Week 3 shook up the AP Top 25, and the biggest movement came after a handful of statement wins and one costly stumble.
Texas stayed put at No. 1 in the AP poll, collecting 58 first-place votes. Georgia remained at No. 2 with three first-place votes, followed by Notre Dame.
Ole Miss moved into the No. 4 spot with three first-place votes of its own, and Indiana climbed to No. 5 with four. Miami (FL), Ohio State, Alabama, BYU and LSU rounded out the top 10.
From there, the rankings kept plenty of familiar names in play. Texas Tech checked in at No.
11, USC at No. 12, Penn State at No.
13, Tennessee at No. 14, Utah at No.
15, Louisville at No. 16, Iowa at No.
17, Michigan at No. 18, Missouri at No.
19, Oregon at No. 20, Florida at No.
21, SMU at No. 22, Texas A&M at No.
23, Mississippi State at No. 24 and Houston at No. 25.
North Carolina still wasn’t in the mix. After its first conference game of 2026, the Tar Heels came up short against Clemson. A win there might have at least put UNC in the “Others Receiving Votes” conversation, but instead the loss left it well outside the Top 25 picture.
The week’s biggest jump belonged to Ole Miss, which beat LSU and rose four spots while also drawing some No. 1 votes. Louisville also came away as one of the week’s biggest winners in terms of movement, thanks to a solid win over SMU that pushed the Cardinals to 2-1. Their only loss came against Ole Miss in a tight game, which keeps Louisville in a pretty good place for now.
On the other side, Oklahoma and Virginia both fell out of the AP Top 25. Texas A&M took the hardest hit among the ranked teams, sliding 14 spots to No. 23 after a home loss to Kentucky.
The poll also shows the current conference spread across the rankings: the SEC has 10 teams in, the Big Ten has 7, the Big 12 has 4, the ACC has 3 and the Independents have 1.
This week’s headline games are stacked. No.
1 Texas visits No. 14 Tennessee on Saturday at 12:00 PM ET on ABC.
Later, No. 4 Ole Miss travels to No.
21 Florida on Saturday at 3:30 PM ET on ABC. Then No.
20 Oregon heads to No. 12 USC on Saturday at 7:30 PM ET on NBC.
The Coaches Poll brought a slightly different look, with Texas again at No. 1, this time with 46 first-place votes. Georgia followed with 16, then Notre Dame, Indiana, Miami (FL), Ole Miss, Ohio State, Alabama, BYU, Texas Tech, LSU, USC, Tennessee, Penn State, Utah, Oregon, Iowa, Michigan, Louisville, Texas A&M, Missouri, Florida, Washington, Oklahoma and SMU.
In Other News...
Henri Veesaars Injury Leaves UNC Fans With A Brutal What If
Henri Veesaars path from Chapel Hill to the NBA had barely gotten started when a workout on Sept. 15 changed the picture entirely. The former Tar Heel and 52nd pick in the 2026 NBA Draft had just signed a four-year contract with the Atlanta Hawks, making him one of the latest UNC products to reach the league.
Instead, the MRI and subsequent evaluation at the Emory Sports Medicine Complex revealed a torn right ACL, an injury that will require surgery and keep him out for the entire 2026-27 season. For UNC fans, it is the kind of setback that turns a promising next step into a painful what-if, especially for a player whose pro future had only just begun to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Henri Veesaar Just Suffered A Brutal Setback Before His NBA Debut
Henri Veesaars path to the NBA hit a major roadblock this week, after the big man suffered a torn right ACL during a workout. The injury is severe enough to require season-ending surgery, and the Atlanta Hawks confirmed the diagnosis while saying Veesaar is scheduled to undergo the operation in October.
For a player still trying to turn pro momentum into an NBA debut, the timing could not be much tougher. Veesaar now faces a long recovery that will almost certainly push his first appearance to the 2027-28 season, a painful delay for a prospect who had been working to get his career underway. [Read more 🡒]
UNCs Clemson Collapse Put Several Tar Heels Roles Under The Microscope
North Carolinas ACC opener turned into a frustrating one in Clemson, where a halftime lead gave way to a loss that left several rotational questions hanging over the Tar Heels. The game also came against a shifting personnel backdrop, with C.J. Sadler ruled out because of an off-field incident and other receivers, including Humphrey, seeing their roles expand in his absence.
On the ground, Hall looked like the most reliable presence in the offense, playing 38 of 70 snaps while rushing for 130 yards and a touchdown to reinforce his status as the primary back. On defense, Harvey logged 47 of 72 snaps, while Donovan Hoilette Jr. was on the field for an unexpectedly heavy 56, a usage pattern that suggests the Tar Heels are still sorting out exactly where some of these pieces fit after a game that exposed plenty more than the final score. [Read more 🡒]