Before we get into Smeltz’s top 25 for this week, here’s who dropped out from last week’s rankings.
- No. 18 Oklahoma State
- No. 20 Wake Forest
- No. 23 Syracuse
- No. 24 Oregon State
- No. 25 Maryland
There are some changes in the top four of this week’s poll, and the first significant shift happens right at the top at No. 1.
SMELTZ’S TOP 25
No. 1. Georgia— Georgia was No. 3 in my last poll. Tennessee was No. 1. No. 3 beat No. 1, 27-13, this weekend, so the choice is easy.
No. 2. Michigan— Because Ohio State struggled to beat Northwestern and Michigan beat Rutgers by 35, the Wolverines leapfrog the Buckeyes. It doesn’t matter much, though. One, this isn’t an official poll, and two, if Michigan or Ohio State goes undefeated and wins the Big Ten championship, they’ll be in the playoff. Whoever loses “The Game” Nov. 26 might still get in.
No. 3. Ohio State— See above.
No. 4. TCU— Not a lot of teams are undefeated. TCU is one of them. If the Horned Frogs go unbeaten, they deserve to be in the playoff.
No. 5. Tennessee
No. 6. Oregon
No. 7. USC
No. 8. LSU
No. 9. Alabama
No. 10. Ole Miss
No. 11. UCLA
No. 12. Clemson
No. 13. UNC
No. 14. Utah
No. 15. Penn State— Penn State’s actual rankings are pretty much accurate.
No. 16. Liberty
No. 17. Tulane
No. 18. Notre Dame
No. 19. NC State
No. 20. Washington
No. 21. Texas
No. 22. Illinois— The Illini have still been a great story. But, yeah. Losing to an average-to-bad Michigan State team at home isn’t good. Illinois should still win the Big Ten West, though.
No. 23. Florida State
No. 24. UCF
No. 25. Cincinnati
