Paul Finebaum says Cincinnati's chances of winning the College Football Playoff are "good, but certainly not great", after defeating Notre Dame. (1:02).
Iowa is gearing up to host its largest home game since 1980s. Cincinnati is at its highest ranking in 12 year and Clemson is outside the poll of The Associated Press college football rankings for the first time since 2014.
During this unpredictable college football season, Georgia and Alabama are the only two constants. They held the top two spots in the AP Top 25 for a fifth consecutive week.
Alabama won 53 out of the possible 62 first-place votes on Sunday. Georgia took home the rest.
The movement in and out of Top 25 after these two teams was similar to what one would expect after a week that saw nine teams lose, four of them in the top 10.
The polls have shown that 34 of the top-ranked teams have lost in the first five weeks, which is the highest number ever.
Iowa jumped past Penn State to claim the No. After its road victory over Maryland 51-14, the Hawkeyes occupy the No. 3 spot. This is the Hawkeyes' highest ranking since 2015. Penn State defeated Indiana 24-0 at home to remain No. 4.
AP Top 25 First-place votes in parentheses. SCHOOL RECORD 1. Alabama (53) 5-0 2. Georgia (9) 5:02 2. Iowa 5-0 4. Penn St. 5-0 5. Cincinnati 4-0 6. Oklahoma 5-0 7. Ohio St. 4-1 8. Oregon 4-1 9. Michigan 5-0 10. BYU 5-0 11. Michigan St. 5-0 12. Oklahoma St. 5-0 13. Arkansas 4-1 14. Notre Dame 4-1 15. Coastal Carolina 5-0 16. Kentucky 5-0 17. Mississippi 3-1 18. Auburn 4-1 19. Wake Forest 5-0 20. Florida 3-2 21. Texas 4-1 22. Arizona St. 4-1 23. NC State 4-1 24. SMU 5-0 25. San Diego St. 4-0
No. 5 Cincinnati is coming off a 24-13 win over Notre Dame on the road, and has its highest ranking since Brian Kelly's 2009 Bearcats were at No. 4 in the first week.
The top 10 include Oklahoma, Ohio State and Oregon as well as Michigan, BYU, and Michigan.
Clemson's home win of 19-13 over Boston College was not enough to earn the Tigers a place in the Top 25. Their streak of 107 consecutive weeks at the top of the rankings is over. The week of Oct. 5 2014 was the last time that the Tigers were not ranked.
They are just one spot from the Top 25, 15 behind San Diego State.
POLL POINTS
It's odd that midway through the season, a ranking-based debate about the top two Big Ten teams doesn't include Ohio State.
The Buckeyes may very well be the best. Voters showed respect for them by placing them ahead of Oregon, despite their Week 2 loss at home to the Ducks and a win over Tulsa the next game.
This week's Penn State-Iowa match is the Big Ten’s most important game of the year.
This will be the most prestigious matchup in Iowa City since 1985 when the No. The No. 1 Hawkeyes defeated the No. 2 Michigan defeated 1 Hawkeyes 12-10 with a field goal in the final seconds of time. Hayden Fry described this as the greatest win in program history.
IN
No. No. 16. Kentucky (5-0), is recognized for beating then-No. 10 Florida receives its first ranking for the season.
No. TCU was defeated by 21 Texas (4-1), and Texas is back in the tournament for the first time since a month.
No. After wins over Colorado, UCLA and Arizona State, 22 Arizona State (4-1), returns to the field.
No. No.
No. No. 25 San Diego State (4-0), returns for the first-time since November 2019.
OUT
Clemson only managed one touchdown and four field goals in its loss to BC. Before facing Syracuse's top-15 defense, the Tigers will have a week off.
Texas A&M was bounced after losing two consecutive games. Alabama is calling this week.
Fresno State has been suspended for two weeks following six turnovers and a loss of two-point lead against Hawaii in the fourth quarter.
UCLA was ranked for three consecutive weeks, but it was bumped after two consecutive home losses.
Baylor's running game against Oklahoma State was not in motion and the team is now out of action.
CONFERENCE CALL
Florida and Arkansas lost out, leaving room for the Big Ten and Michigan State to take four of the top ten spots. 11.
The Southeastern Conference had five teams in the top 12 and four teams in the top 10. Georgia and Alabama are the only two SEC teams in the top ten this week.
Atlantic Coast Conference was only absent for a week from the top 20 after 10 years. Wake Forest's rise to No. 19.
SEC -- 7 (Nos. 1, 2, 13, 16, 17, 18 and 20.
Big Ten -- 5 (Nos. 3, 4, 7, 9, 11,
ACC -- 2 (Nos. 19, 23
Big 12 -- 3 (Nos. 6, 12, 21
Pac-12 -- 2 8, 22
American -- 2 (Nos. 5, 24,
Sun Belt -- 1 (No. 15
Mountain West -- 1 Mountain West -- 1 (No.
Independents -- 2 10, 14.
RANKED vs. RANKED
No. 4 Penn State at Number. 3 Iowa. This is not the same Nittany Lions team which lost to Iowa by 20 points last year.
No. 6 Oklahoma vs. No. 21 Texas. Red River Rivalry will have a difficult time replicating the four-overtime thriller that the Sooners won last year.
No. 13 Arkansas at No. 17 Mississippi. These two teams are looking to reset after losing badly to the nation's top two.
No. 2 Georgia at No. 18 Auburn. Bulldogs won 12 out of 15 series games.
