Eight ranked teams lost during Week 7 of the college football season, making it a tumultuous weekend for the AP top 25 poll — and a historic one for one school.
With its 30-20 win at Oregon on Saturday, Indiana surged four spots to No. 3 — its highest ranking ever while its three first-place votes in the poll are the program’s most since 1945.
Indiana was just one of many teams in the move in the rankings this week, though.
While No. 1 Ohio State (6-0) maintained its top spot with a 34-16 win at Illinois (receiving 50 first-place votes — 10 more than last week) and No. 2 Miami (5-0) stayed put on its bye week, little else stayed status quo.
Notable Risers
No. 3 Indiana (6-0): As noted, the Hoosiers climbed four spots while making a statement to any doubters who were skeptical of what they’ve done in two seasons under coach Curt Cignetti. Indiana had lost its only two games to ranked opponents last year — to Ohio State in the regular season and Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff. But it had already dominated a then-top-10 Illinois team, 63-10, earlier this fall and now has proven it’s a true top national contender.
No. 4 Texas A&M (6-0): The Aggies took care of business against Florida in a 34-17 win to move up one spot.
No. 6 Alabama (5-1): The Crimson Tide keep climbing with their fifth straight win and third straight over a ranked opponent, holding off Missouri for a 27-24 road win to move up two spots in the poll. With consecutive wins over Georgia (on the road), Vanderbilt and Missouri (on the road), the Tide are showing they might again be the team to beat in the SEC.
No. 7 Texas Tech (6-0): The Red Raiders also move up two spots with yet another dominant win — 42-17 over Kansas. They’ve won every game by 24 points or more and are in the AP top 10 for the first time since 2013.
No. 13 Notre Dame (4-2): The Fighting Irish are up three more spots after a 36-7 win over NC State. Since starting the season 0-2 with narrow losses to Miami and Texas A&M — both in the top 5 of the current rankings — Notre Dame has reeled off four straight wins.
No. 15 BYU (6-0): The Cougars are starting to get some attention for their undefeated start, securing their best win yet in a 33-27 overtime victory against Arizona. With that BYU moved up three spots ahead of a rivalry showdown this week with No. 23 Utah.
No. 17 Vanderbilt (5-1): With so many ranked teams losing, Vanderbilt managed to move up three spots despite being on a bye.
No. 19 South Florida (5-1): The Bulls were one of the big movers, jumping five spots after a 63-36 road win over previously-unbeaten North Texas. South Florida has put together a nice resume with wins over Boise State, Florida and this one while its only loss came against Miami.
No. 20 USC (5-1): The Trojans return to the rankings after totally dismantling then-No. 15 Michigan, 31-13 on Saturday. USC put up 490 yards of offense on the normally-stout Wolverines and now have three lopsided Big Ten wins with its lone loss coming 34-32 on the road at Illinois.
No. 21 Texas (4-2): The Longhorns are also back. What a journey it’s been for Texas, which went from preseason No. 1 to out of the rankings entirely and now back in the poll after that impressive 23-6 win over Oklahoma in the Red River Shootout.
No. 23 Utah (5-1): The Utes were ranked as high as No. 16 earlier this season before a 34-10 loss to Texas Tech last month knocked them out of the poll, but they’re back in now after a 42-10 win over then-No. 21 Arizona State (albeit with the Sun Devils missing their starting QB).
No. 24 Cincinnati (5-1): The Bearcats crack the AP top 25 for the first time since 2022 after a 20-11 win over UCF. They’ve been on the cusp for a couple weeks now while winning five straight games — including a win over a then-ranked Iowa State team last week — since a 20-17 loss to Nebraska in Week 1.
No. 25 Nebraska (5-1): It’s a little curious that Nebraska is behind Cincinnati when it owns that head-to-head win over the Bearcats, but nonetheless the Cornhuskers move into the top 25 after a come-from-behind 34-31 win at Maryland. Their lone loss came 30-27 to Michigan.
Dropping
No. 5 Ole Miss (6-0): The Rebels flipped spots with Texas A&M after a lackluster 24-21 win at home over a Washington State team that hasn’t beaten a power conference opponent all season, lost by 49 points to North Texas and 35 to Washington.
No. 8 Oregon (5-1): Unfortunately for the Ducks, their big win over then-No. 3 Penn State last month doesn’t look as impressive now that the Nittany Lions subsequently lost to UCLA and Northwestern to fall out of the poll entirely (and fire head coach James Franklin on Sunday as a result). That paired with Oregon’s loss to Indiana at home on Saturday drops the Ducks five spots in the rankings.
No. 14 Oklahoma (5-1): The Sooners dropped eight spots after their one-sided 23-6 loss to rival Texas. Plain and simple, it was an uninspiring and ugly performance from Oklahoma, which may have peaked with one of the toughest remaining schedules in college football.
Out Of The Poll
– Michigan (4-2) fell from No. 15 to out of the rankings after that 31-13 loss at USC.
– Illinois (5-2) dropped from No. 17 to out of the poll with its 34-16 home loss to Ohio State.
– Arizona State (4-2) went from No. 21 to unranked after getting blown out by Utah, albeit without star quarterback Sam Leavitt.
– Iowa State (5-2) has now lost two straight games while dealing with a rash of injuries and goes from No. 22 to unranked.
– Florida State (3-3) continued to hang around the rankings thanks to its season-opening win over Alabama, but three straight losses — including 34-31 at home to Pitt this week — knocked the Seminoles from No. 25 to out.