Will Cunningham, Sports Editor
Top 5
Ohio State
Georgia
Tennessee
Michigan
Clemson
My Top 5 is the same once again, but it was a tough decision to leave everyone where they were. Ohio State struggled against Penn State for about 52 minutes, then turned it on and won comfortably. Georgia’s game against Florida was a one-score game in the second half before the Dawgs pulled away.
Unlike the two teams ahead of them, Tennessee and Michigan flattened their respective opponents, Kentucky and Michigan State. The Vols took a big lead early and never looked back, and Michigan allowed just seven points to the disappointing Spartans.
Clemson did not play and still holds a tenuous lead over TCU for the fifth spot. Despite a struggling offense, the Tigers still have one of the best defenses in the country, giving them just enough to hold on to No. 5.
Who I added
North Carolina, Coastal Carolina
The Tar Heels are back in the Top 25 after crushing a frisky Pitt team. They are on a collision course with Clemson in the ACC Championship game and have taken full advantage of the down year for the conference. The offense is excellent and the defense is terrible, but they are 7-1 and that certainly counts for something.
Coastal is also back in my poll after a rebound win over Marshall following its first loss of the season. The Chanticleers are 4-1 in the Sun Belt and control their own destiny in the Sun Belt East. If not for the excellence of Tulane, Coastal would be on track for the Group of 5’s New Year’s Six bid.
Who I dropped
Wake Forest, South Carolina
The Demon Deacons had one of the strangest and most disappointing losses of the week, a 48-21 blowout at the hands of Louisville in which they turned the ball over six times in the third quarter. This loss was a bit of a fluke, but I didn’t have a lot of confidence in Wake Forest coming into this week, and being blown out by a team whose coach has spent seemingly the entire season about to be fired didn’t help.
South Carolina, we hardly knew ye. The Gamecocks followed their first appearance in the Top 25 under Shane Beamer by scoring a whopping 10 points in a two-score loss to Missouri. It was an extremely disappointing result for South Carolina, but the program will secure a second straight bowl appearance under Beamer with a win over Vanderbilt next week.
Ashley Beach, Sports Writer
Top 5
Ohio State
Georgia
Tennessee
Clemson
Michigan
It's no surprise that my Top 5 stayed the same. All five of these teams are untouchable and it will boil down to when they face each other.
Ohio State did have its moments against Penn State, but it pulled through in the end. The same can be said for Georgia against Florida. Michigan and Tennessee, however, did not struggle against their opponents. Clemson had a bye-week, so there isn’t much to judge it on.
Who I added
LSU
The Tigers have been on and off my ballot over the course of the season. One week they’re great and the next they’re not. I added them again in Week 6 and then dropped them in Week 7. However, the Tigers are second in the SEC West, and that shows for something.
Who I dropped
Kansas State
Ashamedly so, I dropped the Wildcats out of my poll. It was not what I meant to do at all. Kansas State defeated Oklahoma State 48-0 and is now No. 13 in the AP poll. If I could resubmit my poll, I would have dropped Mississippi State or Texas.
Molly Burchard, Asst. Sports Editor
Top 5:
Ohio State
Tennessee
Georgia
Clemson
Michigan
It took a lot of self-convincing to keep Ohio State at No.1 this week. It did beat another Top 25 team by 13 points, but I once was again extremely impressed by Tennessee. I almost put the Vols at No. 1 after they beat Kentucky 44-6, but talked myself down and only raised them one spot to No. 2
The rest of my Top 5 pretty much stayed the same. Georgia took Tennessee’s previous spot at No. 3, while Clemson and Michigan stayed at No. 4 and No. 5.
Who I added
Liberty
I needed a team to fill an empty spot at No. 24 in my poll, and Liberty was the perfect fit. It has won its last five games, and is 7-1 this season. It almost beat Wake Forest on Sep. 17, and recently beat BYU 41-14 on Oct. 22.
Who I dropped
Cincinnati, Kentucky
My reason for dropping these teams is pretty much the same as it is every other week: they lost. As mentioned before, Kentucky suffered a brutal beating against Tennessee, and Cincinnati couldn’t keep up with Central Florida Saturday.
