The AP Top 25 has hit the point in the season where the rankings stop feeling like a resume and start looking like a stress test. Week 6 shook the board hard - three top-10 teams went down, Texas got clipped by Oklahoma on a last-second field goal, and the playoff picture is starting to settle into shape.
But not every team in the poll is convincing people it belongs there.
Indiana is back on this list for a second time this season, and even though the Hoosiers are still undefeated, the last two weeks have left plenty of room for doubt. Northwestern pushed them into the fourth quarter, then Nebraska spent most of Saturday in control before Indiana escaped again. The Cornhuskers led 17-6 heading into the final frame, until Josh Hoover and Nick Marsh helped spark a 75-yard touchdown and a 44-yard score that flipped the game.
The numbers told the same story. Indiana was outgained 392-328, managed only 13 first downs, went 1-for-10 on third down, and was outpossessed 39:33 to 20:27.
Somehow, the Hoosiers still moved up two spots afterward. That reward sets up a major test next: No.
4 Ohio State.
Texas, meanwhile, is hanging on to its ranking by reputation as much as anything else. The Longhorns have already lost to Oklahoma and fallen six spots, but the larger question is whether they belong in the top 10 at all. The early win over Ohio State is still carrying a lot of weight, because what’s followed hasn’t looked nearly as sharp.
They scored just 30 against UTSA. They needed a 20-17 finish to get past a Tennessee team without a quarterback.
And against Oklahoma, Arch Manning’s pick-six in a tied game handed the Sooners the lead before he answered with a touchdown and then threw another interception. That kind of offensive inconsistency is a problem, especially with four of Texas’ next five games coming against ranked opponents.
Florida was just No. 8 two weeks ago, too.
BYU is undefeated as well, but the skepticism is simple: who exactly have the Cougars beaten? The answer, at least from this source material, is nobody all that convincing. Their only games against legitimate competition were close enough to raise eyebrows, even in victory - 28-17 over Arizona, 17-10 over TCU, and 24-10 over Iowa State.
Bear Bachmeier finally opened it up a bit against the Cyclones, throwing for 329 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran it well, but the rest of the team didn’t exactly separate itself. Notre Dame comes to town Saturday night, and that should tell a lot more.
Tennessee’s issue feels different, but it’s just as real. The Volunteers are still searching for stability at quarterback, moving from Faizon Brandon to George MacIntyre without getting the level of play they wanted. The inexperience is showing.
They’ve won two straight since the Texas loss, but even that stretch has been messy. Against Arkansas, Tennessee had to dig out of a 14-7 hole and was tied 17-17 in the fourth quarter before pulling it out with a game-winning touchdown less than two minutes from the finish.
Three of the next six opponents are ranked, and South Carolina is also on the schedule after its upset of Florida. A 5-1 start is good, but the Vols could be drifting back toward the middle.
USC keeps living on the edge, and at some point the balance has to break. The Trojans are 6-1, but they keep turning every week into a nerve test. The last four games have all carried that same uneasy feel: a 42-35 win over Rutgers, a loss to Oregon, a 25-21 escape against Washington, and then a 31-23 road win at Penn State.
They trailed 20-17 in the third quarter against the Nittany Lions before finding a way to finish the job. That’s becoming a pattern. Three of USC’s final five games are against top-15 teams, and there isn’t much margin left.
SMU rounds out the list, and the Mustangs have started looking like a team that entered the season with big expectations but hasn’t quite lived up to them. Since that loss to Louisville a few weeks ago, things have felt off.
They had to rally from a double-digit deficit against Missouri State. Two weeks ago, they were down 10-6 to Boston College before recovering for a 25-16 home win. A bye week may help, and Rhett Lashlee will hope it does, because November brings back-to-back games against Wake Forest and Notre Dame.
In Other News...
Indiana Loss Now Comes With An Officiating Debate Fans Can't Ignore
Ohio States 19-15 win over Indiana did more than snap the Hoosiers 22-game winning streak. It also left plenty of people around the game sorting through a night filled with flags, frustration and a few calls that immediately became talking points, including a roughing-the-passer penalty on Jermaine Mathews Jr. and a missed pass interference whistle involving Jeremiah Smith.
For Indiana, the loss was already hard enough with Julian Sayin exiting because of a right arm injury, but the officiating chatter only sharpened the sting of a game both sides saw marked by multiple penalties. When a tight contest ends with that much second-guessing, the result is hard to separate from the debate that follows, and this one figures to linger well beyond the final whistle. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Let Ohio State Slip Away For Three Brutal Reasons
Saturdays loss to Ohio State at Memorial Stadium had the kind of shape that can linger for a while in Bloomington. Indiana had enough moments to keep the game within reach, but the offense never found a steady rhythm, and the 19-15 finish reflected how many chances slipped away in a matchup that felt there for the taking.
Josh Hoovers day never really settled in, as Indiana finished with an inefficient passing performance and little help on the ground. The second-half turnovers mattered, Nico Radicics missed field goals loomed large, and the running game never provided the balance the Hoosiers needed, leaving plenty of reasons to wonder how different this one might have looked with just a cleaner stretch of execution. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana May Have Changed Ohio State's Entire Season
Ohio States 19-15 win over Indiana did more than snap the Hoosiers 22-game winning streak. It also left the Buckeyes dealing with a major quarterback concern after starter Julian Sayin went down with a right arm injury and was replaced by true freshman Luke Fahey.
Ryan Day said Sayin will be out for several weeks, which immediately changes the tenor of Ohio States season and adds another layer to the aftermath of a game Indiana had been aiming to survive with its streak intact. For a Buckeyes schedule that still includes USC, Oregon, Northwestern, Nebraska and Michigan, the injury could end up mattering far beyond a single close win in Bloomington. [Read more 🡒]