Moving on up!
For the third consecutive week, Utah moved up in the both the Associate Press and Coaches Poll following its dominating defensive performance in a 21-3 win against then-No. 17 Arizona State.
The Utes (6-1, 3-1 Pac-12), moved up to No. 12 in both polls after being ranked No. 13 in the AP poll and No. 14 in the Coaches poll last week. Following Washington’s loss to Oregon, Utah is now just one of three Pac-12 teams ranked in the Top 25.
Oregon remains the top Pac-12 team as the Ducks check in at No. 11 in both polls following its win on the road against then-No. 25 Washington. Arizona State fell seven spots to fell to No. 24 in both the AP poll and Coaches poll, while Boise State — who lost to BYU — dropped eight spots to No. 21 in the Coaches poll and eight spots to No. 22 in the AP poll.
No. 13 Utah Defeats No. 17 Arizona State; Zack Moss Sets Record
The weekend brought a number of other upsets, including then-No. 6 Wisconsin falling, 24-23, to Illinois despite being favored by more than 30 points. The Badgers dropped seven spots to land at No. 13 in both polls.
Despite beating Louisville 45-10, then-No.3 Clemson dropped to No. 4 as Ohio State jumped the Tigers after beating Northern 52-3 Friday night. The margin between the No. 1 and No. 4 teams in this week’s Top 25 poll is just 78 points, one of the smallest margins over the past decade. Alabama received 1,486 points while LSU had 1,462, Ohio State had 1,429 and Clemson had 1,408.
It’s been a wild season for Clemson as the Tigers, which haven’t lost a game, have fallen from the top spot to fourth. The move is one of the most unusual as the last No. 1 team to lose its top spot without having lost a game, was in 1977 when Oklahoma defeated Vanderbilt, 25-23.
Here’s the entire AP Top 25 poll:
- Alabama
- LSU
- Ohio State
- Clemson
- Oklahoma
- Penn State
- Florida
- Notre Dame
- Auburn
- Georgia
- Oregon
- Utah
- Wisconsin
- Baylor
- Texas
- SMU
- Minnesota
- Cincinnati
- Michigan
- Iowa
- Appalachian State
- Boise State
- Iowa State
- Arizona State
- Wake Forest
Others receiving votes: Memphis 87, Virginia 29, San Diego State 17, Pittsburgh 17, Washington 15, Navy 9, Texas A&M 6, Missouri 4, UCF 3, USC 3, Louisiana Tech 2, Tulane 1