Week 4 of college football featured one of the first slates with conference play scattered throughout, and the arrival of that stretch of the season brings the first real challenges for voters in the polls. AP Top 25. In the early weeks of the season there are only a few high-profile matchups that could lead to tough decisions up and down the pick. But now that we’re in conference play, voters will be challenged to think about the strength of the teams more than their number of losses.
Michigan was largely shut down in its loss to Texas in Week 2, falling out of the 15s after failing to compete in what was considered a two-game sweep of the College Football Playoff. Football Playoffs. But after a quarterback turnover and a shutout win against USC in Week 4, the Wolverines showed it might be too early to sell their assets because their brand of football is still good enough to compete. and other top teams. The Big Ten.
Voters will also begin to consider how long the bias of the preseason can take to elevate the ranks of teams that have yet to face tougher tests and win rankings. Tennessee knocked off NC State while the Wolfpack were ranked, but it will be Saturday’s win against Oklahoma that has the most impact as the Vols climb their all-time ranking to keep going with my energy pushing them into the top five. .
It will also be difficult to decide where USC and Oklahoma fit into the top 25 picture after the losses; each clearly showed a losing streak that deserves to remain in the standings but will now be compared to teams that have never lost. Every voter has a different approach when it comes to splitting hairs and breaking down team performance, potential and performance. And with each week of conference play that is added to the profile, we get a clearer view of how these teams compare.
Here’s how we present the new AP Top 25 picks after Week 4.
1. Texas (Last week – 1): No turnovers as Texas puts together a dominant performance without a starting quarterback. Unlike other teams that switched to their quarterbacks in Week 4, however, the Longhorns’ QB2 happens to be Arch Manning.
2. Georgia (2): The Bulldogs were off in Week 4 and will return to action next week at Alabama.
3. Ohio State (3): It was a slow start and a surprising early deficit, but Ohio State quickly righted the ship and pulled away for a big 49-14 victory against Marshall.
4. Alabama (4): The Crimson Tide were off in Week 4 and will return to action next week against Georgia.
5. Tennessee (6): The Volunteers join the top five after going on the road and giving Oklahoma a tough reception in the SEC in the first round. Again, Tennessee’s defense showed as this team proved to be a complete team week in and week out.
6. Ole Miss (5): The Rebels had a significant advantage over Tennessee in the polls last week, but the Rebels’ best win is still a road win at Wake Forest. Wins are impressive and Ole Miss looks good, but the AP voters will start again and focus as we get deeper into the season.
7. Miami (8): One thing we haven’t seen from Miami in recent years — at least not consistently — is the ability to hit the gas and put teams away. USF did its best to make things competitive early, but unlike many other top-10 teams, the Hurricanes were able to dispel any lingering belief in the second half. growth.
8. Missouri (7): There could be shuffling for Missouri after being taken to overtime by Vanderbilt. The gap between No. 6 and no. 9 was tough enough in last week’s polls that a near-anticipated result could be enough to see the Tigers pounce.
9. Oregon (9): The Ducks were off in Week 4 and will return to action next week at UCLA.
10. Penn State (10): No big changes for the Nittany Lions after the expected performance of Kent State.
11. Michigan (18): The expectation is that Michigan’s picks will be all over the place after Saturday’s statement win against USC. The Wolverines were ranked No. 13 last week as a 2-1 team with the best win being Fresno State, but they were also left out of the polls completely for five votes and the No. 20 or lower for 19 picks. These low ratings will change after handing the Trojans their first loss of the season, and voters who were high on Michigan going into the game will likely put the Wolverines in the top 10. .
12. Utah (12): No Cam Rising? No problem for Utah, which now improves to 4-0 on the season and 2-0 in Big 12 play with a hard-fought win over Oklahoma State. The Utes defense had a classic performance, bottling up Ollie Gordon II and holding the Cowboys’ offense in check before a late charge made the 22-19 score seem closer than it was. most of the afternoon.
13. USC (11): The head-to-head win against LSU sets up a comfortable and predictable spot for USC as the Trojans are now matched with other one-loss teams in the standings. There’s no shame in falling to Michigan in Ann Arbor, but it’s certainly disappointing considering how close USC was to pulling off a thrilling second-half comeback win against the reigning national champions.
14. LSU (16): Things looked bleak for a while, but LSU was able to control the back and didn’t have to see much punishment from the voters for a 34-17 victory against UCLA.
15. Notre Dame (17): The strength of this Notre Dame team remains its defense, and that’s exactly what helped keep things steady during a 28-3 win against Miami (OH).
16. Louisville (19): The Cardinals have had solid polling support despite not having many points in the standings, so we think Saturday’s 31-19 win against Georgia Tech is more confirmation than reason for a big raise.
17. Iowa State (20): Back in action for the first time since returning from their upset in Iowa, the Cyclones took care of business with a 52-7 victory against Arkansas State.
18. Clemson (21): The Tigers were 59-14 heading into the fourth quarter against NC State after a fast start that included scoring six of their first seven possessions. It was a resounding result for a Clemson team that seems poised to make a run back to the top of the ACC but not one that will lead to a big change in the AP polls.
19. Illinois (24): There were 28 absentee voters in Illinois last week. We’re guessing that’s no longer the case after a 31-24 overtime win at Nebraska that improved the Fighting Illini to 4-0 for the first time since 2011.
20. Oklahoma (15): While voters will be enthusiastic about Tennessee’s position, there’s also an aspect of Saturday night’s game that suggests Sooner isn’t ready for top-15 consideration.
21. Indiana (NR): History will mark the fact that Indiana is 4-0 for the first time since 2020, but this feels very different. Maybe it’s because it was a short, recent COVID-19 season or maybe it’s because the Hoosiers have outscored their competition by a combined score of 202-37. Saturday’s 52-14 win against Charlotte was about as much as we’ve seen from Indiana all season, and these eye-popping scores are getting more and more patient attention each week.
22. BYU (NR): The Cougars are 4-0 for the first time since 2012 after dominating Kansas State, adding a win against the Wildcats to a streak that already includes a road win at SMU.
23. Oklahoma State (14): If we just set the ranking on the resume, there isn’t much of an argument for Oklahoma State’s ranking. The Cowboys’ best win came against Arkansas, and the team looked just as good against a Utah team in its second quarter. But with a lot of bias from the voters going forward, no bad losses and not many clear team picks, I think the Pokes will still be ranked for next week’s game at Kansas State – which now looks like next week’s game. a make-or-break game to stay in the Big 12 playoff hunt.
24. Kansas State (13): The Wildcats were caught in a nightmare on the road after a big win, and now have to pick up the pieces to stay atop the standings in the Big 12 race. It was a sloppy process with enough cognitive errors to think the issues could be fixed, but the process will still lead to a noticeable drop in rankings.
25. Texas A&M (25): It’s possible for Texas A&M to fall out of the top 25 because of how things went late in the game against Bowling Green. The rankings between the Aggies at No. 25 and the teams outside the standards were small last week, but a good number of those teams also lost, so the inertia of the vote can leave Texas A & M above the cut line.
It is expected to come out: No. 22 Nebraska, No. 23 Northern Illinois
#Tomorrows #Top #Today #Tennessee #top #Michigan #jumps #big #college #football #rankings