The Latest: No. 3 Indiana climbs to its highest ever Top 25 ranking
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Indiana climbed to No. 3 in college football’s AP Top 25 poll, scoring its highest ranking in poll history.

The Hoosiers can attribute their four-position surge in the rankings to their 10-point victory at Oregon, which caused the Ducks to drop five spots to No. 8, marking their lowest position in 20 polls. Meanwhile, Ohio State and Miami retained the top two rankings.

Texas A&M climbed to No. 4, while Mississippi moved to No. 5 as the Aggies secured a 17-point victory over Florida at home and the Rebels achieved a narrow three-point win against Washington State at home.

Week 7’s numerous defeats among ranked teams paved the way for five new entrants into the poll, including No. 20 USC and No. 21 Texas. Though the Longhorns were the preseason No. 1 team, they fell out of the rankings the previous week following losses to Ohio State and Florida.

Michigan, Illinois, Arizona State, Iowa State, and Florida State all exited the rankings, leading to the most considerable reshuffling in a regular-season poll since October 2022.

Follow live updates from The Associated Press below for game recaps, ranking analysis and exclusive voter insight, all in one place.

Here’s the latest:

The excitement continues in Week 8

The upcoming week features three significant SEC matchups: No. 10 LSU visiting No. 17 Vanderbilt, No. 9 Georgia hosting No. 5 Ole Miss, and No. 11 Tennessee heading to Tuscaloosa to take on No. 6 Alabama.

No. 20 USC faces No. 13 Notre Dame in their storied rivalry, this time on the Irish’s home turf, where the Trojans haven’t secured a win since 2011. Notre Dame has emerged victorious in their last two encounters, most recently triumphing over USC 49-35 in late November.

Over in the Big 12, an undefeated BYU team takes on Utah. It’s the 103rd faceoff between the two teams, with Utah holding the overall crown 52-30-4.

Hear from a voter: Is this the most unpredictable year in CFB in quite a while?

By JERRY HUMPHREY

We could possibly see a 2- to 3-loss SEC team depending on the circumstances.

But I agree. There is no clear favorite for a title right now. Every week has been something new, especially for us AP voters.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are still buzzin’

Georgia Tech improved to 6-0 on Saturday with a 35-20 win against Virginia Tech.

The Yellow Jackets improved to No. 12, their highest ranking since coming in at No. 8 in the final poll of the 2014 season. Quarterback Haynes King continued to shine, completing 20 of 24 passes for 213 yards and a touchdown while tacking on 60 rushing yards and two rushing scores.

King’s 60 rushing yards were the third most on the roster behind Jamal Haynes (69) and Malachi Hosley (129).

Hear from a voter: Do the preseason polls still matter?

By JERRY HUMPHREY

Yeah, preseason polls are out the window now.

I’m basing my votes on what’s going on currently, and the furthest I try to go back is three weeks when looking at certain teams.

A look at Alabama and Missouri after an SEC nail-biter

Alabama won its third straight SEC game on Saturday with a 27-24 win over Missouri, solidifying the victory with a late fourth-quarter interception.

The Crimson Tide improved to No. 6, its highest ranking since Sept. 2024. Missouri played tough and didn’t fall far, dropping two spots in the poll to No. 16.

Next up: The Tigers head to Auburn for a Saturday night showdown. The road doesn’t get any easier for Alabama after three ranked matchups. The Tide hosts No. 11 Tennessee on Saturday.

Dominant rushing attack helps Texas Tech land at No. 7

Texas Tech earned its highest ranking since November 2008, coming in at No. 7 after a convincing 42-17 win against Kansas.

Starting quarterback Behren Morton exited the game early with an injury for the third time this season. Backup Will Hammond finished the game at signal-caller.

What the Red Raiders lacked in the air they made up for on foot. In all, 372 of Texas Tech’s 505 yards from scrimmage were gained on the ground. Cameron Dickey rushed for 263 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries. Hammond added 61 rushing yards and two rushing scores.

Hear from a voter: How do you justify not ranking Miami No. 1?

By JERRY HUMPHREY

Miami has the resume to be considered the No. 1 team. However, it’s hard to measure the Hurricanes schedule with Ohio State’s at the moment.

Miami’s best wins against Notre Dame and FSU could line up with the Buckeyes’ best wins against Texas and Illinois.

Conference breakdown

SEC (10): No. 4 Texas A&M, No. 5 Ole Miss, No. 6 Alabama, No. 9 Georgia, No. 10 LSU, No. 11 Tennessee, No. 14 Oklahoma, No. 16 Missouri, No. 17 Vanderbilt and No. 21 Texas.

Big Ten (5): No. 1 Ohio State, No. 3 Indiana, No. 8 Oregon, No. 20 USC, No. 25 Nebraska.

Big 12 (4): No. 7 Texas Tech, No. 15 BYU, No. 23 Utah, No. 24 Cincinnati.

ACC (3): No. 2 Miami, No. 12 Georgia Tech, No. 18 Virginia.

American (2): No. 19 South Florida, No. 22 Memphis.

Independent (1): No. 13 Notre Dame.

Eight ranked teams stumble in Week 7

Eight ranked teams lost this weekend: Oregon, Oklahoma, Missouri, Michigan, Illinois, Arizona State, Iowa State and Florida State.

Those were the first losses of the season for Oregon, Oklahoma and Missouri.

Five teams lost to unranked opponents and four of those were knocked out of the rankings: Michigan, Florida State, Iowa State, Arizona State. Michigan took the biggest fall, dropping from No. 15 to unranked after a 31-13 loss to USC.

AP Top 25 temperature check

Heating up: No. 3 Indiana, No. 6 Alabama, No. 7 Texas Tech, No. 13 Notre Dame, No. 15 BYU.

Cooling down: No. 8 Oregon, No. 14 Oklahoma, No. 16 Missouri, Michigan (now unranked), Illinois (now unranked).

Steady: No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Miami

Who’s in? Who’s out?

In: No. 20 USC, No. 21 Texas, No. 23 Utah, No. 24 Cincinnati, No. 25 Nebraska.

Out: Illinois, Michigan, Florida State, Iowa State, Arizona State.

Hear from a voter: How do you compare Indiana with Miami and Ohio State?

By JERRY HUMPHREY

Right now Indiana looks good next to Miami and Ohio State.

I firmly believe the Hoosiers and the Hurricanes have two of the best quarterbacks in Carson Beck and Fernando Mendoza — on top of both having really elite defenses.

The biggest separation between the programs is coaching. Ryan Day has proven he can win the big one and compete in high-stakes games consistently.

Curt Cignetti’s victory at Oregon puts him on the radar of trusting his game plan in big games. Mario Christobol is still aiming to get some key wins in high-stakes games. However, this season is a step in the right direction.

Hear from a voter: Is Indiana legitimate?

By JERRY HUMPHREY

Indiana is legit.

Under Curt Cignetti, the Hoosiers only losses came against the two teams who played in last year’s national championship.

They still need to take care of business against the rest of their Big Ten schedule, but the Hoosiers have to be a heavy favorite to make it to the Big Ten title game now that the toughest opponent left on the schedule, Penn State, will be without starting quarterback Drew Allar.

Indiana earns highest ranking in program history

A 30-20 win against Oregon carried Indiana to its highest ranking in program history, coming in at No. 3. It’s the 20th consecutive poll appearance for the Hoosiers, who also earned three first-place votes this week, their most since 1945.

Oregon tied it up in the fourth quarter with a pick-six from freshman Brandon Finney. The Hoosiers didn’t falter, responding with an immediate 12-play, 75-yard touchdown drive and picking off Ducks’ quarterback Dante Moore on consecutive possessions to seal the game.

Oregon fell to No. 8 as a result, the Ducks’ lowest ranking since last September.

AP Top 25 poll rankings:

1. Ohio State

2. Miami (Fla.)

3. Indiana

4. Texas A & M

5. Ole Miss

6. Alabama

7. Texas Tech

8. Oregon

9. Georgia

10. LSU

11. Tennessee

12. Georgia Tech

13. Notre Dame

14. Oklahoma

15. BYU

16. Missouri

17. Vanderbilt

18. Virginia

19. South Florida

20. USC

21. Texas

22. Memphis

23. Utah

24. Cincinnati

25. Nebraska

Knocking on the door

USC, Texas and Utah are likely to return to the rankings after big-time wins on Saturday.

Cincinnati could crack the poll following its fifth straight win, a 20-11 victory over UCF. The Bearcats received the most votes of any unranked team last week after a convincing win against Iowa State.

Nebraska came out on top against Maryland in a battle between AP Top 25 hopefuls. The Cornhuskers improved to 5-1 with a 34-31 win and could see their first ranking of the season.

Whose stock is up?

No. 7 Indiana is poised to crack the top five after outscoring No. 3 Oregon 30-20 in Ducks’ territory.

Other Saturday highlights included unranked USC, Texas and Utah teams delivering big-time wins against ranked opponents.

The Trojans could return to the rankings after outplaying No. 15 Michigan, beating the Wolverines 31-13. Texas came out on top of the Red River Rivalry, beating No. 6 Oklahoma 23-6. Utah rounded out competition for the day with a dominant 42-10 win against No. 21 Arizona State.

No. 9 Texas Tech could see its highest ranking of the season after a 42-17 win against Kansas.

Hear from a voter: What potential does Alabama have for a national title bid?

By JERRY HUMPHREY

Alabama’s opening season loss to FSU will weigh down its record. However, three straight Top 25 wins in SEC play have them as the front-runner to win the conference.

Their biggest strength right now is the defense coming up big late in games and the brilliance of QB Ty Simpson as one of the best passers in the country.

Stock down

No. 3 Oregon is set to slip out of the top five after falling to No. 7 Indiana at home. The Ducks ranked in the top three for the past two weeks after beating Penn State.

No. 4 Ole Miss could fall in the poll after unexpectedly struggling against Washington State. The Rebels pulled out a 24-21 win, but could see a slight drop off in the rankings after the uninspiring outing.

No. 6 Oklahoma could drop out of the top 10 for the first time in weeks after losing to an unranked Texas team on Saturday.

Saturday results pave the way for a top 10 shake-up

Two top 10 teams lost on Saturday, paving the way for movement in Sunday’s poll.

No. 3 Oregon hopes to hang on to its top 10 status after a loss to No. 7 Indiana. And No. 6 Oklahoma has a substantial fall at stake after losing to Texas in a matchup that wasn’t particularly close.

No. 5 Texas A&M, No. 8 Alabama and No. 9 Texas Tech each racked up a win Saturday and could benefit from losses by Oklahoma and Oregon.

Who votes in the poll, and how does it work?

No organization has been ranking teams and naming a major college football national champion longer than The Associated Press, which has been doing it since 1936.

AP employees don’t vote themselves, but they do choose the voters. AP Top 25 voters are about 60 writers and broadcasters who cover college football for AP members and other select outlets. The goal is to have every state with a Football Bowl Subdivision school represented by at least one voter.

Voting is a straight points system: A first-place vote is worth 25 points, a second-place vote is worth 24 points, down to 1 point for a 25th-place vote.

Then it’s just a summary of which teams are 1-25 based on the totals. Others receiving votes are also noted.

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