We have another change at the top of our rankings. Michigan State took over as #1 last week after Ohio State’s lackluster offensive showing against Northern Illinois. This week, though, the Buckeyes slid back into the top spot after their offense looked much better, though still far from efficient, this week. In fact, some of our voters are not at all sold on the defending champions this year and have them ranked outside the Top 5. Part of this is probably a bit of an overreaction to how Florida State underwhelmed last year as a defending champion. Still, it always is fascinating to see how different people can view different teams and for what reasons, especially early in the season.
LWOS College Football Week 4 TOP 25
(A reminder to our mobile readers, please turn your device sideways so you can view the entire rankings.)
Just missed out: Mississippi State, Toledo
Dropped out: Oregon (T-8), Georgia Tech (16), Arizona (20), BYU (24)
Just last week, the Pac 12 led the way with six ranked teams. After Oregon was thrashed out of the rankings by Utah and Arizona fell out with their loss to UCLA, the SEC takes the top spot back from the Pac. The SEC put six teams in the Top 25, though they are closely tailed by the other major conferences. The Big Ten, Big XII, and Pac 12 each put five teams in the rankings this week, with Michigan making their first appearance after their dominant victory over BYU. The ACC has three teams ranked this week as Duke makes their first appearance. That conference still looks like it’s Clemson and Florida State ahead of a huge pack.
Utah made by far the biggest jump in this week’s rankings, all the way up from #21 to the #6 team in the country. That’s what happens when you beat a consensus Top 10 team by six touchdowns on the road. The win over Michigan is looking better, too, right now. They certainly made a statement, and we took full notice, much more than the voters in the Coaches’ Poll did.
