Coaches Poll top 25: USC, Texas storm back in Week 8 college football rankings

Coming off an Upset Saturday across the country, there were some notable changes to the Coaches Poll top 25 college football rankings as we look ahead to Week 8.

Where things stand in the Coaches Poll top 25 college football rankings coming out of an active Saturday and moving into Week 8. | Ron Chenoy | Imagn

A look at the updated Coaches Poll top 25 college football rankings coming out of an very consequential Saturday and looking ahead to the Week 8 action.

With some high-profile ranked teams losing their games on the same weekend, it’s a sure thing there will be some notable changes in the rankings, and that was true of the Coaches Poll coming out of a major Upset Saturday across the country.

Eight teams in the previous Coaches Poll lost their games, including two of the top-six, causing some important shifts around the top of the rankings, but especially among the mid-range teams.

Indiana predictably was a big riser in the new poll, but not enough to overtake No. 2 Miami after a big win at Oregon, while Ohio State maintained its No. 1 position with all but 3 first-place votes this week.

Where does that leave things in the updated Coaches Poll top 25 college football rankings as we come out of Saturday and look ahead to the Week 8 action?

Let’s take a look at what teams moved up, moved down, and who didn’t budge in the rankings for this weekend, according to the coaches’ vote.

Coaches Poll top 25 rankings for Week 8

First-place votes in parentheses

1. Ohio State (63)
2. Miami (2)
3. Indiana (1)
4. Texas A&M
5. Ole Miss
6. Alabama
7. Georgia
8. Texas Tech
9. Oregon
10. LSU
11. Tennessee
12. Georgia Tech
13. Oklahoma
14. BYU
15. Notre Dame
16. Missouri
17. Texas
18. Vanderbilt
19. Virginia
20. Memphis
21. USC
22. Utah
23. USF
24. Cincinnati
25. Illinois

Where we left off: Last week’s Coaches Poll rankings

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Teams that dropped out

Better luck next time to these teams that tumbled out of the Coaches Poll rankings this week after taking another costly loss on Saturday

No. 15 Michigan. A second loss on the road against a marquee opponent has the coaches losing faith in the Wolverines, who were unable to get their expert ground game going against a surprisingly resilient USC defense.

No. 21 Iowa State. Two straight losses for the Cyclones, first at Cincinnati and then at (then-winless in Big 12 play) Colorado. They fell 9 spots last week, and out of the rankings this week.

No. 22 Penn State. A program in free-fall after coming into the season as national title hopefuls, but instead have dropped three-straight games and just lost its quarterback for the season.

No. 23 Arizona State. The reigning Big 12 champions dropped their second game of the season following an ugly loss at Utah to throw a little more drama into the conference title picture.

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Other teams receiving votes

These teams earned some votes from the coaches this week, but not enough of them to qualify for the official rankings, leaving them on the outside looking in

Michigan 119; Nebraska 90; Washington 85; UNLV 43; Navy 43; Louisville 18; Tulane 17; Arizona State 17; Duke 11; Iowa 9; Iowa State 7; Clemson 6; Houston 4; TCU 1; San Diego State 1; Pittsburgh 1.

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Coaches Poll top 25 biggest movers

Indiana (Up 4). This isn’t just a one-year wonder; the Hoosiers are legit good. And they didn’t just rely on a flashy offense, but, more importantly for their postseason hopes, on a dominant defensive performance in a huge upset at Oregon over the weekend.

Oregon (Down 7). No cause for serious alarm after one loss, but the Ducks’ signature win also doesn’t look so hot after Penn State’s existential crisis this season, and the playoff selectors will remember that.

Texas (Up 2). Unlike the AP voters, the coaches kept the Longhorns in their rankings after the loss to Florida last week, and they got a nice boost after an emotional bounce-back win over rival, sixth-ranked Oklahoma.

Oklahoma (Down 7). As expected, a costly drop for the Sooners off their first loss of the season, and some genuine concern looking ahead at this schedule, as 5 of their 6 remaining opponents are ranked.

Utah (Up 4). Falling out of last week’s rankings, the Utes were voted back in after the coaches were impressed with a dominant win over Arizona State, the second-straight game this offense went past 40 points offensively.

USC (Up 12). An important win for Lincoln Riley when he had so few against Big Ten competition, coming against a ranked Michigan team, but losing star rusher Waymond Jordan to an injury and now heading into a road date against ranked Notre Dame.

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