Stunners Texas, Ohio State, Oregon top AP Top 25

It was a one-week rise in the Associated Press college football poll, with Texas returning to No. 1 on Sunday after a one-week absence following Alabama’s monumental upset of Vanderbilt.

The Commodores’ win dropped the Crimson Tide from No. 1 to No. 7 as a three-touchdown underdog. The last ranked team was Ohio State, which dropped to No. 11 in 2010. October loss to Wisconsin.

Texas, which had an open date, received 52 of 61 first-place votes and became the first team to bounce in and out of the top spot by three votes in two years. The Longhorns are also the third team since 2008 to be voted No. 1 after not playing the previous day.

Ohio State beat Iowa for its fourth straight win, receiving nine first-place votes and moving up one spot.

Oregon and Penn State each moved up three spots, with the Ducks up to No. 3 and the Nittany Lions in fourth. Georgia remains at number five.

Miami, which came back from a 25-point second-half deficit to beat California 39-38, moved up two spots to No. 6.

The mayhem was not limited to Alabama.

Six of the 18 AP Top 25 teams that lost to unranked opponents (33%), the highest mark since losing six of 16 (38%) in the first week of October 2020.

The Crimson Tide were among four teams in the Top 11 to lose to an unranked opponent — the first time that has happened since October 2016.

Tennessee lost to Arkansas and dropped from No. 4 to No. 8. Michigan lost at Washington and dropped from 10 to 24. USC lost at Minnesota and dropped out of the top 25 from No. 11. The Trojans were also first among the teams receiving votes.

Texas A&M has only beaten Missouri at home in the best-of-25 matchup. It moved the Aggies from a tie for No. 25 to No. 15 and the Tigers from No. 9 to No. 21.

Pole point

The Big Ten dominates the top five, but the SEC maintains its hold on the top 10. No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Oregon and No. 4 Penn State are bookended by the SEC’s Texas and Georgia. Alabama, Tennessee and Ole Miss are also in the top ten in the SEC.

Double-digit drops by Missouri, Michigan and USC marked the first time since Nov. 13, 2016 that three teams fell 10 or more spots in the same poll. That week it happened to Auburn (8 to 18), Texas A&M (10 to 23) and North Carolina (15 to 15).

The biggest upward movers are Texas A&M (25 to 15), Clemson (15 to 10) and Iowa State (16 to 11).

who is there; who is out

SMU (5-1) was rewarded for knocking off Louisville on the road and entered the rankings at No. 25. The Mustangs have appeared in the top 25 in all but one season (2022) since 2019. Louisville (3-2) has lost two of three and is out.

Pittsburgh went 5-0 at North Carolina for the first time since 1991 and entered the No. 22 ranking for the first time in two years.

USC (3-2) has lost two of its first three Big Ten games and is out, as is UNLV, whose first-ever Top 25 appearance was ruined by an overtime home loss to Syracuse.

conference call

SEC: 9 (No. 1, 5, 7, 8, 9, 13, 15, T-18, 21)
The Big Ten: 6 (No. 2, 3, 4, T-18, 23, 24)
The Big 12: 4 (No. T-11, 14, 16, T-18)
acc: 4 (No. 6, 10, 22, 25)
West Mountain: 1 (No. 17)
Independent: 1 (No. T-11)

Ranked vs. Unranked

No. 1 Texas vs. No. 18 Oklahoma (at Dallas): It’s their first head-to-head SEC meeting, and it’s the top 25 matchup for the sixth time in eight games. The Sooners scored with 15 seconds left in their only regular-season loss to Texas last season. Both teams are coming into open dates.

No. 2 Ohio State at No. 3 Oregon: Entering the season, it was billed as a midseason preview of the Big Ten Championship Game. It may still be. The Buckeyes have won nine of the previous 10 meetings, losing only the most recent one (2021).

No. 9 Ole Miss at No. 13 LSU: Huge College Football Playoff implications are here. The Rebels and Jackson Dart won 55-49 in a thrilling matchup with last year’s Heisman winner Jayden Daniels.