Michigan climbs, Michigan State cracks Associated Press college football poll
Michigan is climbing in the Associated Press college football poll. Now, it has some in-state company.
After trouncing Northern Illinois, the Wolverines moved up six spots to No. 19 in this week's poll, released Sunday, followed by Michigan State (3-0), which enters the poll at No. 20 after a 38-17 victory over Miami (Florida).
Clemson and Ohio State slipped to the back of the top 10 and Penn State jumped four spots to No. 6 after another weekend in which lots of ranked teams had issues.
Even No. 1 Alabama.
The defending national champion Crimson Tide remained an overwhelming No. 1 after holding on to beat Florida 31-29, Alabama’s closest margin of victory during its current 17-game winning streak. The Tide received 59 of 62 first-place votes.
No. 2 Georgia, which had no problem with South Carolina, received the other three first-place votes in the AP Top 25, which is presented by Regions Bank.
No. 3 Oregon moved up a spot and No. 4 Oklahoma slipped one after a close victory over Nebraska.
Iowa was No. 5 for a second straight week and Penn State has its best ranking since the Nittany Lions were fifth on Nov. 3, 2019. Penn State beat Auburn on Saturday night to give it two victories against ranked teams, along with Wisconsin.
No. 9 Clemson and No. 10 Ohio State both won Saturday, but neither looked typically dominant. The Tigers managed only 14 points against Georgia Tech and the Buckeyes struggled defensively before pulling away late against winless Tulsa.
Clemson was last ranked this low early in 2015, when the Tigers started the season in the low teens but ended up playing for the national championship.
For Ohio State, 11th has been its lowest rankings since the 2014 season, when a Week 2 loss to Virginia Tech sent the Buckeyes tumbling as far as No. 23. They never lost again that season and won the national title.
The last time Clemson and Ohio State were both ranked below No. 8 was Nov. 2, 2014, when Ohio State was 13th and Clemson was 19th.
Associated Press Top 25
1. Alabama (59 first-place votes), 3-0, 1547 points (last week: 1)
2. Georgia (3), 3-0, 1491 (2)
3. Oregon, 3-0, 1385 (4)
4. Oklahoma, 3-0, 1302 (3)
5. Iowa, 3-0, 1298 (5)
6. Penn State, 3-0, 1197 (10)
7. Texas A&M, 3-0, 1158 (7)
8. Cincinnati, 3-0, 1145 (8)
9. Clemson, 2-1, 1074 (6)
10. Ohio State, 2-1, 976 (9)
11. Florida, 2-1, 930 (11)
12. Notre Dame, 3-0, 874 (12)
13. Mississippi, 3-0, 717 (17)
14. Iowa State, 2-1, 664 (14)
15. BYU, 3-0, 603 (23)
16. Arkansas, 3-0, 537 (20)
17. Coastal Carolina, 3-0, 526 (16)
18. Wisconsin, 1-1, 513 (18)
19. Michigan, 3-0, 456 (25)
20. Michigan State, 3-0, 389 (NR)
21. North Carolina, 2-1, 306 (21)
22. Fresno State, 3-1, 201 (NR)
23. Auburn, 2-1, 166 (22)
24. UCLA, 2-1, 142 (13)
25. Kansas State, 3-0, 127 (NR)
Others receiving votes: TCU 91, Liberty 56, Virginia Tech 52, Oklahoma State 51, Maryland 29, Arizona State 24, Texas 22, San Diego St. 16, Southern Cal 16, West Virginia 14, LSU 14, Kentucky 12, Boston College 9, Wake Forest 7, Texas Tech 5, Stanford 3, Memphis 3, Wyoming 1, Louisville 1.