The latest AP Top 25 is out, and the big headline is simple: Texas is still No. 1.
The Longhorns held onto the top spot after a road win over Tennessee, a trip to Knoxville that was anything but easy. Arch Manning and Texas had to work for it, but they did enough to stay in front.
Texas drew 62 first-place votes, while Georgia stayed right behind at No. 2 with six first-place votes. Notre Dame is still No. 3 after another strong week.
Florida made one of the clearest moves in the poll, jumping into the top 10 at No. 8. It’s the first time the Gators have been in that part of the rankings in five years, a notable step forward after a busy Saturday that shook up the board.
Week 4 also created some churn in the middle of the rankings, where a few teams that looked sharp a week earlier now have to answer for what happened over the weekend. That’s the nature of college football: one Saturday can build a contender, and the next can knock the shine right off.
Here’s how the AP Top 25 looks heading into Week 5:
- Texas
- Georgia
- Notre Dame
- Miami
- Ohio State
- Indiana
- Alabama
- Florida
- Ole Miss
- BYU
- LSU
- Texas Tech
- Utah
- Iowa
- Oregon
- Mississippi State
- Tennessee
- Southern California
- Oklahoma State
- Houston
- SMU
- Boise State
- UCLA
- Kentucky
- Missouri
In Other News...
Texas Learned Something Important About Will Muschamps Defense In Knoxville
Texas left Knoxville with a 20-17 win built on defense, and it was the kind of performance that tells a coach a lot about his team early in the season. Tennessee never found a steady rhythm against the Longhorns, and the game turned into a field-position grind as Texas kept applying pressure and making the Vols work for every inch.
Will Muschamps unit was especially disruptive up front, and the pass rush never let Tennessee settle in. The Longhorns kept collapsing the pocket in waves, with multiple players getting involved and one standout turning in a night that will be remembered around Austin for a while, even if the full scale of it took until after the final whistle to really sink in. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Survived Tennessee Despite A Problem That Could Haunt Them
Texas came out of Knoxville with a win, but not much comfort. The Longhorns edged Tennessee 20-17 in a game that exposed the kind of offensive issues that can turn into a real problem later in the season, with Texas sputtering through stretches and getting tagged for 11 penalties and 115 yards. Even so, the defense kept the night from slipping away, harassing Tennessees freshman quarterback from start to finish and giving Texas a chance to survive a messy road test.
The pass rush was the difference, and it was relentless enough to tilt the entire game. Texas piled up 10 sacks, with Colin Simmons tying a school record by getting to the quarterback five times, a performance that masked plenty of offensive frustration elsewhere on the field. For a team still unbeaten, the bigger concern may be how much it had to lean on its defense to escape a game that stayed tense until the very end. [Read more 🡒]
Texas May Learn Everything About Easton Royal During Florida Weekend
Easton Royals Florida visit added a new layer to a recruitment Texas has spent nearly a year trying to protect. The five-star wide receiver has been committed to the Longhorns for almost a year, but his trip to Gainesville gave him a chance to see another major program up close, and hes still in the stage where visits and games can shape what comes next.
For Texas, the concern is less about noise and more about how quickly Royal seems to be approaching a final call. The Longhorns are working to hold onto their pledge as other programs stay in the mix, and with more visits still ahead, including one to LSU, this could become one of the more revealing recruiting stories of the cycle. [Read more 🡒]