Dogs finally have their day
Georgia is the new No. 1 in the Associated Press poll Sunday by a unanimous vote, taking the top spot during the regular season for the first time since November 1982.
The Bulldogs (62 first-place votes) moved up one spot, a day after preseason No. 1 Alabama lost at Texas A&M. The last time Georgia ranked first was in the 2008 preseason poll, but the Bulldogs slipped after the first week of games — even though they won — and have not been back.
This is the 16th time overall the Bulldogs have held the top ranking and the first time they have been a unanimous No. 1.
The defending national champion Crimson Tide slipped four spots to No. 5 after its first loss of the season. Alabama had a run of 14 consecutive polls at No. 1 snapped. It’s out of the top three for the first time since 2019.
After falling out of the rankings last week for the first time this season, the Aggies are back in at No. 21.
Alabama was one of two top-five teams to lose Saturday, opening the door for several teams to rise to rare heights.
Iowa is No. 2, up one spot after winning a top-five matchup with Penn State. The Hawkeyes have their best ranking since they reached No. 1 in 1985.
No. 3 Cincinnati has its best ranking ever. No. 4 Oklahoma moved up two spots after a comeback victory against Texas in the Red River Rivalry.
The Big Ten dominates the back half of the top 10 with Ohio State at No. 6, Penn State at No. 7, Michigan eighth and Michigan State 10th. The Big Ten has five top-10 teams for the first time in the history of the AP poll, which dates to 1936.
Oregon slipped in at No. 9. Kentucky moved up five spots to No. 11 for the Wildcats’ best ranking since 2011.
The only other league that has had half the top 10 in the rankings is the SEC, which has done it 23 times, according to ESPN.
Not including last season, when some FBS teams were ineligible for the poll early in the season because their conferences were not planning on playing a fall schedule, the last time the SEC had five top-10 teams was the final regular-season poll of 2019.
Badgers RB Berger kicked off team
Wisconsin dismissed running back Jalen Berger from the program one year after he led the team in rushing. Badgers coach Paul Chryst announced the move in a statement without specifying a reason for the dismissal. Berger didn’t play Saturday in Wisconsin’s 24-0 victory at Illinois.
Berger rushed for a team-high 301 yards as a freshman last season despite missing three of Wisconsin’s seven games because of injury. But his playing time had been sporadic this year as he slipped down the depth chart.