Our first matchup of Top 10 teams of the year brought up a huge shake-up in our rankings, right? Not so much, actually. Unlike most other pollsters, our LWOS voters respected Oregon’s 3-point loss on the road to Michigan State and didn’t drop the Ducks much for it. It was a game that showed off what both teams have and both impressed. Maybe other undefeated teams will slide past Oregon as the season goes on if those teams pick up impressive wins, but for now the Ducks are still solidly entrenched in our Top 10.
We did have one team spiral out of the Top 10. Because of their near-loss to FCS Jacksonville State, the Auburn Tigers fell all the way outside of the Top 20 into the #23 spot. With plenty of big games coming up in the SEC West, they’ll get their chances to impress again as the season goes on. But for now, our LWOS writers have very little faith in them.
LWOS College Football Week 2 Top 25
(Mobile users, please make sure to turn your device sidewise to see the entire rankings.)
Just missed out: Wisconsin
Dropped out: Arkansas (19), Tennessee (25)
The SEC, for the third time this season, leads the way with seven ranked teams. For the first time, though, there is only one in the Top 8. Auburn had been holding down the SEC’s second spot up there but their struggles let a third Pac 12 team slide into the Top 8, breaking up the nice symmetry we had there until then.
The Pac 12 has five ranked teams, including three in the Top 10. The Big XII snuck into second with four teams as West Virginia moved into the rankings, while the Big Ten and ACC each have three ranked teams again, though the Big Ten has two more just outside the Top 25. There are three teams from outside power conferences in our rankings as Boise State managed to stay in after their crushing last-minute loss to BYU.
BYU needs to be spoken about, by the way. They shot up into our rankings, debuting at #18. They may have both been in the final minute, but BYU currently has the best two wins of any team in the country. If they can win in their trip to UCLA this coming week, the should make another huge jump and will firmly be in the playoff conversation.
