Upsets lead to shakeup in rankings
A chaotic Saturday shakes up the rankings.
Eight teams ranked in the top 25 last week suffered losses Saturday, including a pair of top 10 teams in Auburn and Texas. Nobody was safe as the SEC, Big 12, ACC and American all saw their top title contenders stumble.
Losses by OU, Texas open the door for Oklahoma State.
The race for the Big 12 crown took an unexpected turn when favorites Oklahoma and Texas lost Saturday. The shakeup at the top clears a path forOklahomaState, whichimproved to 3-0 thanks to a defense ranked in the top 10 in the nation.
NobodybenefitsmorefromaBig 12collapsethantheGroupof 5.
If a Group of 5 team is ever going to qualify for the College Football Playoff semifinals, it’s going to need help. With the Big 12 struggling, Cincinnati (3-0), SMU (4-0) and Louisiana (3-0) can make their case for a semifinal spot.
Rumors of Georgia’s demise were greatly exaggerated.
A week after struggling during a win over Arkansas, Georgia imposed its will during an emphatic win over Auburn. The Bulldogswere physical at the point of attack and proved that they’re more than capable of winning the SEC East this year.
The Kyle Show has the Gators offense churning. Florida is off to an impressive start thanks to QB Kyle Trask and tight end Kyle Pitts. The pair have sparked a Gators offense that is among the best in the nation with both players leading the SEC in passing TDs (10) and receiving TDs (6).
Whata difference aweekmakes.
Mississippi State fans were still riding the high off the Bulldogs’ 44-34 win over then-No. 6 LSU last week, but that all came crashing down after Mike Leach’s team turned the football over four. times during a stunning 21-14 loss to Arkansas, a program that entered this weekend’s play having lost 20 consecutive SEC games.
The best team in the state of Mississippi might live in Oxford.
While Mississippi State and Leach were earning headlines with their offensive explosion against LSU, Ole Miss was also putting up big numbers. Lane Kiffin’s team is averaging 39 points and 536 yards per game with quarterback Matt Corral completing 76% of his passes for 715 yards and seven TDs.
The sequel wasn’t much better for UCF. The Knights were looking forward to getting some revenge when they hosted Tulsa. Last year’s second-half collapse against the GoldenHurricane knockedUCF out of conference title contention. Instead, penalties and turnovers cost the Knights, who lost their fourth consecutive game to Tulsa and saw their 21-game home win streak snapped.
Alabama, Clemson show why they’re the best.
Alabama flexed its offensive muscles, scoring 21 straight points in the second quarter to push past Texas A&M and improve to 2-0, while Clemson moved to 3-0 after QB Trevor Lawrence threw three TD passes to help the Tigers extend their regular-season win streak to 32 games.
UNC finds a way to survive and remain an ACC challenger.
The Tar Heels intercepted a potential game-tying two-point conversion and returned it for a score to seal a win. With Clemson and Miami meeting this week, Mack Brown’s team could find itself on course for its first ACC championship game appearance since 2015.