Indiana rises after a win over Oregon in our updated college football power rankings amidst what has been a chaotic season thus far.
1. Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0) | Last week: 1
The win over then-No. 17 Illinois on Saturday didn’t seem as close as the final score indicated (34-16), as Ohio State continued to roll during their national title defense. And with Penn State dropping three games in a row and firing head coach James Franklin over the weekend, Michigan is the only opponent left on the schedule who currently has a winning record.
2. Indiana Hoosiers (6-0) | Last week: 6 (+4)
Indiana silenced any questions about them being a big-time program under Curt Cignetti with a 30-20 win in Eugene—and now they host Michigan State and UCLA for the final two games this month. The Hoosiers have defeated their last three opponents at home by a combined score of 192-19.
3. Miami Hurricanes (5-0) | Last week: 3
A couple of early bye weeks will have Miami playing every weekend for the rest of the season—so they will be focused on taking care of business to earn a bye in the College Football Playoff. That said, it won’t be easy with 4-1 Louisville this week, plus SMU and Pittsburgh among those still on the schedule.
4. Texas A&M Aggies (6-0) | Last week: 4
The Aggies keep checking off opponents through the SEC play with a 34-17 win over Florida last week, but now they have three road games (@ Arkansas, @ No. 10 LSU, @ No. 16 Missouri) for a difficult stretch on the schedule. Of course, A&M showed they can win away from College Station with the 41-40 victory over Notre Dame in September.
5. Ole Miss (6-0) | Last week: 6 (+1)
Ole Miss survived at home versus Washington State, 24-21, as a 33.5-point favorite last week—but head coach Lane Kiffin was not happy with his team (or the fan support). The Rebels need to figure things out in a hurry as they visit Georgia on Saturday.
6. Alabama Crimson Tide (5-1) | Last week: 7 (+1)
The loss to Florida State in the opener seems to be fully behind the Crimson Tide—and they’ve gone 3-0 to begin the most brutal stretch for any team in college football this season. After a showdown with No. 11 Tennessee this weekend, Alabama will head to South Carolina before hosting No. 10 LSU and No. 14 Oklahoma.
7. Georgia Bulldogs (5-1) | Last week: 8 (+1)
Georgia was at the center of more controversial officiating against Auburn last week, but the forced fumble at the goal line that changed the game at the end of the first half (to avoid a 17-0 deficit) was clearly the correct call. As for the Kirby Smart non-timeout, you be the judge.
8. Texas Tech (6-0) | Last week: 10 (+2)
Texas Tech is coming off a bye, but as stated last week, they’ve been dominant with every game being a win of at least 24 points. This weekend will be a major test facing an Arizona State team that is coming off a loss and could get quarterback Sam Leavitt (ankle) back.
9. Oregon Ducks (5-1) | Last week: 2 (-7)
The powerhouse status for Oregon took a huge hit after losing to Indiana at home, and they tumble seven spots down the power rankings with the win over Penn State last month not being close to as impressive in retrospect. Still, we can certainly expect Dan Lanning’s squad to come out with an edge this weekend versus Wisconsin.
10. LSU Tigers (5-1) | Last week: NR
The lone loss for LSU this year was a 24-19 defeat that came on the road against Ole Miss, but the defense has carried the offense—as the Tigers failed to surpass 20 points against top opponents Clemson, Florida, Ole Miss, and South Carolina. We’ll see how quarterback Garrett Nussmeier and company fare with matchups versus No. 17 Vanderbilt, No. 4 Texas A&M, and No. 6 Alabama in their next three games.