As they prepare to respond to the chaotic Week 12, AP Top 25 Poll voters will be faced with some tough choices. When comparing teams, the head-to-head records of teams with similar records can be a problem. Oklahoma has been one of the most successful teams of the weekend. After beating Alabama at Tuscaloosa, both teams will be carrying 8-2 records into the week ahead. While voters may choose to move Alabama down in order to promote Oklahoma, they must also consider the importance of the Crimson Tide’s win over top-five Georgia as well as the Sooners’ loss to Texas that lost by double-digits just a few days ago in Athens. As we reach this point in the season, it’s important to note that head-to -head results shouldn’t be the be-all and end-all. We have enough games under our belts to provide context and give us a better idea of a team’s strengths and weakness. The task of untangling these knots is not an easy one. We think that voters will be influenced by the recent victory of Oklahoma and push the Sooners well ahead of Texas to a top-10 position, making them the highest ranked team with two losses in the AP Top 25. The Week 12 rankings were dominated by the ‘upsets that weren’t’ or more specifically the heroic comebacks of ranked teams who faced deficits. Texas A&M launched its biggest-ever comeback against South Carolina to preserve an unbeaten record, Georgia Tech stormed back from double-digits in the fourth quarter to beat Boston College and USC scored the final 19 points of the game to beat Iowa by five. These results could have drastically changed the rankings if they had gone in the opposite direction. However, despite this, these top 20 teams remain largely close to their current position.
College Bowl predictions: Georgia is in the first round of the College Bowl Football Playoff, Oklahoma enters bracket
Brad Crawford
The AP voters must also decide how to fill out the ballots for teams in the 20s. Many of the teams who held those spots lost. The No. 19, No. 22, No. If No. It’s simple to remove 25 teams from a ballot when they all lose, but harder to replace them. According to last week’s results and those of Week 12, we are projecting an increase in American teams. But there are a few power conference teams with three losses that may end up receiving a lot of votes, as they try to make their way back into the Top 25 at this late stage of season. Here’s how we think the AP Top 25 will look on Sunday after the Week 12 results: 1. Ohio State (Last week —1): No major changes are expected as Ohio State handled business at home against UCLA to improve to 10-0 on the year.
2. Indiana (2): Although the Hoosiers started slowly, once Fernando Mendoza got going, they were a difficult group to stop. By the end of four quarters the final score of 31-7 was more than enough to satisfy voters looking for validation on Indiana’s current ranking. 3. Texas A&M (3): The notion that Texas A&M was more worthy of consideration for No. The notion that Texas A&M was more deserving of consideration for No. A 30-3 deficit at halftime against South Carolina put 2 to the test. The Aggies certainly showed championship form with their resiliency and second-half comeback, but in terms of the polls, the only bonus was avoiding the penalty of a loss. 4. Georgia (5): The Bulldogs exposed a class difference in a heavyweight battle, looking much more like a team worth considering for one of the top spots in the College Football Playoff rather than one that should be worried about the at-large Bubble. The Bulldogs’ early-season defeat to Alabama has long been forgotten, and the group that took to the field on Saturday in Athens looks ready for a deep run in the postseason.
5. Ole Miss (6) : Kewan Lacy’s career-best performance and a strong defensive effort in the second half helped the Rebels to avoid disaster, and end with a win of 34-24 against Florida. 6. Oregon (7) – With slightly better health, and in a more favorable atmosphere than the sloppy slugfest last week with Iowa. Oregon’s offense stretched out a little to win 42-13 against Minnesota. It’s a sharp performance on a quick turnaround, but whether it inspires voters to make a big move on their ballots is harder to predict. 7. Texas Tech (8) – The Red Raiders had a stellar afternoon as they followed up their impressive win over BYU last week. UCF was unable to compete against one of America’s top defenses. Texas Tech had its star linebacker Jacob Rodriguez run in touchdowns, and even strike the Heisman pose.
8. Oklahoma (11): The title of “best two-loss team” gets a new contender with Oklahoma’s road win against Alabama. The Sooners won against teams ranked no. 4, No. The AP Top 25 poll for last week ranked No.4, No.18, and no.21. Last week’s AP Top 25 ranked them at 18 and 21. This team has been 3-1 since the Red River Rivalry when they blew it offensively against Texas. Their only loss came to Ole Miss. 9. Alabama (4): Voters will have to apply some varying principles to slotting Alabama in what is sure to be a step back in the rankings. Saturday’s 23-21 home loss to Oklahoma creates a simple head-to-head edge for the Sooners, so one expected range is somewhere between Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. 10. Notre Dame (9) : The Fighting Irish jumped to a 14-0 lead in a win over Pitt, and they never looked back. Their winning streak now stands at eight games. Notre Dame (9): The Fighting Irish jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead and never looked back in a 37-15 win at Pitt to extend their winning streak to eight games.
11. BYU (12): The Cougars are currently in action against TCU. 12. Texas (10): It’s a little strange to think that a team with three losses would be ranked this high by mid-November. However, two things really help Texas to find their place in the new poll. The first is the victories against Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. This analysis has been aided by the Sooners’ increasing stock. The second is the limited penalty for Georgia’s loss. This team seems to be regaining its form and could make another run at a national championship. 13. Vanderbilt (13): The Commodores were off in Week 12 and will be back in action next week against Kentucky. 14. Georgia Tech (14) : Voters won’t be moving Georgia Tech up their ballots because the Yellow Jackets had to make a double-digit comeback in the fourth quarter to beat Boston College 36-34. Voters had still created a big enough gap between the Yellow Jackets, who only have one loss, and teams with two losses like Utah and Miami to make it unlikely that they will be jumped up for their closer-than expected win.
15. Utah (15). The Utes won easily 55-28 despite a great performance from Bears’ quarterback Sawyer Robertson. 16. Miami (16): In the first half, a pick-six broke the game open for Miami. Carson Beck then stepped up and threw three touchdowns in a 41-7 win over NC State. The Hurricanes, who are 8-2 with five victories of 25+ points on the season, have been pushed out of contention for the ACC championship by their losses against SMU and Louisville. 17. USC (17). The Trojans scored 19 of the game’s final points in a 26-21 victory over the Hawkeyes. USC now has a record of 8-2 and is 6-1 in the conference. Next week, they will travel to Eugene in order to face Oregon in an old Pac-12 rivalry.
18. Sherrone Moore pointed out that most football teams do not win games with five turnovers. But the Wolverines were able to beat Northwestern 24-22. Michigan had been in a no man’s land when it came to the rankings. It was tied primarily to USC, and there was a general belief that the team would be a power conference team with two losses. With so much turnover further down in the rankings there won’t be any reason to move Michigan much, but it wasn’t a performance to inspire a jump on voters’ ballots. 19. Virginia (20) – Chandler Morris was back in the lineup, and Virginia quickly put Duke on the ropes and created separation for a win that is crucial to the ACC title race. The Wahoos now share first place with Georgia Tech in the ACC rankings and will likely hold their spot in the top 25, following the 34-17 victory against the Blue Devils. 20. Tennessee (21): The Vols weren’t totally crisp, by their own admission, but the result was never in doubt in a 42-9 runaway win against New Mexico State.
21. James Madison (24): Voters already ahead of College Football Playoff Selection Committee with appreciation for JMU, but both rankings will take note of the style points poured on in the Dukes’ 58-10 win against App State. 22. Tulane (NR). Tulane’s Green Wave ranked 26th last weekend in voting points. The Green Wave then won their 35-24 game against FAU and improved to 8-2 overall and 5-1 in the conference. While cracking the top-25 will bring some extra attention in the final weeks of this season, the key to success is getting a place in the American Championship Game. Tulane will enter Week 13 as one of four teams with just one loss in conference play, with games against Temple and Charlotte left on the schedule. 23. Missouri (NR). The Tigers, who were just outside of the top 25 teams in the last week’s polling, were able in Week 12 to win at home against Mississippi State and improve to 7-3 for the season. The Tigers may not be the team they were when the season began, but their resume is impressive and the performance Saturday night against a conference rival with a freshman quarterback is well worth rewarding.
24. North Texas (NR), The Mean Green crushed UAB 53-24, improving to 9-1 on the overall record and 5-1 within conference play. North Texas’ win total and the crooked score will get voters’ attention as they look to fill out their ballots, but it’s also a resume that got a boost from Navy’s win against South Florida. 25. Navy (NR), a win over South Florida has put the Midshipmen on the radar of voters three weeks after the AP ranked Navy No. AP poll has ranked the team as 26th. Navy is 8-2 with the only losses coming to North Texas and Notre Dame, and now they have a quality win to bolster their resume outlasting USF Teams projected to drop out: No. 19 Louisville, No. 22 Cincinnati, No. 23 Pittsburgh, No. South Florida
2025-11-16 04:25:16
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