Florida’s stint in the top 10 of the AP Top 25 rankings proved short-lived after losing to Missouri this weekend.
Missouri climbed 11 spots to No. 14 and jumped over the Gators in the process. Florida dropped eight spots to No. 16 and made way for LSU to crack the top 10.
Texas will go into Saturday’s Red River Rivalry game against Oklahoma as the No. 1 team for the fourth straight week. The Longhorns were idle this week and held firm at No. 1. The rest of the top five stood pat too, with Georgia, Notre Dame, Miami and Ohio State all maintaining their slots.
Here's the latest in the AP Top 25:
Pitt cracks the Top 25
By MAURA CAREY
Voters heard Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi loud and clear after he complained of being left out of the AP Top 25. The 5-0 Panthers entered the poll this week for the first time this season, coming in at No. 25.
The Panthers overcame a 14-0 deficit and scored 21 unanswered points en route to a 35-33 win against Virginia Tech.
Pitt lost starting quarterback Mason Heintschel early in the second half, but backup quarterback Holden Geriner performed well off the bench, throwing for 78 yards and a touchdown.
It was a narrow one for the Panthers, who got lucky with a Hokies missed field goal as time expired.
Missouri jumps over Florida
Missouri moved up 11 spots to No. 14 and jumped over Florida in the AP Top 25 after the Gators fell to the Tigers this weekend. Florida dropped from No. 8 to No. 16 in the rankings.
The Tigers beat the Gators 45-17 on Saturday. Quarterback Austin Simmons had a standout performance, completing 23 of 30 passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns. Jamal Roberts ran the ball 24 times for 211 yards and three rushing scores.
Before the game, Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz was 0-10 in the regular season against top-10 teams and had a nine-game skid against AP Top 25 teams. He wasn’t eager to talk about recent history.
“Doesn’t mean anything,” he said. “That’s noise people create on social media for no reason. … Each game is a life of its own, opponent of its own. We try to make it the best matchup we can.”
Conference breakdown
The SEC leads the way in the AP Top 25, with nine ranked teams from the conference: Texas (1), Georgia (2), Alabama (6), Ole Miss (9), LSU (10), Missouri (14), Tennessee (15), Florida (16) and Mississippi State (17).
The Big Ten has six ranked teams: Ohio State (5), Indiana (7), Oregon (13), USC (19), Iowa (20) and UCLA (21).
The Big 12 has five teams in the poll: BYU (8), Texas Tech (11), Utah (12), Oklahoma State (18) and Houston (22).
The ACC has three ranked teams: Miami (4), SMU (24) and Pittsburgh (25).
No. 23 Boise State remains the sole Pac-12 representative, and No. 3 Notre Dame is independent.
Ask a voter: Why does Indiana keep moving down despite winning?
By MATT MCGAVIC
I think that’s a product of IU’s non-conference schedule, where they opted to load up on relatively easy games. Then in the Big 10 play, their two wins are against Rutgers and a not-very-dominant home game vs. NW — although they could actually be better than we expect.
___ This is Louisville sports writer Matt McGavic’s first season as an AP Top 25 voter.
Alabama improves to No. 6
By MAURA CAREY
The Crimson Tide improved to No. 6 after an impressive 56-23 win against Mississippi State. The move came at the expense of Indiana, which moved down one spot to No. 7.
Alabama is one of three remaining unbeaten SEC teams in elite company alongside No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Georgia.
That will change next week when Georgia and Alabama square off in Tuscaloosa on Saturday night.
Ask a voter: Walk us through the changes you made to your top 10
By MATT MCGAVIC
As far as my personal top 10, I bumped Ohio State from No. 4 to No. 3 for their impressive road win at Iowa — just behind Texas and Georgia.
Then, with Alabama putting together one of the best performances of the season, I have them cracking the top 10 all the way up to No. 4, which meant Notre Dame falls to fifth on my ballot.
Every other team in my top 10 moved down a slot as a result of Bama’s rise. ___ This is Louisville sports writer Matt McGavic’s first season as an AP Top 25 voter.
AP Top 25 rankings
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
1. Texas
2. Georgia
3. Notre Dame
4. Miami (Fla.)
5. Ohio State
6. Alabama
7. Indiana
8. BYU
9. Mississippi
10. LSU
11. Texas Tech
12. Utah
13. Oregon
14. Missouri
15. Tennessee
16. Florida
17. Mississippi State
18. Oklahoma State
19. USC
20. Iowa
21. UCLA
22. Houston
23. Boise State
24. SMU
25. Pittsburgh
Others receiving votes were: Kentucky, Wake Forest, Wisconsin, Duke, Northwestern, Nebraska, Minnesota, Arizona, James Madison and North Dakota State.
Alabama cruises to 56-23 rout of Mississippi State
By MAURA CAREY
Any speculation that young quarterback Keelon Russell may not rise to the occasion subsided as he passed for 285 yards and three touchdowns while adding a rushing score in a 56-23 win against No. 16 Mississippi State.
Trae’shawn Brown ran the ball in for two scores and Rico Scott added a pair of receiving touchdowns. Dijon Lee Jr. also added a 30-yard pick-six.
Nevertheless, there may not be much room for improvement for the seventh-ranked Crimson Tide this week because No. 1 Texas was idle and Georgia, Notre Dame, Miami, Ohio State and Indiana each landed in the win column.
Florida’s top 10 stint could be short-lived
After moving up 13 spots in the poll and cracking the top 10 for the first time since 2021, Florida could be in line for a big fall in the rankings after losing 45-17 to Missouri.
The Tigers found success in minimizing Florida’s star running back Jadan Baugh’s impact, holding him to just 13 yards on 12 carries. Baugh was averaging 150 rushing yards per game before the Gators’ trip to Columbia.
It was the first loss of the Jon Sumrall era for Florida, falling to 4-1 overall and 2-1 in Southeastern Conference play.
3 Top 25 losses this week
Only three Top 25 teams lost this week, all in ranked matchups. No. 8 Florida fell 45-17 on the road to No. 25 Missouri. No. 14 Iowa dropped 31-14 to No. 5 Ohio State. And No. 16 Mississippi State lost 56-23 to No. 7 Alabama.
Six Top 25 teams had the week off and 16 ranked teams landed in the win column.
6 Top 25 teams were idle
Six AP Top 25 teams had the week off.
No. 1 Texas was idle after beating Tennessee in a hard-fought Week 4 road victory. No. 9 Ole Miss had a week to regroup following its first loss of the season to Florida. No. 13 Utah was off after a 31-17 win against Big 12 foe Iowa State.
No. 15 Oregon’s bye week came at a good time, giving quarterback Dante Moore a week to focus on recovering after a scary hit to the head.
Two of last week’s poll newcomers were also idle: No. 19 Oklahoma State and No. 23 UCLA.
How the votes are counted
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
For decades, voters called, emailed and faxed their votes to the AP and ballots were tabulated by hand.
Now voting happens online, and the count is automated first before AP checks for miscues.
The poll operates on a 1-to-25-point system, with the No. 1 team receiving 25 points down to the 25th team receiving 1 point. In between, the poll lists the teams with the most points from 24 down to 2. Teams that receive votes but not enough to make the top 25 are noted separately.
