The top of the AP Top 25 got a shakeup on Sunday, and the ripple effects reached all the way to the rivalry stage.
Miami stayed put at No. 1 for a third straight week after slipping past North Carolina 38-35, while Georgia climbed to No. 2 and Utah jumped to No. 3.
Notre Dame moved to No. 4 and UCLA cracked the top five for the first time in 25 years, landing at No. 5.
That sets up a loaded weekend, starting with Miami’s trip to Notre Dame in a top-five showdown. The Hurricanes drew 62 of 70 first-place votes from the media panel. Georgia picked up seven, and Utah got the other one.
Ohio State took the biggest fall of the week. The Buckeyes dropped from No. 2 to No. 11 after a 30-18 loss at Southern California, ending their run in the top 10 for the first time since Sept.
26, 2021. They had been in the top 10 for 86 straight polls after that brief dip following a 52-point win over Akron and a 39-point win over Rutgers.
Their slide also marked the fourth straight week that the No. 1 or No. 2 team lost to an unranked opponent.
UCLA’s rise has been one of the cleaner storylines in the poll. The Bruins are 8-0 for the first time since 2005 under first-year coach Bob Chesney, and their 27-0 shutout of Nevada pushed them to No. 5, their highest ranking since they were No. 4 after a 6-0 start in 2001.
Utah’s move to No. 3 matches its highest ranking since Oct. 18, 2015, when it was also 6-0. Indiana slipped to No. 6 after needing overtime to get past Minnesota, 23-16. BYU, Kentucky, Alabama and Texas rounded out the top 10.
There was also a milestone for New Mexico, which entered the rankings for the first time in program history at No. 22 after a 21-16 win at San Jose State. The Lobos, who have been playing football since 1892, are 7-1 for the first time since 1982 under Jason Eck in his second season.
The week’s biggest movers in and out of the poll told their own story. USC came in at No. 18 after beating Ohio State, a result that gave Lincoln Riley the biggest win of his five seasons and pushed the Trojans back into the playoff conversation. Iowa returned at No. 21 after a 30-0 win over Wisconsin, while South Carolina checked in at No. 23 after winning three straight and getting back into the rankings for the first time since September 2025.
On the flip side, SMU’s playoff hopes took another hit with a 30-27 last-minute loss at Syracuse. Northwestern was knocked out after leading into the fourth quarter at Oregon.
Oklahoma State also dropped out after a 51-49 shootout loss at Iowa State, where unsportsmanlike conduct gave the Cyclones a short field for the walk-off field goal. Wisconsin is back under pressure too after Luke Fickell’s team followed a win over USC with the humbling loss at Iowa.
A few other notes stood out from the poll. Indiana now owns the longest active streak of consecutive top-10 rankings at 22 weeks.
The Mountain West hadn’t had a ranked team since Boise State was No. 25 in the 2025 preseason poll, and the Broncos are now in the Pac-12. And for the first time since 2007, the No. 2 team has lost three straight weeks.
Conference balance remains tilted toward the SEC, which placed 10 teams in the rankings: Georgia, Kentucky, Alabama, Texas, Mississippi, LSU, Tennessee, Missouri, South Carolina and Florida. The Big 12 had five teams ranked, led by Utah and BYU.
The Big Ten also had five, including UCLA, Indiana, Ohio State, USC and Iowa. The ACC had Miami and Wake Forest, while Notre Dame stood alone as an independent.
Boise State represented the Pac-12, and New Mexico gave the Mountain West a spot.
The ranked matchups are the kind that can reshape the poll again next week. Miami visits Notre Dame in a game that carries the same rankings the teams had in 1988, when they met in the famous “Catholics vs.
Convicts” game at Notre Dame Stadium, a 31-30 Notre Dame win. Georgia travels to Mississippi in a rematch of last season’s 39-34 CFP quarterfinal loss in the Sugar Bowl.
BYU and Utah meet in a top-10 Holy War with first place in the Big 12 on the line. Kentucky and Tennessee meet with the Wildcats tied with Georgia for the SEC lead.
Texas and Missouri meet for the first time as SEC members in what probably is a playoff knockout game. Alabama and LSU also square off with both teams trying to stay alive for the playoff, and the Crimson Tide have won three straight in the series.
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