On a week when only No. 1 held steady, the AP poll made plenty of moves that didn’t sit right, and a few teams ended up with a legitimate gripe about where they landed.
Houston is the clearest case. The Cougars absorbed a hard double-overtime loss one week after knocking off Notre Dame, but that kind of result has not been a deal-breaker for everyone else.
Ohio State, Georgia, and Notre Dame have all taken losses that went down to the wire, and all of them are still ranked above Houston. The Cougars fell from No. 2 to No. 8, which was expected to some extent.
But landing six spots behind several other one-loss teams, including the one they beat a week earlier, feels harsh.
The Big 12 got treated rough too, and Texas Tech may have been hit the hardest. The Red Raiders were coming off a first loss, a two-score defeat to Cincinnati, and dropped from No. 8 to No.
- That put them behind several two-loss teams: Alabama, Texas, and Ole Miss.
Alabama had lost by 16 points a week earlier, Texas had fallen to a pair of then-unranked teams, and Ole Miss had been blasted by more than three scores in the Florida loss. By comparison, Tech’s placement looks light.
Tennessee also took a frustrating tumble. The Vols suffered a late loss to South Carolina and slid five spots, even though the same Alabama team Tennessee beat by 16 points last week now sits six places ahead of them.
South Carolina has already been a problem for poll logic this season, with Kentucky’s win in Columbia earlier in the year followed by a drop in the rankings. Still, Tennessee landing behind the other two-loss SEC teams was a strange call.
Wisconsin was the final team with a real case. The Badgers just barely cracked the top 25 after moving to 5-2 and taking down the previously No.
16 USC Trojans. They had already beaten the then-No.
13 Penn State Nittany Lions. In both cases, the ranking fallout for the losers made Wisconsin’s wins look less impressive than they should have.
But with losses only to Notre Dame and UCLA, the Badgers have put together a solid season, and a win at Iowa next week could leave them staring at a 10-2 finish. For now, though, they probably belong higher than No.
In Other News...
Texas Tech Has A Stake In The Big 12's Next Decision
After Cincinnatis upset win over Texas Tech, the postgame scene at Nippert Stadium quickly became part of the story as fans poured onto the field. Now the Big 12 is reviewing whether the Bearcats should be hit with a $50,000 fine under its field-storming policy, a familiar conference issue whenever a home crowd rushes the turf after a big win.
For Texas Tech, the result on the scoreboard is already in the books, but the leagues next decision still matters because it will examine whether security created a safe path for the visiting team and officials through the chaos. The Big 12 usually moves quickly on these situations, so a ruling should come within days, and Tech has a clear interest in how the conference judges what happened after the final whistle. [Read more 🡒]
Cody Campbells Texas Tech Blast Says Everything About New Expectations
Texas Techs first loss of the season brought a jolt that went beyond the scoreboard, with the Red Raiders falling 37-24 to Cincinnati after opening 6-0 and climbing to No. 8 in the rankings. The defeat was the kind that tends to reset the tone around a program in a hurry, especially for a team that has spent the fall building belief and drawing attention with its early surge.
Cody Campbells reaction on social media underscored just how much those expectations have changed. The former Red Raiders player and major donor made clear he saw no excuse for the outcome and wanted better from a team that has benefited from significant investment, a reminder that Texas Tech is no longer being viewed through the old lens of simply being happy to contend. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Techs QB Problem Just Changed The Big 12 Picture
The loss to Cincinnati did more than ding Texas Tech in the standings, it exposed just how fragile the Red Raiders offense can look when the quarterback situation is unsettled. Will Hammond threw for 227 yards, but the night also included an interception and a fumble, and too many drives stalled once Texas Tech got near the red zone. Against a Cincinnati team adjusting to its own quarterback situation, the Red Raiders still could not take advantage of the moment.
Defensively, Texas Tech had its own trouble getting the game under control, giving up 257 rushing yards and watching Cole Tabb pile up 173 of them. The larger Big 12 ripple comes from how quickly a single absence can reshape a matchup, with Brendan Sorsby sidelined by eligibility issues tied to gambling allegations and the door opening for a different kind of game than many expected. For Texas Tech, the result was a reminder that the path in this league can change fast, and not always in the way a playoff hopeful wants. [Read more 🡒]