Another AP Top 25 cycle, another round of arguments over who belongs and who doesn’t. This time, Oregon State is the team catching heat, and the case against the Beavers is pretty simple: all the shine hasn’t come with nearly enough substance.
Yes, Oregon State has been putting together a strong run. Yes, the offense has looked excellent.
Yes, the winning streak is real. But the problem is what’s underneath all that flash, and it starts with one basic reality: Oregon State is a G6 program.
That matters here more than people want to admit. If a team outside the highest tier is going to earn a ranking, it needs something sturdy behind it.
Oregon State’s list of wins just doesn’t offer that. The Beavers have beaten only four FBS teams, and just one of those opponents - 3-4 San Diego State - has three wins or more right now.
The other two among the four are sitting at 1-6.
That’s a thin résumé no matter how efficiently the games were handled. And compared with Notre Dame, the gap is obvious.
Notre Dame has beaten Wisconsin, Rice, Michigan State, Purdue, UNC, and Stanford, all by double digits. Four of those six teams currently have at least three wins.
That’s a much stronger body of work than Oregon State’s.
If that comparison feels unfair because Notre Dame is a different kind of program, then the Boise State angle makes the argument even tougher for the Beavers. Boise State is also from the Pac-12, also owns a five-game winning streak, also has a statistically dominant offense, and has faced better competition.
The Broncos have only one loss by a single possession, while Oregon State has two losses by two possessions. Even with all that in Boise State’s favor, it’s ranked 21st and stands as the only ranked G6 team.
That’s why Oregon State’s case falls short. The Beavers have absolutely done what they were supposed to do against weaker opponents, but they’ve fed on a soft slate, and that only gets you so far. There may be a spot for Oregon State later, but right now the ranking just isn’t earned.
In Other News...
Leonard Moore Just Gave Notre Dame Fans A Huge Draft Dilemma
Rob Rangs latest Fox Sports mock draft offered Notre Dame plenty to think about, and Leonard Moore was at the center of it. The projection has the Fighting Irish corner going No. 3 overall to Tampa Bay, a jolt of recognition that underscores just how much pro buzz has built around him while the season still has plenty of football left to play. It also points to a bigger picture for Notre Dame, with Anthonie Knapp, DJ McKinney and CJ Carr all showing up in the first round of the same mock.
Moores draft path is not settled, though, and that is where the intrigue really starts for the Irish. Recent injuries and the fact that the college season is still ongoing leave his next step unclear, so Notre Dame is stuck in the middle of a familiar but tricky kind of wait-and-see moment. If Moore keeps trending like this, he will have a decision to make that could shape both his future and the roster picture around him. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame's Defense Has A Stretch-Run Problem It Must Fix Fast
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The last three games have told a different story, and the drop-off is enough to demand attention during the bye week. Notre Dame has been giving up 282.6 yards and 20.3 points per game in that stretch, with the run fit and coverage issues showing up in the form of more yards per carry and more passing touchdowns allowed. The staff now has a short window to clean it up before the schedule tightens again. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dames Model Just Reentered A Realignment Fight Fans Know Well
Miamis latest realignment conversation is one Notre Dame fans know well: what happens if the sports power brokers redraw the map again and the old conference framework starts to look less permanent? University president Joe Echevarria recently discussed how the school is weighing its football future in light of the proposed Protect College Sports Act, a measure that has introduced another layer of uncertainty around conference expansion and the broader structure of the sport.
For Notre Dame, the angle is familiar because the Irish have long operated outside the traditional conference model, and now Miami is openly considering whether a similar path could make sense if the landscape shifts. ACC schools like Miami have pushed back against restrictions on expansion, with eyes on possible moves to the SEC or Big Ten, but no final calls have been made. For now, the real intrigue is less about where Miami lands than whether the debate pushes one of college footballs biggest brands closer to Notre Dames model. [Read more 🡒]