With most having this upcoming Saturday circled on the calendar, last week was filled with shocking upsets to shake up the college football power rankings.
1. Texas Longhorns (5-0) | Last week: 2 (+1)
The debate about the top team right now seems to be down to Texas or Ohio State, and the Longhorns—coming out of a bye—have a tremendous opportunity to prove themselves as the favorites in the SEC with games against No. 18 Oklahoma and No. 5 Georgia over the next two weeks.
2. Ohio State Buckeyes (5-0) | Last week: 3 (+1)
A top-five clash with the Buckeyes traveling to take on Oregon headlines the college football action this weekend, and it’ll be the first big test of the revamped infrastructure under Ryan Day with Chip Kelly controlling the offense. Senior quarterback Will Howard taking care of the ball will be key if Ohio State wants to escape Eugene with a win.
3. Oregon Ducks (5-0) | Last week: 6 (+3)
Oregon hasn’t been at their best thus far in 2024, but they’ve still won by at least 21 points in each of the past three games with Jordan James and the running game being the focus. If they can move the ball on the ground and slow down Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson, the Ducks have a good shot of knocking off the Buckeyes.
4. Alabama Crimson Tide (4-1) | Last week: 1 (-3)
The Crimson Tide fell to Vanderbilt in a prototypical letdown game after the thrilling victory over Georgia, but Diego Pavia and the Commodores are legitimate to soften the blow of the loss. Jalen Milroe and Alabama will look to get back on track as SEC play continues versus South Carolina, Tennessee, Missouri, and LSU over the next month.
5. Georgia Bulldogs (4-1) | Last week: 4 (-1)
Georgia took care of business with Auburn coming to town last week, and Trevor Etienne was great with 22 touches for 124 total yards and two touchdowns. Unfortunately, standout wide receiver Colbie Young was arrested on charges of battery and assault—making him the seventh player for the Bulldogs to be arrested this year.
6. Miami Hurricanes (6-0) | Last week: 8 (+2)
A case could be made for Miami ranking as a top-five team with an undefeated record, but they’ve needed big comebacks over Virginia Tech and California over the past two weeks—and the officiating had been in question. Still, Cam Ward is playing as well as any quarterback in the nation, and the path is clear for them to finish the regular season without a loss.
7. Penn State Nittany Lions (5-0) | Last week: 9 (+2)
Penn State is also unbeaten through the first week of October, so James Franklin’s squad needs to keep focus for road matchups against a desperate USC team and Wisconsin before hosting Ohio State to begin November. Having star running back Nicholas Singleton back after an undisclosed injury kept him out last week will certainly help.
8. Tennessee Volunteers (4-1) | Last week: 5 (-3)
Too many drives stalling cost the Volunteers in their 19-14 loss to Arkansas, and they probably should have fed Dylan Sampson (22 carries for 140 yards and two touchdowns) more as their best offensive player. In general, the growing pains for redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava are to be expected.
9. Ole Miss Rebels (5-1) | Last week: NR
Ole Miss jumps back into the top ten with a nice bounce back from their 20-17 loss to Kentucky—but Jaxson Dart and the passing attack hasn’t been as prolific in recent games; they’ll need to be at their best for a matchup against LSU in Baton Rouge on Saturday night.
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-1) | Last week: NR
The loss to North Illinois is an obvious blemish on the resume for Notre Dame, but they beat then-No. 15 Louisville to end September and began the year with a win over a surging Texas A&M team that is back up to No. 15 in the AP Poll. We’ll see if quarterback Riley Leonard (150.0 passing yards per game) doing much of his damage on the ground (six touchdowns over the past three outings) is enough for the Fighting Irish to make noise if they can get into the playoffs.