AP Top 25: Georgia No. 1, No Changes in First Eight
Georgia extended its streak of weeks being top ranked in the AP Top 25 to 22 on Sunday, giving the Bulldogs the second-longest run of being No. 1 in the 87-year history of the college football poll.
The Bulldogs received 54 first-place votes after they routed Mississippi in what was a top-10 matchup on Saturday night.
Georgia broke a tie with Miami, which made 21 straight appearances at No. 1 from 2001–02.
The longest No. 1 streak belongs to Southern California. The Trojans spent 33 straight polls at No. 1 from 2003–2005. This week is their second in a row out of the Top 25.
The entire top eight of this week’s Top 25 remained unchanged, with No. 2 Michigan receiving seven first-place votes and No. 3 Ohio State getting one.
Before we get into a review and preview of this week’s Top 25, let’s tour the country for notes from Associated Press:
—With No. 4 Florida State holding off Miami and No. 3 Ohio State cruising past Michigan State, there are five 10-0 teams from Power Five conferences for the first time in the 10 years of the College Football Playoff.
—No. 5 Washington (10-0), starring lefty quarterback Michael Penix Jr., has been the most entertaining team in the country for the last month and half. The Huskies beat No. 13 Utah on Saturday for their sixth straight victory by 10 points or fewer.
—No. 7 Texas is challenging the Huskies for that title. For the third time in the last four games, the Longhorns couldn't put away an opponent in the second half, this time hanging on to beat TCU. Texas did get QB Quinn Ewers back from a shoulder injury.
—Auburn (6-4) became bowl eligible by routing Arkansas on the road. With New Mexico State next week and then Alabama, it's already a rousingly successful Year 1 for coach Hugh Freeze.
—Bowl eligibility is now a long shot for Coach Deion Sanders and Colorado. The Buffs (4-6) have lost four straight and six of seven. Other than getting crushed by Oregon, CU generally has been competitive during the skid, but Saturday's last-second home loss against No. 23 Arizona means the Buffaloes need to sweep road games at Washington State and Utah to reach six victories.
—No. 15 Oklahoma State might have set a new standard for letdown games. A week after beating Oklahoma in the final Big 12 version of Bedlam, the Cowboys were trounced by conference newcomer UCF. Oklahoma State's victories against OU and Kansas State still puts the Cowboys in solid shape to reach the Big 12 title game if they win out.
—No. 21 James Madison improved to 10-0 against UConn and found out ESPN's College GameDay will be in town next week when the Dukes host Appalachian State.
—Northwestern moved to 5-5 by beating Wisconsin. David Braun, the Wildcats' first-year defensive coordinator who was thrust into the interim head coach role after Pat Fitzgerald was fired during the summer, now has to be considered a serious candidate to keep that job.
—Missouri RB Cody Schrader, who has gone from Division II star to SEC walk-on to SEC star, became the first player in the history of the conference with 200 yards rushing and 100 yards receiving in a game. The 16th-ranked Tigers buried No. 14 Tennessee.
Now for that review and preview of the Top 24:
All times Eastern
No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs
Previous ranking: 1
2023 record: 10-0
Week 10 result: defeated Ole Miss 52-17
Fact: The Dawgs rolled to their 27th straight win — two short of setting the all-time mark for an SEC team — with their third-largest margin of victory over an AP top-10 team.
Next: Saturday at No. 21 Tennessee, 3:30 p.m., CBS
No. 2 Michigan Wolverines
Previous ranking: 2
2023 record: 10-0
Week 10 result: defeated Penn State, 24-15
Fact: Michigan improved to 10-0 for the second consecutive season (the first time it has done so since 1971–74) and earned its 999th win in program history.
Next: Saturday at Maryland, noon, Fox
No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes
Previous ranking: 3
2023 record: 10-0
Week 10 result: defeated Michigan State, 38-3
Fact: Wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. became the first Buckeye to record 1,000 receiving yards in two separate seasons, as he went over 100 yards in his seventh game of the year.
Next: Saturday vs. Minnesota
No. 4 Florida State Seminoles
Previous ranking: 4
2023 record: 10-0
Week 10 result: defeated Miami, 27-20
Fact: While QB Jordan Travis saw his streak of accounting for at least two touchdowns end at 16 games, the Seminoles won their 16th straight, tied for the third-longest streak in school history.
Next: Saturday vs. North Alabama
No. 5 Washington Huskies
Previous ranking: 5
2023 record: 10-0
Week 10 result: defeated Utah, 35-28
Fact: Michael Penix Jr. threw for 332 yards, becoming the first player in Huskies history with more than 8,000 passing yards in a two-year span.
Next: Saturday at No. 10 Oregon State, 7:30 p.m., ABC
No. 6 Oregon Ducks
Previous ranking: 6
2023 record: 9-1
Week 10 result: defeated USC, 36-27
Fact: Bo Nix registered 400 passing yards and four touchdowns vs. USC, becoming the first Oregon QB to do it in a game since Justin Herbert in 2016.
Next: Saturday at Arizona State
No. 7 Texas Longhorns
Previous ranking: 7
2023 record: 9-1
Week 10 result: defeated TCU, 29-26
Fact: Despite failing to scoring 30 points for the first time all season, the Longhorns held on, thanks to Quinn Ewers' 317 passing yards and Jonathon Brooks' 104 yards on the ground.
Next: Saturday at Iowa State, 8 p.m., Fox
No. 8 Alabama Crimson Tide
Previous ranking: 8
2023 record: 9-1
Week 10 result: defeated Kentucky, 49-21
Fact: QB Jalen Milroe became the first player in Alabama history with three passing touchdowns and three rushing scores in a single game.
Next: Saturday vs. Chattanooga, noon, ESPN+
No. 9 Louisville Cardinals
Previous ranking: 11
2023 record: 9-1
Week 10 result: defeated Virginia, 31-24
Fact: The Cardinals outscored the Cavaliers 17-3 in the fourth quarter, capped off by Isaac Guerendo's game-winning 73-yard rushing touchdown with 3:24 left.
Next: Saturday at Miami, noon
No. 10 Oregon State Beavers
Previous ranking: 12
2023 record: 8-2
Week 10 result: defeated Stanford, 62-17
Fact: The Beavers' 45-point margin of victory was their largest in a Pac-12 game since 2012, and their 598 yards of offense marked their most in any game since 2019.
Next: Saturday vs. No. 5 Washington, 7:30 p.m., ABC
No. 11 Missouri Tigers
Previous ranking: 16
2023 record: 8-2
Week 10 result: defeated Tennessee, 36-7
Fact: RB Cody Schrader became the first SEC player to have 200 rushing yards and 100 receiving yards in the same game.
Next: Saturday vs. Florida, 7:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 12 Penn State Nittany Lions
Previous ranking: 9
2023 record: 8-2
Week 10 result: lost to Michigan 24-15
Fact: Penn State coach James Franklin fell to 4-16 combined against Michigan and Ohio State in his Nittany Lions tenure, while dropping to 3-17 against AP top-10 teams.
Next: Saturday vs. Rutgers
No. 13 Ole Miss Rebels
Previous ranking: 10
2023 record: 8-2
Week 10 result: lost to Georgia, 52-17
Fact: Quinshon Judkins had two rushing touchdowns to give him 14 on the season, ranking second in program history, behind only the 16 he scored last year.
Next: Saturday vs. UL Monroe, noon, SEC Network
No. 14 Oklahoma Sooners
Previous ranking: 17
2023 record: 8-2
Week 10 result: defeated West Virginia, 59-20
Fact: QB Dillon Gabriel tied a Big 12 single-game record with eight total touchdowns (five passing, three rushing), matching Geno Smith in 2012 and B.J. Symons in 2003.
Next: Saturday at BYU
No. 15 LSU Tigers
Previous ranking: 18
2023 record: 7-3
Week 10 result: defeated Florida, 52-35
Fact: Tigers QB Jayden Daniels became the first player in FBS history to throw for more than 350 yards and run for more than 200.
Next: Saturday vs. Georgia State, 8 p.m., ESPN2
No. 16 Utah Utes
Previous ranking: 13
2023 record: 7-3
Week 10 result: lost to Washington, 35-28
Fact: After starting the season 4-0, the Utes are 3-3 in their past six, with all three losses (Oregon State, Oregon and Washington) coming against ranked teams.
Next: Saturday at No. 19 Arizona
No. 17 Tulane Green Wave
Previous ranking: 20
2023 record: 9-1
Week 10 result: defeated Tulsa, 24-22
Fact: Shedro Louis became the first Tulane player since 2003 with a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown.
Next: Saturday at FAU, noon, ESPN+
No. 18 James Madison Dukes
Previous ranking: 21
2023 record: 10-0
Week 10 result: defeated UConn, 44-6
Fact: The Dukes improved to 10-0 for the second time in program history thanks to Jordan McCloud's four touchdown passes. It marked his sixth game with three or more passing scores. The only other QBs with that many? USC's Caleb Williams, Washington's Michael Penix Jr. and LSU's Jayden Daniels.
Next: Saturday vs. Appalachian State, 2 p.m., ESPN+
No. 19 Arizona Wildcats
Previous ranking: 23
2023 record: 7-3
Week 10 result: defeated Colorado, 34-31
Fact: The Wildcats' four-game Pac-12 winning streak is tied for its longest in the past 25 years.
Next: Saturday vs. No. 16 Utah
No. 20 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Previous ranking: 22
2023 record: 7-3
Week 10 result: idle
Fact: The Irish have lost two of their past three regular-season games against ACC foes after winning their previous 30.
Next: Saturday vs. Wake Forest, 3:30 p.m., NBC
No. 21 Tennessee Volunteers
Previous ranking: 14
2023 record: 7-3
Week 10 result: lost to Missouri, 36-7
Fact: Heading into Saturday's matchup, the Vols had won four straight over the Tigers, and in the two years under Josh Heupel, had outscored them 128-48.
Next: Saturday vs. No. 1 Georgia, 3:30 p.m., CBS
No. 22 North Carolina Tar Heels
Previous ranking: 24
2023 record: 8-2
Week 10 result: defeated Duke, 47-45 (2OT)
Fact: Tez Walker (seven catches for 162 yards) became only the third UNC player with more than 160 receiving yards against Duke, as the Tar Heels won their fifth straight against their archrivals.
Next: Saturday at Clemson, 3:30 p.m.
No. 23 Kansas State Wildcats
Previous ranking: NR
2023 record: 7-3
Week 10 result: defeated Baylor, 59-25
Fact: The Wildcats scored their most points in a game since 2016 against FAU (63 points) and their most in a conference game since 2011 against Kansas (59).
Next: Saturday at Kansas
No. 24 Oklahoma State Cowboys
Previous ranking: 15
2023 record: 7-3
Week 10 result: lost to UCF, 45-3
Fact: Oklahoma State became only the second top-15 team in the AP poll era (since 1936) to lose by more than 40 points to a sub-.500 team.
Next: Saturday at Houston
No. 25 Liberty Flames
Previous ranking: 25
2023 record: 10-0
Week 10 result: defeated Old Dominion, 38-10
Fact: QB Kaidon Salter threw for three scores and ran for two more as the Flames, under first-year coach Jamey Chadwell, improved to 10-0 for the first time in school history.
Next: Saturday vs. UMass, 1 p.m., ESPN+