College Football Rankings: B/R's Top 25 After Week 13
Rivalry weekend turned into Survival Saturday for several contenders at the top of the college football food chain.
Unfortunately for the Louisville Cardinals, they didn't get the memo.
Kentucky upended the ACC's Cinderella team, but others sweated out improbable wins to keep title hopes alive. Alabama used a remarkable Jalen Milroe-to-Isaiah Bond 31-yard touchdown pass on 4th-and-goal to upend Auburn in the Iron Bowl, 27-24.
Washington has been flirting with disaster for several weeks now, but the Huskies got a last-second field goal to beat rival Washington State 24-21 in an Apple Cup that nearly turned rotten for the fourth-ranked team in the nation.
Florida State struggled but won its first game without Jordan Travis to remain unbeaten, and Georgia limped through nearly three quarters before running away with Georgia Tech.
Bleacher Report's college football expert panel consisting of David Kenyon, Adam Kramer, Morgan Moriarty, Joel Reuter and Brad Shepard tried to make sense of it all, ranking the Top 25 as so following Week 13:
1. Georgia
2. Michigan
3. Washington
4. Oregon
5. Florida State
6. Texas
7. Ohio State
8. Alabama
9. Missouri
10. Ole Miss
11. Penn State
12. Oklahoma
13. Arizona
14. LSU
15. Louisville
16. Tulane
17. Liberty
18. Notre Dame
19. Iowa
20. Oklahoma State
21. SMU
22. Toledo
T-23. N.C. State
T-23. James Madison
25. Oregon State
Who's Hot: Michigan's 3rd-Straight Triumph for a Big Ten Title Berth
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Put this rendition of "The Game" in the Hall of Fame.
The Michigan Wolverines staved off a frenetic, last-minute drive by Ohio State to come away with their third-consecutive victory over their hated rival, 30-24, to remain unbeaten and punch a ticket to next week's Big Ten Championship Game against Iowa.
If they win in what is expected to be a lopsided line against the Hawkeyes, Big Blue will blitz into the College Football Playoffs again. In the face of the sign-stealing controversy and with Jim Harbaugh watching from home, none of that mattered Saturday.
This is the first three-game winning streak over the Buckeyes since 1995-97.
"It's all the players," interim coach Sherrone Moore said, "they just played their hearts out."
It wasn't easy. Despite leading most of the day, the Wolverines were forced to kick a field goal in the waning minutes, moving ahead by just six points. The Buckeyes responded with a 22-yard pass to Marvin Harrison Jr., then another 21-yarder to Julian Fleming, who fumbled and was recovered by Emeka Egbuka.
But on 1st-and-10 from the Michigan 37-yard line, the Wolverines stunted Jaylen Harrell, who got into Kyle McCord's face. McCord rushed a pass over the middle and threw his second interception of the day, this time by Rod Moore to end the threat and the game.
For Ohio State, it is anguish once again, and Michigan now controls its destiny for another shot at a playoff for the third year in a row, despite all the turmoil surrounding the program. The Wolverines celebrated a classic once again with a big win over the Buckeyes.
Who's Not: Louisville's Storybook Finish
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The type of first season coach Jeff Brohm has put together at his alma mater of Louisville isn't exactly on the level of Sonny Dykes' TCU debut a season ago, but it was shaping up to be special nonetheless.
Then, the Cardinals ran into a Big Blue Bus at home on Saturday in a heated, hated rivalry game.
Set up to play unbeaten Florida State in next week's ACC Championship Game, they still had plenty on the line against the middling Kentucky Wildcats but self-destructed in the second half on the way to a 38-31 loss.
Kentucky ripped off 31 second-half points to shock the Cardinals, which fumbled twice, turned it over on downs and threw an interception down the stretch. The Wildcats turned those miscues into 10 critical points and intercepted Jack Plummer at the end to secure the win.
While Louisville hasn't exactly won with the proverbial smoke and mirrors all year, they were far from consistently strong. Hiccups such as a lopsided loss to a bad Pittsburgh team and one-possession wins over mediocre teams like Indiana, North Carolina State, Virginia and Miami proved there were deficiencies.
On Saturday, the defense let them down, and any outside chance at a playoff berth has taken a major hit. So, too, did the guarantee the Cardinals will play in a New Year's Six bowl if Florida State beats them next week.
It was a bad, ugly loss.
Fun Fact: Iowa Is a Master at Winning in Spite of Itself
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The Iowa Hawkeyes have been brilliant at overcoming their own offensive ineptitude this year, to the point where it's historic.
During coach Kirk Ferentz's team's epic-ish 13-10 victory over Nebraska on Friday—won in the most 2023 Iowa way ever, but more on that in a moment—CBS showed a shocking (mocking?) statistic. The highest win total of any team that averaged fewer than 250 total yards per game was the UCF Knights in 2008.
They had four that year, going 4-8, 3-5 in Conference USA, and missing a bowl game.
This year's Hawkeyes have 10 after somehow finding a way to win in Lincoln on Friday. They are averaging 246.3 total offensive yards, dead-last (No. 133) among FBS teams.
The Iowa offensive struggles have been farcical for years, a portrait of why nepotism is toxic, especially for a revered coach like Ferentz who has stability and control. His son, Brian, has led the charade of an offense as coordinator for years, but Iowa finally announced a few weeks back he won't return in 2024. It's about time.
Still, though, Iowa's 10-2 record and 7-2 in the Big Ten is a testament to how great its defense is, how bad the Big Ten West is and how Ferentz finds a way to pull out wins despite his offense displaying the complete opposite of firepower.
Against the unlucky Cornhuskers, which somehow found a way to lose four consecutive one-possession games while trying to become bowl-eligible in Matt Rhule's first year, it was remarkable how the Hawkeyes grabbed a chance for the win.
After Iowa quarterback Deacon Hill was intercepted by Tommi Hill with 31 seconds left giving Nebraska the ball at its own 45-yard line, the Huskers tried to march down for a winning field goal. Instead, Chubba Purdy threw a pass right to Hawkeyes linebacker Ethan Hurkett, who picked it off and returned it to the Nebraska 37-yard line.
One 22-yard Leshon Williams run set up Marshall Meeder's 38-yard field goal, and the backup kicker who hadn't kicked in a game since November 25 last year, won the game and hoisted the Heroes Trophy.
Iowa continued its march to the Big Ten Championship Game, despite 257 yards of total offense, seven punts and two missed field goals.
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Looking Ahead: Championship Saturday
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Next week's slate of college football championship games are set with tons of intrigue and College Football Playoff ramifications abounding in the last year it's a four-team field.
While there are too many scenarios to mention, a large list of potential participants—Michigan, Georgia, Washington, Florida State, Oregon, Alabama, Texas and perhaps still even Ohio State—means there's no margin for error for teams across the top of college football's stratosphere.
Michigan's win over Ohio State in "The Game" Saturday ensured the Wolverines have a major opportunity to secure a spot in the playoffs if they can take care of business against Iowa in next week's Big Ten title game.
Alabama (barely) took care of business against Auburn to ride into the SEC Championship Game against Georgia with hope to dethrone a Bulldogs team that has won 29 games in a row.
After the Jordan Travis-less Florida State Seminoles dispatched Florida to roll into the ACC Championship Game against Louisville without a loss, a win over the Cardinals would keep them unbeaten and believing they deserve a shot at the title.
Texas could beat Oklahoma State and fail to get in with one loss, but the Longhorns are playing terrifically and would have an argument.
Then, there's the Pac 12 title game. The conference has given us so much excitement this season, and you have to believe if Oregon can avenge its only loss of the season to Washington, the Ducks would earn a spot. If the unbeaten Huskies win, they're in.
Buckle up for a fun-filled championship weekend, and that isn't even taking into consideration some thrilling Group of Five action.
All stats courtesy of CFBStats and Sports Reference unless otherwise noted. Recruit rankings courtesy of 247Sports unless otherwise noted.
Follow Brad Shepard on Twitter, @Brad_Shepard.
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