CFB: Clemson, Iowa State Drop in Latest AP Poll
The latest AP Top 25 poll has been released, and while most of the top 10 remain unchanged, the teams at the bottom of the top 10 were most impacted. Both the 11th-ranked Clemson Tigers and Iowa State Cyclones dropped eight and six spots, respectively, now coming in at 17th and 19th. Iowa State suffered a last-second upset loss at home to unranked Texas Tech thanks to a late Red Raiders go-ahead score, while Clemson couldn’t find its footing against Louisville, who led almost the entire game, picking up a 33-21 victory.
That victory over Clemson also puts Louisville back in the entire poll after they fell out back in Week 7 at #22 despite a thrilling comeback victory over unranked Virginia on the road. Iowa State, meanwhile, falls to about where they were at the beginning of the season while losing their perfect 7-0 record, making them the bigger loser of the two. Now, you’re probably wondering- how did they both get ranked 11th? The answer lies in the voting count, one of the criteria used to determine the weekly AP poll, alongside other things like overall record, strength of schedule, etc. Both the Tigers and Cyclones had 968 total votes for a number 11 ranking, based on a national analysis.
This latest poll shakeup really hurts Iowa State more, given their now previously unbeaten record and how they’ve won easily through the usual challenge of a Big 12 conference schedule. Just last week, the Cyclones escaped another potential home upset against UCF, winning by a hair, 38-35, and like the Texas Tech game, that also came down to a last-second touchdown. Kind of a setback, especially after thoroughly beating three straight conference opponents by double digits in the weeks before. Clemson didn’t have as tough of a schedule, so it makes sense they won their most recent games by double digits over the likes of Virginia, Wake Forest, and lowly Florida State.
Iowa State travels to Lawrence to face 2-6 Kansas this week at 3:30 pm, making this a surefire win for the Cyclones. They’ll most likely be back on track and work their way back up into the top 10 with more wins expected after, as they face 5-3 Cincinnati, 4-4 Utah, and the final challenge, 22nd ranked Kansas State. Clemson, meanwhile, deals with back to back road contests against 5-4 Virginia Tech and then duels with 23rd ranked Pittsburgh, who is also coming off an undefeated upset after falling on the road to 20th ranked SMU this weekend.
SMU themselves is actually now 13th ranked, having jumped seven spots with that Pitt win, while Alabama (6-2) and Group of 5 powerhouse Boise State (7-1) take over the Cyclones’ and Tigers’ previous poll spots. The top 10 currently sits at Oregon and Georgia #1 and #2, no change from this week, followed by #3 Ohio State and #4 Miami (FL), each moving up one spot, with the Buckeyes knocking the previously ranked 3rd Penn State down to 6th after a 20-13 road win. Texas rounds out the top 5, while Tennessee stays at 7th. Notre Dame drops to 10th while BYU remains undefeated at #9, and fellow unbeaten Indiana finally gets the credit they deserve, punching in at #8.
The most action took place in the middle of the AP poll, starting with 11th-ranked Alabama jumping three spots from 14th and Boise State from 15th to 12th. As mentioned earlier, SMU leaps from the 20th to the 13th, while LSU moves to the 14th from the 16th. Texas A&M was another big loser this week, dropping from 10th to 15th after a disastrous beatdown by unranked South Carolina in Columbia.
Ole Miss rises to 16th, up from 19th, while American powerhouse Army jumps to 18th from 21st, another unbeaten team not getting all the credit it needs. Washington State comes in 20th, ahead of Coach Prime’s 21st ranked Colorado Buffaloes, and then finalizing the Top 25 is Louisville and SEC stunners Vanderbilt, just a few weeks removed from their upset of the century over #1 Alabama. Between Wazzu and Army is where Clemson sits, and as for Iowa State, they are now between Ole Miss and Army- quite the interesting setup for the Clemson Clams, as they now could be called.
See also: Reviewing the rest of college football’s Week 10 craziness
