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1 Indiana The history makers continue to set new records, recording a 9-0 start for only the second time in history with a 55-10 demolition of Maryland on the road. The Hoosiers have five 50-point performances this season, the most in school history and the most by a Big Ten since Ohio State in 2021. -- 9-0 2 Ohio State Julian Sayin is the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy after yet another impressive 300-yard performance in a 38-14 win against Penn State. He was 20-of-23 passing for 316 yards and four touchdowns. He's thrown for 300 yards in five games, the most by a Buckeye since C.J. Stroud in 2021. -- 8-0 3 Alabama LSU comes to Tuscaloosa this week after the Tide's open date. The Tide should - should - be in the top four of the playoff committee's initial rankings Tuesday night. Whether the Tide will be ahead of undefeated Texas A&M is up for debate, but we like their resume with four straight wins against ranked opponents. -- 7-1 4 Texas A&M The Aggies can improve their playoff resume with another road win against a top-20 team this week at Missouri. This is easily their toughest test since the dramatic and impressive 41-40 victory at Notre Dame in Week 3. -- 8-0 5 Georgia Georgia won its 46th consecutive game against an unranked opponent, extending its win streak against rival Florida to five games - the longest streak since winning six straight from 1978 through 1983. Zachariah Branch is the first Georgia player to record 10 catches and 100 yards in a game since Brock Bowers in 2021. Next up is a trip to Mississippi State, which finally won a game and broke a two-year SEC losing streak last week. -- 7-1 6 Ole Miss Ole Miss may play with its food at times, but there's no doubt the Rebels are one of the more talented teams in the country. The Rebs rallied from an early 7-0 deficit to drill South Carolina 30-14 in Oxford. The Rebels have won four games when trailing by seven or more, which is tied for the most in the FBS. The path to the playoffs is wide open. -- 8-1 7 Oregon Oregon owns only one win against a team with a winning record (Northwestern). The Ducks travel to always-tough Iowa this week. The Hawkeyes are a borderline top-25 team in the polls, but we've got them in the top 20 in the power rankings. 1 7-1 8 Notre Dame Notre Dame did what it had to do in a 25-10 victory at Boston College, but that wasn't the story. Notre Dame's kickers missed two point-after attempts and also a 35-yard field goal. Marcus Freeman used three kickers. Something to watch as the Irish continue to make their playoff push. 3 6-2 9 BYU BYU travels to Texas Tech this week in the biggest Big 12 game of the season. The Cougars are 8-0 in back-to-back seasons for the first time ever and sit one game ahead of the Red Raiders in the Big 12 standings. Might we see these two again in the Big 12 title game? 3 8-0 10 Texas Tech Texas Tech scored 27 points off turnovers and snapped an eight-game losing streak in the series against Kansas State with a 43-20 victory. Behren Morton threw for 249 yards and two touchdowns after missing the last two games with a leg injury. The Red Raiders are 8-1, their best start since 2008. They host BYU in the sport's game of the week on Saturday. 3 8-1 11 Virginia Virginia's argument as the best team in the ACC picked up steam following Georgia Tech's loss and a double-digit, cross-country win at Cal. The Cavs have already won eight games, surpassing their combined eight wins from the last two seasons. The 8-1 record is their best start since 1990. 3 8-1 12 Louisville Louisville is off to a 7-1 start for the second time in the last three seasons following a 28-16 victory at Virginia Tech. Isaac Brown has rushed for 100 yards in three straight games. He's averaging 8.6 yards per carry - the best average among players with at least 10 carries per game - and has five 100-yard games under his belt. Unfortunately, Louisville will be without Brown's services for " a while" as he recovers from a leg injury. 3 7-1 13 Texas Texas' playoff hopes are still alive following a 34-31 win against top-10 Vanderbilt. Chalk it up to a new life in the SEC, but the Longhorns have won two games against top 10 teams in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1968-69. Meanwhile, Arch Manning is quietly playing up to expectations, throwing for more than 300 yards and three touchdowns in back-to-back games. 5 7-2 14 Georgia Tech Haynes King accumulated 511 yards - and Georgia Tech still lost by double digits at NC State. The combined yardage is the most by a player in a loss in the FBS this season. The 48-36 win by the Wolfpack is the highest-ranked upset for the program since 2012 and their first win against a ranked opponent since 2022. Still, is Georgia Tech the class of the ACC? 5 8-1 15 Vanderbilt You knew Diego Pavia would make things interesting, but we just didn't expect it all to happen in the fourth quarter. The Commodores out-scored the Longhorns 21-0 and and gained 238 yards in the fourth quarter of a 34-31 loss. The game never seemed close until that final quarter. Vandy's playoff hopes might be on life support, but with Pavia (a fourth 300-yard performance this season), anything seems possible. 8 7-2 16 Oklahoma Oklahoma finally got a road win against a ranked team (first since 2019) and the Sooners scored 30 points against an SEC team for the first time since joining the conference. John Mateer threw for 159 yards and ran for 80. The Sooners need to beat two more ranked opponents, including a top-five team, to potentially stay alive in the playoff race down the stretch. A trip to Alabama awaits in two weeks. 3 7-2 17 Missouri Missouri has not defeated a ranked opponent, but the Tigers get another chance Saturday against undefeated Texas A&M. The Tigers own only one win against a team with a winning record (Kansas), though they came close to breakthrough performances in one-possession losses against top-10 Alabama and Vanderbilt. -- 6-2 18 Iowa You can count on Iowa throwing a wrench into the Big Ten machine from time to time. Might that arrive over the next two weeks against a pair of playoff contenders? The Hawkeyes host Oregon and travel to USC with an opportunity to leap into the human polls' top 25 with a split or sweep. The Hawkeyes have done enough already to be in our top 20. 3 6-2 19 USC Jayden Maiava completed only nine passes, but King Miller ran for 129 yards as USC defeated short-handed Nebraska 21-17. The Huskers played the second half without star quarterback Dylan Raiola, who was lost for the season with a broken fibula suffered in the third quarter. USC's playoff hopes are still alive with two losses. 3 6-2 20 Miami (Fla.) Ugh. Miami's late-season woes under Mario Cristobal is not just hyperbole; it's officially a disturbing trend. SMU upset the Hurricanes 26-20 in overtime for their first home win against a top-10 team since 1974. Miami is an abysmal 4-11 under Cristobal in the months of November and December. He's 24-7 in August through October. 10 6-2 21 Utah No one other than Texas Tech wants to play Utah in Salt Lake City. The Utes destroyed yet another Big 12 opponent, drilling Cincinnati 45-14 in one of the more hyped matchups in the country. Devon Dampier returned from injury, recording 291 combined yards in the blowout. Utah has scored 40 points in six games, the program's most since 2004. NR 7-2 22 Michigan Jordan Marshall ran for 185 yards and three touchdowns to record his third straight game with 100-plus yards on the ground in a 21-16 victory against Purdue. The bad news: RB Justice Haynes is expected to undergo foot surgery and will miss time. Haynes leads the Power Four in rushing average at 122.4 yards per game. 1 7-2 23 Washington The Huskies rested last week after beating nationally ranked Illinois by 17 points. The schedule sets up for a strong finish with two games against teams with winless Big Ten records, including a trip to Wisconsin this week, and UCLA remaining before hosting Oregon to end the regular season. 1 6-2 24 Tennessee Tennessee has not yet defeated a top-25 team this season but has looked impressive in close losses to top-tier programs, including an overtime setback against Georgia. This season was always going to be a rebuilding year for Tennessee, so three losses at this point shouldn't sound alarm bells in Knoxville. 8 6-3
