College Football Power Rankings (Post-Week Three Edition)
1. Florida State Seminoles -- Luckily for the 'Noles, they were gifted with a bye, one week before their huge meeting with Clemson, which will essentially decide the ACC Atlantic race.
3. Oklahoma Sooners -- Tennessee isn't exactly a huge win but is a victory over a pretty good Power Five school, giving the Sooners a huge resume booster, after they were beating up on Tulsa and Louisiana Tech. While Trevor Knight and the offense continues it's assault on opposing defenses, the electric play of linebacker Eric Striker and the defense has been fun to watch.
4. Alabama Crimson Tide -- The Tide has no issues with lowly Southern Mississippi, as Amari Cooper and the offense ran all over the Golden Eagles. Though, the Tide have their biggest test of the year to this point upcoming in the Florida Gators, eager to prove themselves after escaping with a victory against Kentucky yesterday.
5. Auburn Tigers -- The Tigers were also helped out with a bye week, one week before a huge game on a Thursday night against the Kansas State Wildcats. Nick Marshall and the Auburn ground game will have to be on full force to come away with a victory over the 'Cats, who are always ready for an upset.
6. Texas A&M Aggies -- Once more, Kenny Hill and the Aggies had no issues, blowing past Rice without any problems. The redshirt sophomore now has over 1,000 yards through the air and has proven that the Aggies will put up a serious fight in the SEC West, along with Alabama, Auburn, LSU and Ole Miss.
7. Baylor Bears -- Even with Bryce Petty not 100 percent, the Bears blew out a decent Buffalo team, winning 63-21. Now, Petty appears to be healthy (backup Seth Russell did one heck of a job in his absence) and the Bears' explosive offense could get even more lethal, with a bye week before their Big 12 opener against Iowa State.
8. Notre Dame Fighting Irish -- Although the Irish didn't completely dominate Purdue, they played well enough to win comfortably, improving to 3-0 on the year. Everett Golson is becoming a popular Heisman dark horse, while the defense continues to be stout, allowing just over 10 points a game.
9. LSU Tigers -- To nobody's surprise, LSU's defense is playing fantastic, as it shut out Lousiana-Monroe this past week. While the offense certainly has some room for improvement, true freshman Leonard Fournette is slowly improving, while big play threat receiver Travin Dural stretches defenses.
10. Michigan State Spartans -- The Spartans were yet another team with a bye this week, after their tough loss to Oregon last week. Upcoming meetings with Eastern Michigan and Wyoming should give the Spartans some momentum again before their first conference showdown with Nebraska on October 4th.
11. UCLA Bruins -- Even with Brett Hundley missing a huge chunk of the game, UCLA found a way to hold off Texas and get a nice resume boosting victory. Unfortunately, Hundley could miss some serious time and the offensive line is still a major concern.
12. Ole Miss Rebels -- The Rebels' high-flying offense continues to put up big numbers, especially through the air, where they are averaging 365 yards per game. The Rebels get one more cupcake game (against Memphis) before a huge game against Alabama, which has serious SEC West implications.
13. Georgia Bulldogs -- The Bulldogs were a few centimeters away from beating South Carolina and improving to 2-0 with two big victories on their resume. Unfortunately, the loss to the Gamecocks hurts, and puts pressure on Georgia to come back and absolutely dominate Troy this next weekend.
14. Arizona State Sun Devils -- In their conference opener, the Sun Devils rolled over the struggling Colorado Buffaloes, but it wasn't devoid of bad news. Stud QB Taylor Kelly took some major hits and he might miss some time. Luckily, ASU has so many offensive weapons (RB D.J. Foster, WR Jaelen Strong) they can make up for Kelly, if he does miss any time. The good news is that ASU gets some extra time before a huge Thursday night, September 25th battle with UCLA.
15. Stanford Cardinal -- One week removed from a devastating loss to USC, the Cardinal responded by blowing out a terrible Army team, 35-0. Quarterback Kevin Hogan, who struggled against the Trojans, responded in a big way, tossing four touchdowns against the Black Knights' porous defense.
16. South Carolina Gamecocks -- The Gamecocks have really had a daunting early season-schedule (Texas A&M, East Carolina and Georgia all are Top 25 teams), so to come out of it 2-1 is really impressive. The pass defense, which was abused by the Aggies' Kenny Hill and ECU's Shane Carden, held Hutston Mason to under 200 yards, a big reason why South Carolina managed to sneak away with a win.
17. USC Trojans -- While beating Stanford was huge for the Trojans, it clearly took a out of them. The defense looked tired and worn and the offense couldn't get anything going on the ground, all contributing to a stunning loss to Boston College. Hopefully with some more rest and a bye week, Steve Sarkisian's club will come out firing against the Oregon State Beavers.
18. Wisconsin Badgers -- One week after getting their first victory of the year over Western Illinois, Wisconsin had a bye week. Now, they get a home meeting with a sneaky Bowling Green team, who used their explosive offense to take down Indiana this past week. Even at home, the Badgers have to be on upset alert.
19. Missouri Tigers -- Maty Mauk continues to put up huge numbers for the Tigers in his first full season as starter, tossing four touchdowns against a decent UCF team, making it 12 touchdowns on the year. While Mauk leads the offense, the defense is causing turnovers and playing very well, holding the Knights to just 10 points.
20. Ohio State Buckeyes -- The Buckeyes responded with a vengeance against the struggling Kent State Golden Flashes, taking them down 66-0, one week after losing to Virginia Tech. With questions starting to emerge about his job security, QB J.T. Barrett played great. Though, the possible loss of defensive end Noah Spence for a long time hurts the defense.
21. Kansas State Wildcats -- Much like their opponent, Auburn, the Wildcats got a bye one week before their Thursday night showdown. For K-State, QB Jake Waters must continue to make big plays with his arms as well as with his legs, while defensive end Ryan Mueller must lead the rush defense.
22. Nebraska Cornhuskers -- The 'Huskers are absolutely feasting on their soft non-conference slate, blowing out 0-3 Fresno State this week. One main reason: tailback Ameer Abdullah is running all over opponents and putting up Heisman numbers. With the Big Ten in shambles, Nebraska could realistically emerge as the West Division favorite.
23. Clemson Tigers -- It was also a bye week for Clemson, who was coming off a great performance against South Carolina State, winning 73-7. The offense still has its questions even after those 73 points, but the defense could keep them in the game against FSU.
24. BYU Cougars -- While BYU clearly outplayed Houston, the Cougars only escaped with a slim victory over John O'Korn and Houston. That type of play against a Group of Five school may hurt BYU's playoff chances, but a win is a win. One thing is clear: Taysom Hill is a legit Heisman candidate, if he can stay healthy.
25. East Carolina Pirates -- The Pirates have emerged as the best team in the American Athletic, after stunning Virginia Tech this past week, led by veteran quarterback Shane Carden. They remind me a lot of Central Florida in 2013, a team with a great, dual threat quarterback and big-play wide receivers, whose lone loss on the year was a close one to South Carolina (the Pirates' only loss at this point: South Carolina).
Others Receiving Votes
North Carolina
Virginia Tech
Florida
Oklahoma State
Louisville
TCU
Duke
Pittsburgh
Cincinnati
Marshall
2. Oregon Ducks -- Led by Heisman frontunner Marcus Mariota, the Ducks had no issues with the sneaky Wyoming Cowboys. While the offense continues to put up crazy numbers, the defensive improvement has been key for Oregon in taking the next step.
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| Trevor Knight |
4. Alabama Crimson Tide -- The Tide has no issues with lowly Southern Mississippi, as Amari Cooper and the offense ran all over the Golden Eagles. Though, the Tide have their biggest test of the year to this point upcoming in the Florida Gators, eager to prove themselves after escaping with a victory against Kentucky yesterday.
5. Auburn Tigers -- The Tigers were also helped out with a bye week, one week before a huge game on a Thursday night against the Kansas State Wildcats. Nick Marshall and the Auburn ground game will have to be on full force to come away with a victory over the 'Cats, who are always ready for an upset.
6. Texas A&M Aggies -- Once more, Kenny Hill and the Aggies had no issues, blowing past Rice without any problems. The redshirt sophomore now has over 1,000 yards through the air and has proven that the Aggies will put up a serious fight in the SEC West, along with Alabama, Auburn, LSU and Ole Miss.
7. Baylor Bears -- Even with Bryce Petty not 100 percent, the Bears blew out a decent Buffalo team, winning 63-21. Now, Petty appears to be healthy (backup Seth Russell did one heck of a job in his absence) and the Bears' explosive offense could get even more lethal, with a bye week before their Big 12 opener against Iowa State.
8. Notre Dame Fighting Irish -- Although the Irish didn't completely dominate Purdue, they played well enough to win comfortably, improving to 3-0 on the year. Everett Golson is becoming a popular Heisman dark horse, while the defense continues to be stout, allowing just over 10 points a game.
9. LSU Tigers -- To nobody's surprise, LSU's defense is playing fantastic, as it shut out Lousiana-Monroe this past week. While the offense certainly has some room for improvement, true freshman Leonard Fournette is slowly improving, while big play threat receiver Travin Dural stretches defenses.
10. Michigan State Spartans -- The Spartans were yet another team with a bye this week, after their tough loss to Oregon last week. Upcoming meetings with Eastern Michigan and Wyoming should give the Spartans some momentum again before their first conference showdown with Nebraska on October 4th.
11. UCLA Bruins -- Even with Brett Hundley missing a huge chunk of the game, UCLA found a way to hold off Texas and get a nice resume boosting victory. Unfortunately, Hundley could miss some serious time and the offensive line is still a major concern.
12. Ole Miss Rebels -- The Rebels' high-flying offense continues to put up big numbers, especially through the air, where they are averaging 365 yards per game. The Rebels get one more cupcake game (against Memphis) before a huge game against Alabama, which has serious SEC West implications.
13. Georgia Bulldogs -- The Bulldogs were a few centimeters away from beating South Carolina and improving to 2-0 with two big victories on their resume. Unfortunately, the loss to the Gamecocks hurts, and puts pressure on Georgia to come back and absolutely dominate Troy this next weekend.
14. Arizona State Sun Devils -- In their conference opener, the Sun Devils rolled over the struggling Colorado Buffaloes, but it wasn't devoid of bad news. Stud QB Taylor Kelly took some major hits and he might miss some time. Luckily, ASU has so many offensive weapons (RB D.J. Foster, WR Jaelen Strong) they can make up for Kelly, if he does miss any time. The good news is that ASU gets some extra time before a huge Thursday night, September 25th battle with UCLA.
15. Stanford Cardinal -- One week removed from a devastating loss to USC, the Cardinal responded by blowing out a terrible Army team, 35-0. Quarterback Kevin Hogan, who struggled against the Trojans, responded in a big way, tossing four touchdowns against the Black Knights' porous defense.
16. South Carolina Gamecocks -- The Gamecocks have really had a daunting early season-schedule (Texas A&M, East Carolina and Georgia all are Top 25 teams), so to come out of it 2-1 is really impressive. The pass defense, which was abused by the Aggies' Kenny Hill and ECU's Shane Carden, held Hutston Mason to under 200 yards, a big reason why South Carolina managed to sneak away with a win.
17. USC Trojans -- While beating Stanford was huge for the Trojans, it clearly took a out of them. The defense looked tired and worn and the offense couldn't get anything going on the ground, all contributing to a stunning loss to Boston College. Hopefully with some more rest and a bye week, Steve Sarkisian's club will come out firing against the Oregon State Beavers.
18. Wisconsin Badgers -- One week after getting their first victory of the year over Western Illinois, Wisconsin had a bye week. Now, they get a home meeting with a sneaky Bowling Green team, who used their explosive offense to take down Indiana this past week. Even at home, the Badgers have to be on upset alert.
19. Missouri Tigers -- Maty Mauk continues to put up huge numbers for the Tigers in his first full season as starter, tossing four touchdowns against a decent UCF team, making it 12 touchdowns on the year. While Mauk leads the offense, the defense is causing turnovers and playing very well, holding the Knights to just 10 points.
20. Ohio State Buckeyes -- The Buckeyes responded with a vengeance against the struggling Kent State Golden Flashes, taking them down 66-0, one week after losing to Virginia Tech. With questions starting to emerge about his job security, QB J.T. Barrett played great. Though, the possible loss of defensive end Noah Spence for a long time hurts the defense.
21. Kansas State Wildcats -- Much like their opponent, Auburn, the Wildcats got a bye one week before their Thursday night showdown. For K-State, QB Jake Waters must continue to make big plays with his arms as well as with his legs, while defensive end Ryan Mueller must lead the rush defense.
22. Nebraska Cornhuskers -- The 'Huskers are absolutely feasting on their soft non-conference slate, blowing out 0-3 Fresno State this week. One main reason: tailback Ameer Abdullah is running all over opponents and putting up Heisman numbers. With the Big Ten in shambles, Nebraska could realistically emerge as the West Division favorite.
23. Clemson Tigers -- It was also a bye week for Clemson, who was coming off a great performance against South Carolina State, winning 73-7. The offense still has its questions even after those 73 points, but the defense could keep them in the game against FSU.
24. BYU Cougars -- While BYU clearly outplayed Houston, the Cougars only escaped with a slim victory over John O'Korn and Houston. That type of play against a Group of Five school may hurt BYU's playoff chances, but a win is a win. One thing is clear: Taysom Hill is a legit Heisman candidate, if he can stay healthy.
25. East Carolina Pirates -- The Pirates have emerged as the best team in the American Athletic, after stunning Virginia Tech this past week, led by veteran quarterback Shane Carden. They remind me a lot of Central Florida in 2013, a team with a great, dual threat quarterback and big-play wide receivers, whose lone loss on the year was a close one to South Carolina (the Pirates' only loss at this point: South Carolina).
Others Receiving Votes
North Carolina
Virginia Tech
Florida
Oklahoma State
Louisville
TCU
Duke
Pittsburgh
Cincinnati
Marshall
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