Clemson, Ohio State and Penn State fell to the bottom of the Top 10 in the Associated Press college football poll. Penn State jumped four places to No. After another weekend of problems for many ranked teams, 6
Even the No. Alabama.
The No. 1 ranked Crimson Tide, the defending national champion, remained unaffected. After beating Florida 31-29, Alabama won its 17th consecutive game. The Tide won 59 out of 62 first-place votes.
No. 2 Georgia, which was unaffected by South Carolina, won the three other first-place votes in AP Top 25, which Regions Bank presented.
No. No. After a close win over Nebraska, Oklahoma lost one.
Iowa was No. For the second consecutive week, Iowa was No. 5. Penn State is now at its highest ranking since Nov. 3, 2019, when the Nittany Lions were fiveth. Penn State defeated Auburn on Saturday night, giving it two wins against ranked teams along with Wisconsin.
No. 9 Clemson, and No. Both 9 Clemson and No. 10 Ohio State won Saturday's game, but neither team looked particularly dominant. The Tigers scored only 14 points against Georgia Tech, while the Buckeyes struggled defensively and won against Tulsa late in the game.
Clemson was last placed this low in 2015 when the Tigers began the season in the teens, but went on to win the national championship.
Ohio State's 11th ranking is its lowest since 2014, when a loss to Virginia Tech in Week 2 sent them plummeting as high as No. 23. They won the national title and never lost another season.
Clemson, Ohio State and Michigan were both last ranked below No. 8 was Nov. 2, 2014. Clemson and Ohio State were 13th and 19th respectively.
POLL POINTS
Six of the top ranked teams lost on Saturday, but none of them were in the top 10. This brings the total number to 19 for the season's first three weeks.
According to ESPN stats and information, this is the highest total through three weeks in a season.
Continue the story
This number is increased by the loss of 10 ranked teams to unranked teams. Only one unranked team has ever lost to a top-10 team: North Carolina, preseason No. It opened with a loss at Virginia Tech.
The first few weeks of 2021 have been volatile, but not as unpredictable as you might think.
Three regular-season polls have ranked 35 teams.
IN
No. 20 Michigan State has a strong start to Year 2 under Mel Tucker. They are 3-0 with an average margin 23 points. On Saturday, the Spartans beat Miami 38-17 and were ranked for only the second time since Oct. 5, 2019.
No. 22 Fresno State was the winner of perhaps the most exciting game this weekend, beating UCLA with two late scoring drives under quarterback Jake Haener. The Bulldogs have been ranked for only the second time since the final AP Top 25 2018.
No. After its first loss of the season, UCLA lost 11 spots.
No. 25 Kansas State has a 3-0 record after defeating Nevada 38-17. After being briefly ranked in 2020, the Wildcats fell to a 4-5 place.
OUT
After losing to West Virginia, Virginia Tech was forced to withdraw.
After losing to BYU, Arizona State is now out for the first season. The Cougars moved eight spots up to No. After a second consecutive win against a Pac-12 team ranked, the Cougars moved up eight spots to No.
After falling to 1-2, Miami is back this season.
CONFERENCE CALL
SEC 7 (Nos. 1, 2, 7, 11, 13-16, 23
Big Ten 6 (Nos. 5, 6, 10, 18, 19, 20,
Big 12 3 (Nos. 4, 14, 25,
ACC 2 (Nos. 9, 21
Pac-12 2 (Nos. 3, 24
American 1 (No. 8
Mountain West 1 (No. 22
Sun Belt 1 (No. 17
Independents 2 (Nos. 12, 15.
RANKED vs. RANKED
No. 12 Notre Dame vs. No. 18 Wisconsin at Soldier Field, Chicago. The most difficult test for an Irish team, which is unbeaten but far away from perfection.
No. 7 Texas A&M vs. 16 Arkansas at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas. This was the last time that this was a ranked matchup.
___
Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://APpodcast.com
___
More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25. Sign up for the APs college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25
