College football was at its best on Saturday with top teams putting their status on the line in a series of prize fights, and after a state fair-sized upset in Dallas and a heavyweight bout in Tuscaloosa, we are set to have a new No. 1 team in the country.
Texas occupied the No. 1 spot in the AP Top 25 poll ever since knocking off then-No. 1 Ohio State back in Week 2. The Longhorns’ stunning loss to Oklahoma in the latest edition of the Red River Rivalry put the top spot on the table for the winner of Alabama’s showdown with Georgia later that night in Tuscaloosa. The two SEC powers delivered the theater you’d expect from the stage, allowing for Georgia’s move to the top.
The quality of the work done already this season limits some of the rankings damage for Texas and Alabama, as it was the first defeat of the year for both. The same cannot be said for the likes of Oregon and Florida, each of which could find themselves unranked heading into Week 7 as voters weigh the impact of ranked wins against multiple losses. On a Saturday that mostly saw ranked teams handle their business, the Ducks and Gators’ defeats as double-digit favorites provide plenty of opportunities for voters to shake up their ballots.
Further down in the rankings, there is a dramatic rise projected for UCLA as the Bruins improved to 5-0 on the year with the win in Eugene, and some interesting debates for the final spots in the top 25.
Here’s how we think the new AP Top 25 poll will look on Sunday after the scores and results of Week 6:
1. Georgia (2): The Bulldogs first win against Alabama in Tuscaloosa since 2007 is set to move this proud program back to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time since September 2024. The reigning back-to-back SEC Champions put themselves in the driver’s seat for a return to Atlanta with Saturday night’s win against the Crimson Tide, but it’s also going to mark a return to the very top of the sport as the team to beat in college football.
2. Notre Dame (3): From a rankings perspective, the Fighting Irish won’t have an argument for No. 1 by comparing Week 6 results. But there is still a ton to like from Notre Dame’s latest thrashing of an ACC opponent. The Fighting Irish are continuing to get real game-breaking potential from freshman running back Jonaz Walton, who scored on touchdown runs of 97 and 40 yards in the 58-7 win against Stanford.
3. Miami (4): The Hurricanes were off in Week 6 and will be back in action next week against Florida State.
4. Texas (1): This becomes fairly clear for voters who try to wrestle with adjusting a team that just lost to an unranked team as a touchdown favorite. The win doesn’t validate Oklahoma as much as the loss invalidates Texas’ claim to the No. 1 spot, and now, with a loss, the Longhorns enter the debate of “best one-loss teams.” Here’s where the head-to-head win against the Buckeyes from Week 2 serves as an anchor, keeping Texas inside the top 10 after a stunning rivalry defeat.
5. Ohio State (5): Ryan Day dialed up a heavy dose of the run game, Jeremiah Smith was a star again and the Buckeyes defense had the clamps down on Maryland all afternoon in a 45-16 win. The biggest rankings impacts for the Buckeyes actually happened elsewhere, since both Texas and Oregon losing unexpectedly impacts their strength of schedule.
6. Indiana (7): Voters will have different ways to assign credit and blame for Indiana’s comeback and Nebraska’s collapse in Lincoln. But at the end of the day, the 20-17 victory has the reigning national champions at 6-0 on the season and 33-2 since the start of 2024. The aesthetics weren’t great for bolstering an argument that Indiana is the best team in the country, but there’s a high floor for where the Hoosiers can land on a ballot.
7. Alabama (6): The narrow margins of the 20-17 loss, including the frustrating calls for Alabama fans, are going to keep a limit on any type of severe rankings punishments from the AP voters. Look for the Crimson Tide to hang on inside the top 10, remaining even ahead of some undefeated power conference teams.
8. BYU (8): With star running back LJ Martin knocked out of the lineup with an injury, Bear Bachmeier answered the call to be the offensive ending in a solid 14-point win against Iowa State on Friday night. Bachmeier threw for 329 yards and rushed for an additional 109 to have the Cougars off to a 5-0 start for the third consecutive season.
9. Ole Miss (9): That win against LSU is doing a lot of work for Ole Miss’ resume, which didn’t necessarily get better with a 52-17 win at Vanderbilt, but definitely didn’t get worse. The big-picture takeaways for the Rebels involve getting Kewan Lacy back into the lineup ahead of key games against Missouri and Texas.
10. Texas Tech (11): The Red Raiders were off in Week 6 and will be back in action next week against Arizona State at home.
11. UCLA (21): We are projecting one of two different landing spots for UCLA after improving to 5-0 on the season with a road win against Oregon. Voters are likely to respect the Bruins’ unbeaten record with a big move up, and potentially use a fellow unbeaten (in this case, Texas Tech) as an appropriate benchmark. Saturday’s win against the Ducks was unquestionably the best win of the season from a resume perspective, but it’s also possible that Oregon is no longer ranked on Sunday afternoon.
12. Utah (12): The Utes never trailed against Kansas, but did see the Jayhawks make it a one-score game three different times before pulling away with a 41-24 win on Saturday night. The game had its kickoff time adjusted due to weather concerns, so it didn’t fall in the typical flow of action for a voter trying to keep track of top 25 results. Utah met expectations of winning handily at home, so their positioning should not change much.
13. Missouri (14): Texas A&M’s offensive woes were to the benefit of Missouri, which was able to lean on its defense and another big day from running back Jamal Roberts (34 carries, 222 yards, two touchdowns) in a 27-6 win to improve to 5-1 on the year.
14. Tennessee (15): The Vols overcame three turnovers and some third-down struggles to escape Arkansas with a seven-point win. George MacIntyre threw for 247 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions in relief of Faizon Brandon, bringing less clarity to the quarterback situation and reinforcing this team’s reliance on DeSean Bishop (19 carries, 138 yards, one touchdown) as the engine of this year’s offense.
15. Mississippi State (17): The Bulldogs were off in Week 6 and will be back in action next week at LSU.
16. Oklahoma State (18): Eric Morris has now matched Oklahoma State’s win total from the past two seasons combined as the Cowboys improved to 4-1 with a two-touchdown win against UCF coming out of the off week. Drew Mestemaker threw for 304 yards and two touchdowns in the win, so even though that signature win against Oregon looks less impressive, the quality of this team in Big 12 play appears steady.
17. Iowa (20): The Hawkeyes solidified their status as a top 25 team with a statement win at Washington on Friday night. Iowa improved to 5-1 on the season with a 41-24 win in Seattle, which marked the program’s first regular-season win in the Pacific time zone since 1965.
18. USC (19): After a high-scoring first half, the Trojans settled in and rode some huge plays from their defense to escape Happy Valley and the White Out conditions with a win against Penn State. The victory flies in the face of USC’s bad road reputation under Lincoln Riley and temporarily calms some of the panic about this team’s ability to contend in the modern Big Ten.
19. Kentucky (NR): Now 5-1 with wins against Texas A&M and LSU, Will Stein has exceeded expectations by guiding the Wildcats through a torrential first-half schedule, and now prepares for an entry to the top 25. Stein going for two and the win in overtime made for a dramatic finish of chaotic top 25 results, and now Kentucky is set to return to the poll after a one-week stay earlier this season.
20. Houston (22): Willie Fritz and the Cougars passed a notable road test going into Manhattan and handling Kansas State to improve to 5-1 on the year. Houston out-gained the Wildcats by 176 yards (475-299), and tight end Patrick Overmyer was an absolute menace with eight catches for a season-high 83 yards and four touchdowns in the 35-16 win.
21. Boise State (23): The Broncos are currently in action at Fresno State.
22. SMU (24): The Mustangs were off in Week 6 and will be back in action next week against Virginia at home.
23. Wake Forest (NR): The Demon Deacons were just 20 voting points away from the top 25 cut line last week and then went into Raleigh and run the Wolfpack out of the building in the second half. Wake Forest is 5-1 with three road wins against power conference teams, including a victory at Louisville, and should be back in the AP top 25 poll for the first time since Oct. 2022.
24. Arizona (NR): Sometimes voters will have a “sticker shock” reaction to a score and it will prompt a further investigation into whether that team deserves one of those final spots on a ballot. This week’s case is Arizona, which won 52-31 at West Virginia in the early slate on Saturday. The Wildcats were all the way back at 33rd in voting points last week, but have now improved to 5-1 with four straight double-digit wins since losing 28-17 to BYU in Provo. It’s not the best one-loss resume in terms of high-end wins, but there’s enough quality in Brent Brennan’s group to see a continued push in voting points.
25. LSU (10): Will LSU hang on inside the top 25? Dropping from No. 10 all the way out of the rankings is rare, especially after an overtime road loss in conference play. But LSU’s resume keeps getting thinner, as the Tigers now have Texas A&M and Clemson as their best wins. If LSU hangs on, it will be thanks to voters recognizing overall team quality and the small margins of both road losses in a 4-2 start to the Lane Kiffin era.
Projected to drop out: No. 13 Oregon, No. 16 Florida, No. 25 Pittsburgh
