The college football landscape has undergone significant changes following an eventful Saturday, leading to a new No. 1 team in the Coaches Poll. After Week 7's games, coaches re-evaluated their rankings amidst a series of surprising outcomes.
Week 8 Coaches Poll Rankings
The top of the poll reflects the intense competition this season:
- Miami (50 first-place votes)
- Ohio State (13 first-place votes)
- BYU (10 first-place votes)
- Georgia
- Texas Tech
- Indiana
- Ole Miss
- Notre Dame
- Utah
- UCLA
- Tennessee
- Kentucky
- Alabama
- Iowa
- USC
- Houston
- LSU
- Texas
- Wake Forest
- SMU
- Missouri
- Boise State
- Northwestern
- Florida
- Oregon
Riser Teams of the Week
This week's rankings saw several teams climb significantly:
- BYU ascended five spots after a robust victory over Notre Dame, placing them firmly in the top three with 343 points.
- Kentucky also moved up five points after overcoming Oklahoma on the road, showcasing their potential as a playoff contender at 6-1.
- Additionally, Florida celebrated a nine-spot jump back into the rankings after their impressive win against Texas, shaking off a previous two-game slump.
Teams Facing Declines
The flip side of the rankings brought some disappointing news for a few teams:
- Texas suffered the largest drop, falling 12 places after relinquishing a two-touchdown lead against Florida. Their playoff hopes are now precariously low.
- Missouri dropped eight spots following a disappointing 31-3 defeat to Ole Miss, where they could only secure a single field goal.
- Notre Dame saw a three-spot decrease, while Alabama fell six places after consecutive losses to both Georgia and Tennessee.
- Mississippi State, previously ranked 19th, fell out of the top 25 entirely after a dismal 31-0 loss to LSU without starting quarterback Kamario Taylor.
- The coaches also dropped Oklahoma State after they narrowly fell to Houston.
Teams Just Outside the Top 25
A number of teams performed well but didn't quite make it into the top 25:
- Arizona: 141 votes
- Oklahoma State: 87 votes
- James Madison: 80 votes
- Auburn: 55 votes
- Mississippi State: 32 votes
- Nebraska: 19 votes
- Oregon State: 17 votes
- New Mexico: 16 votes
- UTSA: 13 votes
- Michigan: 10 votes
- North Dakota State: 8 votes
- Wisconsin: 7 votes
- Duke: 7 votes
- North Carolina: 5 votes
- Pittsburgh: 4 votes
- Air Force: 3 votes
- North Texas: 1 vote