NCAA Football Rankings 2022: Predicting Week 10 Movers Based on Latest Results

Entering Week 9 of the 2022 college football season, there were six undefeated FBS teams in the country. At the end of the weekend, all six remain.

No. 1 Georgia, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Tennessee, No. 4 Michigan and No. 7 TCU were each victorious and improved to 8-0. Meanwhile, No. 5 Clemson was idle and stayed at 8-0 itself. So there likely won't be any movement at the top of the AP poll this week.

However, there will be changes throughout the rest of the rankings, as seven teams among the top 25 were defeated. That included No. 9 Oklahoma State (which fell at No. 22 Kansas State) and No. 10 Wake Forest (which lost at unranked Louisville).

Here's a projection for how the AP poll will look entering Week 10, along with breakdowns of several teams that should be on the rise.

Projected AP Top 25 Poll

AP Photo/John Raoux

Georgia running back Kenny McIntosh, right, celebrates with teammate tight end Cade Brock (44) after scoring a touchdown against Florida during the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

1. Georgia (8-0)

2. Ohio State (8-0)

3. Tennessee (8-0)

4. Michigan (8-0)

5. Clemson (8-0)

6. Alabama (7-1)

7. TCU (8-0)

8. Oregon (7-1)

9. USC (7-1)

10. UCLA (7-1)

11. Utah (6-2)

12. Ole Miss (8-1)

13. Illinois (7-1)

14. LSU (6-2)

15. Penn State (6-2)

16. Kansas State (6-2)

17. North Carolina (7-1)

18. Oklahoma State (6-2)

19. Tulane (7-1)

20. NC State (6-2)

21. Wake Forest (6-2)

22. Liberty (7-1)

23. Syracuse (6-2)

24. Texas (5-3)

25. Kentucky (5-3)

UCLA Will Move Back Up into the Top 10

AP Photo/Ashley Landis

UCLA linebacker Darius Muasau (53) celebrates with linebacker JonJon Vaughns (21) after a stop during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Stanford in Pasadena, Calif., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

Last week, UCLA dropped out of the top 10 in the AP poll and fell to the No. 12 spot after losing 45-30 to Oregon, its first defeat of the season. Now, the Bruins are back on the rise, and they should re-enter the top 10 this week.

On Saturday, UCLA notched a big bounce-back win, cruising to a 38-13 home victory over Stanford. The Bruins, who improved to 7-1 (and 4-1 in Pac-12 play), are likely to move up two spots to No. 10 after both No. 9 Oklahoma State and No. 10 Wake Forest took losses.

UCLA's offense had a dominant performance against Stanford, racking up 523 total yards and scoring five rushing touchdowns. Three of those came courtesy of senior Zach Charbonnet, who ran for a game-high 198 yards on 21 carries.

With both Oregon and USC ranked ahead of it, UCLA will need to finish the season strong to play its way into the Pac-12 championship game. But the Bruins have proved they're at least worthy of a top-10 spot in the AP poll after rebounding from their only loss thus far.

Kansas State on the Rise After Big Statement Victory

AP Photo/Charlie Riedel

Kansas State running back Deuce Vaughn, center, celebrates with offensive linemen Cooper Beebe (50) and KT Leveston (70) after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Oklahoma State Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022, in Manhattan, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Even those who thought Kansas State would beat Oklahoma State on Saturday likely didn't expect things to go the way they did. Because the Wildcats dominated the Cowboys in a game that was never even competitive.

Kansas State jumped out to a 14-point lead midway through the first quarter and had a 35-point advantage by halftime in a 48-0 shellacking of Oklahoma State. While the Cowboys will now drop out of the top 10 and down the AP poll, the Wildcats proved they should be ranked higher than No. 22.

Although Kansas State is 6-2, its two losses came to a pair of teams that are ranked (TCU and Tulane—both undefeated). The Wildcats have picked up some strong wins along the way, but none as impressive as Saturday's lopsided victory.

Don't be surprised if Kansas State ends up around No. 15 or No. 16 in the AP poll this week. The Wildcats aren't the best team in the Big 12 (that's TCU), but they proved they're better than the Cowboys and should be ranked ahead of them.

North Carolina Continuing to Roll, Should Climb Poll

AP Photo/Chris Seward

North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye (10) looks to pass against Pittsburgh during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)

Two of the top teams in the ACC were defeated on Saturday. No. 10 Wake Forest went on the road and lost to unranked Louisville, while No. 16 Syracuse was defeated at home by unranked Notre Dame. However, North Carolina did not experience that same fate.

The Tar Heels continued to play well in their 42-24 home win over Pittsburgh. It was North Carolina's fourth straight victory since it lost to Notre Dame on Sept. 24, its only defeat so far this season. It also improved to 4-0 in ACC play.

With the number of ranked teams that lost on Saturday, North Carolina should move up multiple positions in the AP poll, possibly to around the No. 17 spot. There's a good chance it will pass both Wake Forest and Syracuse in the rankings.

But the Tar Heels have some challenging games still to play, such as a road matchup at Wake Forest and a home matchup against NC State in the regular-season finale. So if they're going to keep moving up, they'll need to take down tough teams in the weeks ahead.