Saturday’s chaos could reshape the AP Top 25, but Oregon at least made sure it had nothing to worry about from its own result. The No. 21 Ducks rolled past Portland State 84-0 on Friday night, then got to watch the rest of Week 3 turn into a scoreboard mess that could shuffle the rankings in a big way.
The biggest headline came from Oxford, where No. 8 Ole Miss knocked off No.
7 LSU in the marquee game of the weekend. That result alone sends the AP poll into some serious sorting, with the question now being how far LSU drops after coming up short on the road.
The Rebels should surge toward the top five, but the Tigers’ exact landing spot is less clear. AP voters have kept teams in the top 10 after tough losses before, and LSU could still hang around that range.
There are plenty of other teams waiting to see how much punishment they take. No.
9 Texas A&M lost in upset fashion, and No. 11 SMU also suffered a setback.
No. 10 Alabama had to grind before finally putting away Florida State in the fourth quarter, while No.
12 USC gave up 35 points to Rutgers and still escaped by one touchdown. No.
13 Texas Tech also had a nerve-racking finish, edging No. 22 Houston 28-26.
The question for voters is simple: does a win keep those teams where they are, or do close calls cost them?
One projected AP Top 25 had Texas at No. 1, followed by Georgia, Ohio State, Notre Dame and Ole Miss. In that version, Indiana, Miami, Alabama, BYU and USC rounded out the top 10, with LSU sliding to No. 11 and Texas Tech at No.
- Penn State, Tennessee, Utah, Iowa, Louisville, Michigan, Missouri and Oregon followed, while Texas A&M checked in at No.
21, Oklahoma at No. 22, SMU at No.
23, Virginia at No. 24 and Florida at No. 25.
A second projected ranking moved some pieces around at the top, putting Texas first, Georgia second and Notre Dame third. Indiana was slotted fourth, Miami fifth and Ohio State sixth, with LSU seventh and Ole Miss eighth.
Texas A&M came in at No. 9, Alabama at No.
10, BYU at No. 11 and USC at No. 12.
Texas Tech was No. 13, followed by Penn State, Tennessee, SMU, Utah, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon, Houston, Louisville, Oklahoma, Virginia and Florida.
The Ducks’ own place in the poll likely stays in the back half after the Portland State blowout, but their Sept. 26 meeting with USC suddenly looks even bigger. That game carries Big Ten and College Football Playoff weight, especially with Oregon already dealing with the sting of its Week 2 loss to Oklahoma State. USC could enter that matchup as a top-10 team.
There’s also the possibility of a bigger national spotlight landing on the West Coast. If the Oregon-USC game comes into sharper focus, could ESPN College GameDay make its first trip out West for the old Pac-12 rivalry?
The final wrinkle is the back end of the rankings. Houston may fall out after nearly pulling off the upset against Texas Tech, which would open the door for a new team to move in. Florida and Washington got the most votes in Week 2 among teams outside the top 25, and both won on Saturday, putting them squarely in the mix for an opening.
This article will be updated when the AP Poll is released on Sunday.
In Other News...
LSU Fans Were Shaken By A Frightening Scene Above Saturday's Game
Saturdays Ole Miss-LSU game had enough drama on the field, but one of the most talked-about moments came high above the stadium. An ESPN camera drone capturing aerial shots for the broadcast had a close call when a helicopter flew very near it, and the footage quickly spread across social media as fans tried to make sense of what they had just seen.
The scene understandably rattled viewers, including a helicopter pilot who weighed in after watching the clip. No collision occurred, and the game carried on without further incident, but the moment served as a reminder of just how much is moving around a big-time college football broadcast long before anyone starts talking about the final score. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Fans Will Have Plenty To Say About This ESPN Sideline Moment
Holly Rowe and Laura Rutledge were both on the sideline for ESPN during the LSU-Ole Miss matchup, with Rowe handling injury updates and Rutledge delivering live field reports as the broadcast kept moving through a high-profile SEC night. A short clip of the handoff between the two reporters quickly made the rounds on social media, giving fans another off-field moment to dissect from a game that already had plenty of attention on it.
Rowe also ended the night on a more familiar note, conducting a postgame interview after Ole Miss beat LSU. The moment came with added context because Rowe has already been part of one of the more unusual sideline storylines of the season, when a false AI-generated video involving Texas coach Steve Sarkisian triggered public apologies from Arch Manning and Sarkisian. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Suddenly Has A Kewan Lacy Problem Again
Kewan Lacys season has become defined as much by what he cannot finish as by what he can give Ole Miss when he is on the field. The running back has already had to leave games against Louisville and LSU because of health concerns, and his latest exit came after he landed hard on his right shoulder against the Tigers and needed to be evaluated for a possible AC joint injury, stinger or clavicle issue.
For a Rebels offense that has wanted Lacy in the mix, the bigger question now is how long that uncertainty lasts. Ole Miss has been forced to lean on other backs while waiting for clarity, and with Lacys availability still unsettled, the room suddenly looks a lot thinner than the Rebels probably expected at this point in the season. [Read more 🡒]