The parity within the sport of college football is at an all-time high. It truly feels like nearly everyone is vulnerable to a couple of losses this season, and it doesn’t really matter who they are playing. We saw teams such as Georgia, Tennessee and LSU struggle with inferior opponents; while teams such as Indiana and Alabama made statements that they are in the upper echelon of teams this year.
Here is my current top 10:
No. 1 Miami Hurricanes 5-0 (1-0 ACC)
Bye week
Miami had its first bye of the season after an emotional rivalry win at Florida State. It now looks to what some might say is their hardest remaining game of the season, as a pretty good Louisville team comes into town on a Friday night.
These are the spots where we have seen Miami slip up in the past. The question will be whether it avoids the rat poison and takes care of business when there aren’t many opponents for them to get up for on their remaining schedule.
No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes 6-0 (3-0 Big-10)
Win at Illinois, 34-16
The Buckeyes just continued their dominant performance, this time on the road against Illinois. Ohio State was continuously gifted short fields after winning the turnover battle 3-0, and capitalized early so that Illinois didn’t have a chance to come back.
As of now, Ohio State won’t face a team with a winning record until their last game at Michigan, so you can start penciling it in for a high seed in the College Football Playoff.
No. 3 Indiana Hoosiers 6-0 (3-0 Big-10)
Win at Oregon, 30-20
In by far the most impressive win of the week, the Indiana Hoosiers finally announced their arrival as one of the elite teams in college football. The job that Curt Cignetti has done to turn this program into what it is in just two years is unheard of and incredible.
The biggest surprise of this game was how the Hoosiers dominated the line of scrimmage in one of the hardest environments to play in. Even after throwing a pick-six in the 4th quarter to tie the game up, Indiana kept emotions at bay and immediately drove down the field to take the lead.
Much like Ohio State, Indiana has a relatively easy path to the playoff, unlike last year though, it has a signature win under their belt.
No. 4 Texas A&M Aggies 6-0 (3-0 SEC)
Win vs. Florida, 34-17
The Aggies just continue humming along. Florida came out of the gates ready to play, matching Texas A&M’s early offensive output, but in the end, the Aggies’ defense was just too much for the Gators to handle. After a 14-14 start, Texas A&M outscored Florida 20-3 the rest of the way.
The most telling stat of the game? Florida went 1/10 on third down, Texas A&M went 9/17.
A&M just finds a new way to win every week. It’ll have to stay alert this coming week and not look ahead to LSU as they travel on the road to face Arkansas.
No. 5 Texas Tech Red Raiders 6-0 (3-0 Big-12)
Win vs. Kansas, 42-17
Texas Tech looks like one of the most complete teams in the nation. It has now won every one of its games by 24+ points, and this past week against Kansas was no different. Running back Cameron Dickey was the star of the show, rushing for 263 yards and two touchdowns, including a 71-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
Texas Tech now heads to Arizona State, and if Sam Leavitt doesn’t play once again, Tech should roll.
No. 6 Alabama Crimson Tide 5-1 (3-0 SEC)
Win at Missouri, 27-24
The Crimson Tide have now won three straight SEC games against ranked opponents after their close win in Columbia. It wasn’t the prettiest game, but Alabama was able to keep Ahmad Hardy in check, and two key interceptions led to the win.
I believe that their loss to Florida State was ultimately good for them, similar to Ohio State’s against Michigan last year. The question is whether Alabama can play at this level week after week, as the schedule doesn’t get any easier for the Tide with Tennessee coming to town.
No. 7 Ole Miss Rebels 6-0 (3-0 SEC)
Win vs. Washington State, 24-21
It was a sleepy Saturday morning for Ole Miss, which just let lowly Washington State hang around for almost the entire game. When you look at the box score, it wasn’t as bad as the score may indicate for the Rebels, with flukey plays like an early turnover on downs, a missed field goal, and a fumble, but no doubt all of that can’t happen when they play at Georgia next weekend.
No. 8 Georgia Bulldogs 5-1 (3-1 SEC)
Win at Auburn, 20-10
Auburn had Georgia in the first half, but everything changed once the Bulldogs punched the ball out of Jackson Arnold’s arms at the one-yard line.
Georgia ended up outscoring Auburn 17-0 in the second half of the ballgame as Georgia flexed their mental toughness over the Tigers. The refs played a huge role in this game and were bad for both teams, but at the end of the day, Georgia showed they wouldn’t let it affect their play on the field, while Auburn lost their composure and couldn’t get anything going after the end of the first half.
No. 9 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 6-0 (3-0 ACC)
Win vs. Virginia Tech, 35-20
One of the most overlooked teams in the country is the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, who just keep humming along in the ACC. They never really pulled away from the Hokies, but kept enough distance that the game was never in doubt. As a team, Georgia Tech ran all over the Hokies, with 268 yards on the day.
The Yellow Jackets will now go play at Duke, which will be a sneaky big game this Saturday with ACC title implications, with both teams being 3-0 in conference play.
No. 10 Tennessee Volunteers 5-1 (2-1 SEC)
Win vs. Arkansas, 34-31
Tennessee’s offense is one of the elite ones in the country, as they have scored over 30 in each game they have played. Joey Aguilar in Josh Heupel’s system has been a match made in heaven early on this season, and if it wasn’t for a missed field goal against Georgia, the Volunteers would be undefeated.
Their defense, on the other hand, should be of some concern. They have given up 44, 34, and 31 in their three SEC games, and now face a vaunted passing attack in Alabama. Will they be able to stop Ty Simpson and the high-flying Tide offense on the road?
Now for the rest of the rankings:
No. 11 Oregon Ducks 5-1 (2-1 Big-10)
Loss vs. Indiana, 24-27
No. 12 LSU Tigers 5-1 (2-1 SEC)
Win vs. South Carolina, 20-10
No. 13 Vanderbilt Commodores 5-1 (1-1 SEC)
Bye week
No. 14 Missouri Tigers 5-1 (1-1 SEC)
Loss vs. Alabama, 24-27
No. 15 Oklahoma Sooners 5-1 (1-1 SEC)
Loss vs. Texas, 6-23
No. 16 Virginia Cavaliers 5-1 (3-0 ACC)
Bye week
No. 17 Cincinnati Bearcats 5-1 (3-0 Big-12)
Win vs. UCF, 20-11
No. 18 Utah Utes 5-1 (2-1 Big-12)
Win vs. Arizona State, 42-10
No. 19 South Florida Bulls 5-1 (2-0 AAC)
Win at North Texas, 63-36
No. 20 BYU Cougars 6-0 (3-0 Big-12)
Win at Arizona, 33-27 (2-OT)
No. 21 Memphis Tigers 6-0 (2-0 AAC)
Bye week
No. 22 USC Trojans 5-1 (3-1 Big-10)
Win vs. Michigan, 31-13
No. 23 Texas Longhorns 4-2 (1-1 SEC)
Win vs. Oklahoma, 23-6
No. 24 Nebraska Cornhuskers 5-1 (2-1 Big-10)
Win at Maryland, 34-31
No. 25 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 4-2 (Ind.)
Win vs. NC State, 36-7
Teams who just missed: Washington Huskies, Michigan Wolverines.
