LSU, Georgia tank in Week 6 college football rankings

There were some major updates to the AP top 25 college football rankings after a hugely impactful Saturday of games across the country, as contenders separated from pretenders.

Where things stand in the updated AP top 25 college football rankings entering the Week 6 action. | USA Today Sports | Imagn

Let’s take a look at the updated AP top 25 college football rankings coming out of an active and consequential Saturday and looking ahead to the Week 6 games.

Six ranked teams lost over the weekend in a Statement Saturday that went part of the way in potentially separating the contenders from the pretenders, and that included four of the previous AP top 10 teams, so some major changes in the new rankings were a sure thing.

But not at the No. 1 position. Despite some speculation that Oregon might unseat Ohio State at the top of the poll after its massive road win at Penn State, the reigning national champion Buckeyes stayed the course atop the rankings with 46 first-place votes.

That’s a couple fewer than the 52 first-place votes Ohio State had last week, as the Ducks received 16 such votes on this week’s ballot, 15 more than last week.

Penn State predictably fell after the loss to Oregon, and LSU dropped to the middle of the pack following a road loss against Ole Miss, which in turn jumped into the top-five on the back of a statement victory over its SEC counterpart.

Alabama got back into the top 10 after a huge win at Georgia, while the reigning SEC champion Bulldogs fell into the top dozen from its previous No. 5 position after the loss.

This week marked the second time already this season that four AP top 10 ranked teams lost in a single week, with the season-opening slate being the other such occasion, and four top 10 teams lost in the same week at least twice in 3 of the last 4 years.

Where do things stand in the updated AP top 25 college football rankings as we look ahead to an active slate of Week 6 games?

Let’s take a look at the teams that moved up, slid down, and stayed put in this week, according to the AP voters.

AP top 25 college football rankings for Week 6

First-place votes in parentheses

1. Ohio State (46)
2. Oregon (16)
3. Miami (4)
4. Ole Miss
5. Oklahoma
6. Texas A&M
7. Penn State
8. Indiana
9. Texas
10. Alabama
11. Texas Tech
12. Georgia
13. LSU
14. Iowa State
15. Tennessee
16. Vanderbilt
17. Georgia Tech
18. Florida State
19. Missouri
20. Michigan
21. Notre Dame
22. Illinois
23. BYU
24. Virginia
25. Arizona State

How did we do? Our prediction for the AP top 25 poll

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Other teams receiving votes

These teams received votes from AP pollsters, but not enough of them to qualify for the top 25 football rankings this week

USF 53, Utah 52, Mississippi State 46, Memphis 38, Louisville 36, USC 22, Maryland 7, North Texas 7, TCU 6, UNLV 3.

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AP top 25 biggest movers

Oregon (Up 4). The reigning Big Ten champs passed a huge test on the road, coming out of Happy Valley with a narrow double-overtime victory against Penn State, and thrusting itself onto a short list of national title contenders in the first month of the season.

Penn State (Down 4). Conversely, those lingering questions remain around James Franklin, the otherwise-successful Nittany Lions head coach who fell to 4-21 against AP top 10 ranked opponents and just 2-21 against top-six foes, losing the last 15 straight in that category.

Alabama (Up 7). Talk about relieving some pressure, as Kalen DeBoer avoided what would have been a 2-2 start if things didn’t go well at Georgia, but his young quarterback lived up to the moment as Ty Simpson had 3 all-purpose touchdowns in an efficient showing and the Crimson Tide is 3-1 and on a much firmer foundation with an undefeated Vanderbilt up next.

Georgia (Down 7). Kirby Smart is 108-20 with two national championships, but 35 percent of those losses are against Alabama, including 58 percent of his losses in SEC play, and the Bulldogs’ 33-game home win streak was snapped as Smart falls to 1-7 against the Tide.

Ole Miss (Up 9). Trinidad Chambliss, the former zero-star recruit who had no FBS offers, has taken over this offense in place of injured Austin Simmons, throwing for over 300 yards in three straight games and leading a critical fourth quarter touchdown drive to put away LSU and keep the Rebels undefeated.

LSU (Down 9). Few 3-1 teams in college football seem to be surrounded by such negativity, but the Tigers have failed to really dominate anyone in FBS play despite playing what was supposed to be one of the nation’s top offenses, and now they’re coming off a road loss to Ole Miss that once again raises the question of whether this team is ready for SEC primetime.

Florida State (Down 10). The biggest faller of the week, the Seminoles took their first loss of the season on the road against an unranked Virginia team. At least, it was unranked on Friday night. That changed this week.

Virginia (Was unranked). The Cavaliers put on a show in a monster upset against Florida State at home, showcasing a dynamic offense behind quarterback Chandler Morris that will be tough to beat. Virginia is 4-1 overall and 2-0 in ACC play.

Illinois (Up 1). The biggest loser in last week’s AP rankings after falling 14 places following a 53-point loss at Indiana, the Illini recovered well, edging out a ranked USC team at home on a last-second field goal to avoid a second-straight loss, and clings to a spot in the poll.

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