The latest AP Poll Top 25 rankings are in after Week 8 of college football and there were some shake ups following another wild weekend!
College football didn’t disappoint once again as Georgia beat Texas, Tennessee beat Alabama and the Big Ten saw some wild results. Oh hey, the Big 12 is wildly fun too! Any ACC changes? We’ll see below.
Let’s dive into the newest AP Poll Top 25 rankings after Week 8.
The Oregon Ducks kept their foot on the gas with a 35-0 win over Purdue Friday night to erase any doubts of a fluke. So a win over Ohio State and Purdue, a trap game situation, and the Ducks are clearly the best in the Big Ten right now.
One big takeaway from the Oregon win Friday night was the red zone efficiency. Five touchdowns in five trips will do!
Georgia’s defense was so good, it seemed like Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning were both seeing ghosts Saturday night. This was the type of performance you’d expect from a national title contender.
The Bulldogs came back to life on defense and the running game was stout, despite Carson Beck’s three interceptions holding the offense back. The SEC just got way more interesting.
Penn State had a week to recover following an epic win over USC on the road the other weekend. The Nittany Lions head to Madison against a surging Wisconsin team this coming weekend though.
Drew Allar had his best performance against the Trojans, throwing for a career high 391 yards, but did have three interceptions. As long as Penn State limits the turnovers, it should be a win over the Badgers next Saturday.
Ohio State probably needed a breather following the upset loss to Oregon. The Buckeyes were that close and it could’ve been the difference between this ranking and the No. 1 overall spot.
First up, it’s Nebraska before the Penn State showdown. As On3’s Jesse Simonton pointed out, be on the lookout for a Buckeyes’ offensive line shuffle.
Texas looked like the best team in the country when it dominated Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry. Saturday night, the offense looked overmatched by new SEC foe Georgia.
Quinn Ewers, Arch Manning, didn’t matter. Neither quarterback was going to get going against the Bulldogs. Now, is there a controversy? Did Steve Sarkisian unintentionally create one?
The Miami Hurricanes avoided disaster again. Stop us if you heard that before. Maybe it’s not avoiding disaster so much as the ‘Canes know how to win thrilling close games?
This time, Cam Ward did it again with 319 yards and four touchdowns in a 52-45 win over Louisville. Miami is 7-0 and in the driver’s seat in the ACC.
Tennessee didn’t look good early on after going scoreless in the first half. But they woke up and won 24-17 over Alabama to improve to 6-1 on the season.
Nico Iamaleava also woke up after a dreadful first half. But this was quite the win for the Vols to take a step up in the SEC pecking order.
LSU beat Arkansas for the eighth time in nine years and improved to 6-1 on the season. It’s now six wins in a row for the Tigers as we head into the latter half of the year.
Next week is going to be fascinating when LSU travels to take on Texas A&M, a fellow 6-1 team and winners of six in a row. Could Brian Kelly get this LSU team to another SEC Championship Game?
Clemson has won six games in a row since the season opening loss to Georgia and suddenly the Tigers look like a contender again. Does that continue as the season progresses?
They’ll get a bye week fresh off another good performance from Cade Klubnik under center. That was after he threw a bad pick early in the game, but bounced back in a big way with over 300 yards and three touchdowns.
Iowa State remained undefeated by the skin of its teeth with a 38-35 win over UCF. The Big 12 leaders still have the inside track to the conference title game with a looming date with Kansas State at the end of the year.
The biggest concern should be the defense, which has been one of the best in the conference. They’ll have to get it right before the final stretch.
AP Poll Top 25 after Week 8
11. BYU (+2)
12. Notre Dame
13. Indiana (+3)
14. Texas A&M
15. Alabama (-8)
16. Kansas State (+1)
17. Boise State (-2)
18. Ole Miss
19. Pittsburgh (+1)
20. Illinois (+2)
21. Missouri (-2)
22. SMU (-1)
23. Army
24. Navy (+1)
25. Vanderbilt
Others receiving votes in AP Poll: Washington State 46, Syracuse 15, UNLV 5, Duke 2, South Carolina 1, Nebraska 1, Liberty 1.
