Georgia returned to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 poll on Sunday after dismantling Ole Miss 42-7 in Week 10. The Bulldogs will be hoping for a longer stay atop the ranking this time after being dislodged from the top spot after just one week at No. 1 last month by a loss to Auburn.
UGA's convincing win combined with Miami's loss to Notre Dame made the Bulldogs a clear choice at No. 1, as the Hurricanes fell to No. 5 after suffering their first defeat. No. 2 Utah and No. 3 Notre Dame also received votes after strong victories that moved them up the rankings. Georgia is the betting favorite to win the national championship (+240 at FanDuel) after improving to 8-1 (6-1 SEC) with an authoritative road victory over a quality league foe.
Ole Miss plummeted from No. 12 to No. 19 with the lopsided loss. The Rebels aren't the only preseason top-10 team struggling to meet expectations. Preseason No. 1 Ohio State fell from No. 11 to No. 21 after suffering a 41-28 home loss to Oregon. This marks the first time since 1950 that both preseason top-two teams (Oregon and Ohio State) have dropped three of their first nine games.
Oregon surged from unranked to No. 18 following its road win over the Buckeyes. But both teams are 6-3 and on the outside looking in at the College Football Playoff picture entering Week 11.
The complete AP poll heading into Week 11 is below.
AP Top 25 poll
RANKSCHOOLRECPTSLW1
Georgia (53)
8-1
1,729
2
2
Utah (12)
9-0
1,675
3
3
Notre Dame
8-1
1,597
4
4
UCLA
9-0
1,542
5
5
Miami
8-1
1,430
1
6
Indiana
8-1
1,376
6
7
Alabama
7-2
1,334
9
8
Texas
7-2
1,253
10
9
Tennessee
7-2
1,177
9
10
Texas Tech
8-1
1,082
13
11
Wake Forest
8-1
1,067
14
12
BYU
7-2
1,041
7
13
Kentucky
7-2
897
8
14
Houston
7-2
803
17
15
USC
7-2
679
18
16
Iowa
7-2
659
21
17
Boise State
8-1
563
20
18
Oregon
6-3
517
NR
19
Ole Miss
6-3
415
12
20
South Carolina
6-3
399
23
21
Ohio State
6-3
349
11
22
Arizona
7-2
324
20
23
New Mexico
8-1
301
22
24
LSU
6-3
277
15
25
SMU
7-2
118
NR
Others receiving votes: Missouri 50, Duke 49, Oklahoma State 21, Liberty 14, Louisville 10, North Texas 2
SEC teams drop out
The tally of SEC teams in this week's AP Top 25 fell from 10 to eight after Missouri and Florida both dropped out of the poll following losses. The Tigers, who had been No. 19, landed first among others receiving votes after their 34-20 loss to Texas. Florida had been No. 25 but didn't receive votes after losing back-to-back home games by 14+ points for the first time since 1946. The Gators (5-4, 3-4) fell 23-7 against Oklahoma. No. 18 Oregon and No. 25 SMU entered to replace the fallen SEC teams.
Holy War ramifications
Utah crept up one spot to No. 2, marking the first time since 2008 that the Utes have been this high in the poll. As one of only two remaining unbeaten teams in the sport, Utah cemented its legitimacy with a 28-20 win over rival BYU in a highly anticipated Week 10 rivalry showdown. It was the most substantive win of the Utes' season, and it pushed them one step closer to a College Football Playoff appearance under coach Morgan Scalley. BYU dropped five spots to No. 12 after suffering its second loss.
Ohio State's rare low
The last time Ohio State was this low in the AP Top 25 was during the first month of the 2014 season after the Buckeyes suffered a Week 2 home loss against unranked Virginia Tech. That defeat sent Ohio State falling from No. 8 to No. 22, and it wasn't until November that the Buckeyes finally returned to the top 10. They proceeded to win the national championship under coach Urban Meyer during the first year of the four-team CFP. This time around, merely reaching the CFP — even in a 12-team format — will be an uphill battle.
