Auburn and Hugh Freeze almost turned the college football world upside down against Georgia. Colorado rallied against USC. Penn State was on a tightrope in the northwest. And Notre Dame looked like it was over at Duke.
Unfortunately, all four top-10 favorites have won. Oh, how close we’ve come to an epic Saturday in college football!
In a week in which four of our top 10 teams have been eliminated, we have welcomed only one new member to our ranking: the Trojans.
A lot more has happened outside the top 10. Have you seen what Kentucky RB Ray Davis did to Florida? He had 200 rushing yards early in the second quarter and finished with 280 in the thrashing over the Gators. Baylor made a 28-point comeback against rookie Big 12 member UCF, Missouri and Maryland, both trailed 5-0, and the Sooners secured an undefeated showdown at the Red River Rivalry next week.
Oh, and don’t forget the LSU Ole Miss madness. The Tigers blew a double-digit lead over Lane Kiffin and the Rebels in the second half.
Anyway, let’s get to our last top 10!
Remember that we rank teams differently than most others. We do not take into account pre-season polls or results from previous seasons. What happened in the past is in the past.
1. Ohio State Buckeyes
This week: Bye
Next week: vs. Maryland
Best win: at Notre Dame
QB Kyle McCord continues to adjust to the Buckeyes. As he settles in, running back TreVeyon Henderson is rolling: five touchdowns and more than 250 rushing yards in the last three games. Everyone was circling the tilt in Columbus with Penn State and, of course, the game at Michigan on November 25th. But do not sleep on the annoying turtles.
2. Florida State Seminoles
This week: Bye
Next week: vs. Virginia Tech
Best win: at Clemson
No team has a better combination of two wins than the Seminoles, with a neutral field victory over LSU earlier this year and the overtime win at Clemson. Led by nine-year-old starter Jordan Travis (that’s what it sounds like!), FSU has the best resume in college football to date. And Travis also has one of the best QB lines: 10 touchdowns and 1 interception. The next step for the Noles is three home games in a row. They should be the favorites in the next five games before the showdown on November 11 in Miami.
3. Washington Huskies
This week: won 31-24 at Arizona
Next week: Bye
Best win: at Michigan State
The Huskies put in their worst performance of the season in Tempe, but got the win. After the video game Michael Penix Jr. having led through the first four weeks, he remained without a touchdown on Saturday (although he completed 75 percent of his passes for 363 yards). Washington gets a bye week on time before it gets back to a home showdown in Oregon in October.14.
4. Texas Longhorns
This week: won 40-14 vs. Kansas
Next week: vs. Oklahoma (Dallas)
Best win: at Alabama
Texas amassed 661 yards. RB Jonathan Brooks and QB Quinn Ewers combined for 582. The Longhorns may have started slowly in this game, but they finished it quickly. And now Banger comes up against undefeated Oklahoma in the Big D.
5. North Carolina Tar Heels
This week: Bye
Next week: vs. Syracuse
Best win: vs. South Carolina
Are the Tar heels ready to run? After a bye, they host a Syracuse team that was defeated by Clemson, and then meet the Miami Hurricanes in a big ACC showdown in Chapel Hill. QB Drake Maye had some setbacks at the beginning of the season, but UNC’s defense seems to have improved a lot compared to last season’s porous version.
6. Penn State Nittany Lions
This week: won 41-13 at Northwestern
Next week: Bye
Best win: vs. Iowa
Trailing 10-10 at halftime, the Nittany Lions shut out the Wildcats in a dominant second half. Penn State’s defense continued to shine when the offense was not having a good day. Northwestern finished the offense with only 175 yards, converted 5 of 18 third and fourth down attempts, and allowed a run of 1.4 yards.
7. USC Trojans
This week: won 48-41 at Colorado
Next week: vs. Arizona
Best win: at Colorado
The Trojans storm our standings with a (sometime) defeat of the Buffaloes. Reigning Heisman winner Caleb Williams has done his job (403 yards and six TDs), but USC’s defense is still one… Question. The Trojans allowed three consecutive touchdowns in the final 16 minutes of the game.
8. Oregon Ducks
This week: won 42-6 at Stanford
Next week: Bye
Best win: vs. Colorado
What if I told you that in the middle of the second quarter, Stanford was 6, Oregon was 0? It’s true! But the ducks caught fire. They scored six unanswered touchdowns and now all eyes are on the Pac-12 collision (and soon on the Big Ten) in Washington on October 14.
9. Miami Hurricanes
This week: Bye
Next week: vs. Georgia Tech
Best win: vs. Texas A&M
Are hurricanes back? Well, after a week break, they are hosting a growing Georgia Tech team. But we will learn more about Mario Cristobal’s group at the meeting with the Tar Heels on November 14th in Chapel Hill. The winner must have the upper hand in the race for the ACC championship game. Keep in mind that the conference will not have any departments this year. The top two teams earn a trip to Charlotte for the title fight.
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
This week: won 21-14 at Duke
Next week: at Louisville
Best win: at Duke
Oh, what a great defensive throwback game! An asshole, you might say. The Dukies and the Irish struggled, with the latter winning just a week after a painful last-minute defeat. Notre Dame remains alive in the playoff race. And hey, Duke too!
Read Also: NFL Playoff Dates 2023-24, Format, Predictions