A weekend of upsets shook the rankings ans the top 25, with Florida State a rock of stability, remaining in the number one spot and gaining strength, while Auburn, Ole Miss and Mississippi State are the big movers for the SEC, joined by Baylor and Notre Dame among the undefeated contenders. On the flip side, USC and LSU fell from the rankings while Oklahoma, Oregon, Alabama, Texas A&M and UCLA took a serious nosedive due to their losses.
1. Florida State Seminoles (27 First place votes), 5-0: An easy week for the national champions, not needing anything special from anyone, beating Wake Forest 43-3.
2. Auburn Tigers (23), 5-0: The Tigers get a three spot bump thanks to the losses all across the board and their 41-7 demolition of LSU.
3. Mississippi State Bulldogs (2), 5-0: A rise of nine spots for the Rebels thanks to a 48-31 win over Texas A&M.
3. Ole Miss Rebels, 5-0: Jumping up eight spots thanks to their 23-17 win over Alabama, getting their highest ranking since 1963.
5. Baylor Bears, 5-0: A two spot rise for the Bears, taking control, it seems, of the Big 12, with a 28-7 win over Texas, pouring some more misery on the Longhorns.
6. Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 5-0: A three spot climb for the Irish, coming after a 17-14 win over Stanford.
7. Alabama Crimson Tide, 4-1: Fell behind four spots due to their loss to Ole Miss 23-17, their first to the Rebels since 2003.
8. Michigan State Spartans, 4-1: The highest ranked Big Ten team, getting a two spot boost after beating Nebraska 27-22 despite giving up 19 points in the fourth quarter.
9. TCU Horned Frogs, 4-0: Stunned Oklahoma 37-33, getting a 16-spot rise and suddenly looking like legitimate contenders in the Big 12.
10. Arizona Wildcats, 5-0: A 31-24 over Oregon makes them the only perfect team in the Pac-12, entering the rankings for the first time this season, rising 19 spots.
11. Oklahoma Sooners, 4-1: Lost 37-33 to TCU and fell seven spots.
12. Oregon Ducks, 4-1: Fell at home to Arizona 31-24, losing to the Wildcats for a second straight season. They also fell 10 spots in the rankings.
13. Georgia Bulldogs, 4-1: Rare non-movers this week, beating Vanderbilt 44-17.
14. Texas A&M Aggies, 5-1: Their loss to Mississippi State 48-31 cost them eight spots in the rankings, and suddenly their opening win over the Gamecocks doesn’t look so impressive.
15. Ohio State Buckeyes, 4-1: A 52-24 win over Maryland along with losses to ranked teams helped put the Buckeyes back in the top 15, rising five spots.
16. Oklahoma State Cowboys, 4-1: Enjoy a similar five-spot rise thanks to a 37-20 win over Iowa State, getting a lot of help from the officials.
17. Kansas State Wildcats, 4-1: A dominant 45-13 win over Big 12 rivals Texas Tech gave them a six-spot boost.
18. UCLA Bruins, 4-1: Lost 30-28 at home to Utah, costing them 10 spots and the first place in the South division.
19. East Carolina Pirates, 4-1: Their 45-24 win over SMU isn’t that impressive, yet they still got to climb three spots.
20. Arizona State Sun Devils, 4-1: Beat the Trojans in California 38-34, entering the rankings again with a six spot rise.
21. Nebraska Cornhuskers, 5-1: Lost for the first time this season, 27-22 at Michigan State, but only fell two spots.
22. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, 5-0: The other undefeated team in the ACC, entering the rankings for the first time thanks to a 28-17 win over Miami, rising nine spots.
23. Missouri Tigers, 4-1: Didn’t play, rose one spot.
24. Utah Utes, 4-1: A 30-28 win over UCLA in Los Angeles meant Utah are in the rankings for the first time this season.
25. Stanford Cardinal, 3-2: The only two-loss team in the rankings, falling 11 spots after a 17-14 loss to Notre Dame.
Dropped from rankings: LSU, USC, Wisconsin, BYU