College Football Rankings: Projecting the New AP Top 25 Poll After Week 5

AP top 25 voters may not have quite as much work to do changing around their ballots as they did last weekend, but we will still see some important changes made to the new college football rankings coming out of the first action in October.

Just three teams in the AP poll lost their games, but one of them was lodged inside the top ten and two others right nearby, allowing pollsters to get a little creative in re-sorting who belongs where heading into what will be another consequential week.

Predicting the New AP Top 25 College Football Rankings

College Football Rankings: Projecting the New AP Top 25 Poll After Week 5 — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Dropping out: No. 14 Iowa

25. Pittsburgh. Iowa’s loss to Ohio State could be enough for pollsters to swap them for Pitt, which stayed undefeated with a win at Virginia Tech, even if they face a future without quarterback Mason Heintschel, who tore his ACL in the process.

24. UCLA. Off on Saturday, the Bruins return for a serious test against Oregon with their undefeated record on the line.

23. Kentucky. They needed a two-point conversion and a comeback to take out South Carolina on the road, but the Wildcats are still a 4-1 team that should see modest improvement in the new poll.

22. Boise State. Still likely the class of the Group of Six, although Oregon State has a case, the Broncos now lead the Pac-12 after a league debut win against Utah State behind a top 25 ranked ground offense.

21. Mississippi State. Expect a drop after allowing 56 points at home to Alabama, but AP pollsters still like the Bulldogs’ wins against Missouri and Minnesota, too.

Teams on the Make in Week 6

College Football Rankings: Projecting the New AP Top 25 Poll for Week 6 — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

20. Houston. A wobbly win against UCF in which the Cougars didn’t score a single first half point, but Conner Weigman had 3 second half TDs to get it done.

19. SMU. A nine-point win over Boston College isn’t much in the grand scheme of things, but it’s enough for a slight jump.

18. Florida. College football’s seemingly hottest team got punched by four touchdowns at Missouri, unable to stop anything in the air or do anything on the ground, but won’t be punished too harshly given the win against Ole Miss.

17. Oklahoma State. Off this Saturday, the Cowboys return against UCF next week.

16. Missouri. Austin Simmons had 340 yards in the air and the Tigers’ stout run stop contained the Gators’ ground game, rewarding many AP voters’ continued faith in Mizzou.

The Middle of the Pack

15. Tennessee. DeSean Bishop ran for over 200 yards and 3 scores to beat Auburn, but the Vols have a big question at quarterback after Faizon Brandon was benched early.

14. USC. For once, it was the Trojans’ defense that came through, getting some needed stops and returning a fumble for a touchdown to beat Washington in a close one at home. Next are road dates at Penn State and Wisconsin.

13. Oregon. Riding high after taking apart USC on the road with backup quarterback Dylan Raiola, the Ducks will return from an off week next Saturday in a matchup against newly-ranked UCLA.

12. Texas Tech. Still the top team in the Big 12, this offense hasn’t looked like it, needing a comeback effort to stall an upset bid from Colorado.

11. Utah. Another idle team on Saturday, the Utes have a solid two-touchdown win at Iowa State to their credit and are playing some of the most efficient football in the country, likely to be favored in all but one game for the rest of the season.

Rounding Out the Top Ten

10. LSU. Lane Kiffin’s squad predictably smashed McNeese, but the schedule ahead gets harder. Much harder.

9. Ole Miss. Off this past weekend, the Rebels are looking to avoid falling under .500 in SEC play as they play Vanderbilt on the road in Week 6.

8. BYU. An injury to rusher LJ Martin is worth watching, but Bear Bachmeier ran for 2 scores to narrowly win at TCU and stay atop the Big 12 standings.

7. Indiana. Turbo Richard went off for 200 yards rushing and the Hoosiers had two 100-yard receivers to dominate Rutgers on the road.

6. Ohio State. Jeremiah Smith is now the Buckeyes’ record holder in receiving touchdowns with 36 grabs in his career after a dominant win at Iowa to improve to 2-0 in Big Ten competition, but they could drop given the caliber of Alabama’s win.

The Cream of the Crop

5. Alabama. Beating up on Mississippi State ensured the Crimson Tide became the first FBS team since OU in 2019 to score 45-plus points in each of its first five games, and is averaging 50 points every week this season. If they beat Georgia next week, AP voters could put them at No. 1.

4. Miami. Taking care of Clemson in a 41-13 result on the road may not be as impressive as once was, but the Hurricanes’ defense did the job despite dealing with injuries and Mark Fletcher spearheaded another strong rushing performance.

3. Notre Dame. It was a little close for a while at North Carolina as the 21-point favored Irish escaped with an 11-point victory, but CJ Carr was on hand to lead critical TD drives when the Domers’ defense kept things narrower than anticipated.

2. Georgia. A slow start at home against Vanderbilt, like allowing a backup quarterback to lead two long TD drives, but the Bulldogs stiffened up in the second half by not allowing any points after the break. The SEC champs go to Alabama next.

1. Texas. Idle this past weekend, the Longhorns could theoretically lose some of their 62 first-place votes to Georgia after it smashed up Vandy, but their No. 1 position should not be threatened with that win against Ohio State in their back pocket.

Week 6 Movers: AP Top 25 College Football Teams Going Up, Down

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