Debate at the top college football ratings received another worthy contender on Saturday when Indiana entered Oregon and handed the Ducks a stunning double-digit loss. Oregon was previously on the list at No. 1. Ohio and No. 2 Miami – as a team worthy of the title “best team in the country.” Voting scores in last week's AP Top 25 poll showed a narrow margin between Ohio State in first place and Oregon in third place, and then a relatively much larger gap before falling into Ole Miss in No. 4.
Well, that top tier changed in Week 7, and the new college football rankings should reflect that as Oregon falls out of contention, but Indiana joins the new “best team in the country” debate.
While Indiana faces as much of an uphill battle in terms of perception as it has since Curt Cignetti started that amazing run, the win at Autzen Stadium changed the perception. The Hoosiers looked great at the line of scrimmage, an area that was a critical weakness in losses to Ohio State and Our Lady last year and dictated the game most of the day.
The victory was also historic. It was the first time in 46 tries that Indiana had won on the road against an AP top-5 opponent, and the win should secure a rare top-five finish for the program for this team.
Bowl predictions: Alabama leads SEC in College Football Playoff race, Indiana gains momentum
Brad Crawford
Below in the ranking we expect a fall Oklahoma beyond the top 10 and return to the rankings Arch Manning And Texas after beating the Sooners in Dallas. That, and a slew of shakeups near the end of voting, will highlight the key shakeups in Sunday's new ratings episode.
Here's what we predict the new AP Top 25 will look like after Week 7:
1. Ohio State (last week – 1): The Buckeyes did business in Illinoiswinning the program's eighth straight game against an AP-ranked team.
2. Miami (2): The Hurricanes were eliminated in Week 7 and will return to action Friday night against Louisville.
3. Indiana (7): Last season, the Hoosiers were ranked No. 5 in the AP poll, and prior to that, the high point was No. 4 in the final rankings in 1967 and 1945. If Indiana does move up to No. 3 and make program history, it will be another indicator of success for one of the best power conferences in the 21st century.
4. Texas A&M (5): Mike Elko is now 7-3 in his first 10 conference games as coach of the Aggies, who are now 6-0 on the year and once again looking to make the SEC championship team. The margin between Texas A&M and Ole Miss was minimal last week, so there's an opportunity to take a step up after a double-digit win over Florida.
5. Ole Miss (4): A sluggish start and inconsistent play led to Ole Miss fighting with Washington Statewhich was not at all what was expected. Game next weekend at Georgia there will be one that gets more traction, but some voters will start to push the rebels down a position or two.
6. Alabama (8): Monumental effort to secure hard-fought away win Missouri was met with only a slight increase in rankings, mainly due to losses from other teams. Alabama is still weighed down by an early-season loss to Florida but will continue to rise as long as they lead the SEC title race.
7. Texas Tech (9): The Red Raiders have a dominant outfit that can leave teams in the dust, and it doesn't seem to matter the opponent or the environment. Texas Tech had a couple of drives against Kansas as a result, the plucky Jayhawks team spent the entire night chasing the game.
8. Oregon (3): The Ducks' downfall is ultimately determined by the pecking order of one-loss teams. Unfortunately, for those comparing resumes, the “big win” in Penn State loses some value. However, losses to other top 25 teams soften Oregon's decline.
9. Georgia (10): The Great Danes were lagging behind Auburn 10-0 and on the verge of falling 17-0 when Raylen Wilson knocked the ball out Jackson Arnold right at the goal line. A subsequent 20-0 run allowed Georgia to improve to 5-1 on the year and remain in the top ten.
10. LSU (11): Another SEC title contender that found itself in a close game late, LSU improved to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in conference play with a win over South Carolina.
11. Tennessee (12): It's no surprise that Tennessee was interim coach Bobby Petrino's first opponent. Arkansa on Saturday. It was a tough sandwich situation with Alabama on deck in Week 8, but the Vols held off the Hogs for another one-point SEC win.
12. Georgia Tech (13): One of the best rushing attacks in the country rushed on the ground for 268 yards and Georgia Tech moved into a straight line, winning with 15 points over Virginia Tech.
13.28 (6): If voters were truly discerning, they would have noticed that Oklahoma's resume was a blow to both. Michigan and Auburn loses on Saturday. But ultimately, it's a matter of preference whether to judge the Sooners on their impressive 5-1 record or knock them off with a loss to a previously unranked team.
14. Notre Dame (16): The Fighting Irish earned their 23rd straight home win over an ACC opponent, a streak dating back to 2016 when they posted a 36-7 victory over an ACC opponent. North Carolina State. It was their fourth straight win after starting the season 0-2, and for the second straight game, the defense was the star in the winning effort.
15. BYU (18): What an escape for Pumas vs. Arizona. in a strange game that was delayed due to weather and ultimately required two overtimes to be completed. BYU trailed by 10 points early in the fourth quarter but battled back to force overtime and then closed out the game with Bear Bachmeier's game-winning touchdown in the second overtime to improve to 6-0 on the season.
16. Virginia (19): The Cavaliers were eliminated in Week 7 and will return to action next week against Washington State.
17. Vanderbilt (20): The Commodores were eliminated in Week 7 and will return to action next week against LSU.
18. Missouri (14): The Tigers will be encouraged by their 5-1 record and a performance against Alabama that proved this group is worthy of top-level attention. With a profile similar to SEC foe Vanderbilt (both have wins over South Carolina, a loss to Alabama and a non-conference Power Four win), somewhere in the Commodores' range would be the most likely landing spot.
19. Texas (none): The Longhorns beat Oklahoma, and there was no question whether their opponent had a star quarterback. Texas as a team dug deep and won an ugly, low-scoring edition of the Red Rival Rivalry. The Longhorns finished 27th in votes last week even without a power conference win, so I'm optimistic about where they could end up with a top-10 finish.
20. South Florida (24): Friday's highly publicized showdown between USF and North Texas showed fireworks (99 points), but was not as competitive as expected. The fact that the Bulls took the big stage and scored 63 points against their opponents will provide some momentum for voters reconsidering their position among the best in the country.
21. Memphis (23): The Tigers were eliminated in week seven and will return to action the following week. JSC.
22. Nebraska (NR): The Cornhuskers were noticeably behind last week. Cincinnatibut I think some of that will be adjusted on the ballot now that Nebraska is going to get more attention in the top 25 overall at 5-1. Some voters weren't even considering Nebraska last week coming after Week 7, and that's where a head-to-head win over the Bearcats could propel them into the top 25.
23. Cincinnati (North Carolina): Last week, voters had the Bearcats in 26th place in the polls with a very small margin separating 26th from the 23rd place Memphis was at last week. Given a bit of a shakeup at the bottom of the rankings, a top 25 finish is likely as Cincinnati improved to 3-0 in Big 12 play with a win over UKF.
24. USC (NR): The Trojans looked good on the big stage against a quality opponent, enduring more injuries but still hitting deep, leading to a 31-13 win over Michigan. The loss to Illinois complicates some of the head-to-head debates late in voting, but a 5-1 record with a win over the Wolverines should certainly spark a surge in the vote.
25. Utah (North Carolina): Now at 5-1, the Utes have a solid resume, with their only loss coming to Texas Tech, who remains undefeated and looks worthy of a top-10 ranking. A 42-10 rout of Arizona State (even without the Sun Devils' starting guard in the lineup) will give Utah enough exposure to leapfrog several other teams into the top 25.
Predicted to fall: No. 15 Michigan, No. 17 Illinois, No. 21 Arizona State, No. 22 IowaNo. 25, Florida
