Bleacher Report's College Football Top 25 Poll: Week 6
Bleacher Report PollsFeatured ColumnistSeptember 30, 2012Bleacher Report's College Football Top 25 Poll: Week 6
Week 5 started off with a bang as the Washington Huskies upset the Stanford Cardinal, 17-13, on Thursday night. Stanford gave up 136 yards rushing—144 to Bishop Sankey—in the loss.
Stanford went into the game with the No. 1 rush defense, giving up just 41 yards per game.
The excitement didn't stop on Saturday, as Baylor and West Virginia combined for 1,507 yards of total offense in a slugfest that the Mountaineers won, 70-63.
Mountaineer quarterback Geno Smith was almost perfect, completing 45 of 51 passes for a school-record 656 yards and tying the Big 12 record with eight passing touchdowns.
Read on to see the latest Bleacher Report Top 25!
Others Receiving Votes
UCLA: 28
Michigan: 20
Texas Tech: 13
Miami: 11
Michigan State: 11
Louisiana Tech: 10
Texas A&M: 10
Washington: 9
Baylor: 8
Purdue: 8
Arizona: 6
Iowa State: 3
Ohio: 3
Duke: 2
Oklahoma State: 1
No. 25: Cincinnati Bearcats
Poll Points: 31
Record: 3-0 (1-0, Big East)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Virginia Tech, 27-24
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Miami (OH) RedHawks
Previous Ranking: N/R
Bearcat quarterback Munchie Legaux threw the game-winning 39-yard touchdown pass to Damon Julian with 13 seconds left as Cincinnati beat Virginia Tech, 27-24. Legaux completed 19 of 42 passes for 376 yards and three touchdowns.
Receiver Kenbrell Thompkins caught seven passes for 134 yards and a touchdown for the Bearcats.
No. 24: Northwestern Wildcats
Poll Points: 33
Record: 5-0 (1-0, Big Ten)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Indiana, 44-29
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Penn State Nittany Lions
Previous Ranking: N/R
Wildcat running back Kain Colter ran for 161 yards and four touchdowns as Northwestern beat Indiana, 44-29. Colter also caught nine passes for 131 yards.
Quarterback Trevor Siemian completed 22 of 32 passes for 308 yards for the Wildcats.
Northwestern totaled a school-record 704 yards of total offense.
No. 23: Boise State Broncos
Poll Points: 63
Record: 3-1 (2-0, MWC)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat New Mexico, 32-29
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Southern Miss Golden Eagles
Previous Ranking: 23
Bronco quarterback Joe Southwick completed 24 of 34 passes for 311 yards and three touchdowns as Boise State beat New Mexico, 32-29.
Boise State had a 32-14 lead in the fourth quarter, but two quick touchdowns kept New Mexico close.
Running backs Jay Ajayi and D.J. Harper combined for 216 yards and a touchdown for the Broncos.
No. 22: Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Poll Points: 105
Record: 4-0 (1-0, Big East)
Last Game: Sept. 22, beat Arkansas, 35-26
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Connecticut Huskies
Previous Ranking: 24
No game scheduled.
No. 21: Mississippi State Bulldogs
Poll Points: 121
Record: 4-0 (1-0, SEC)
Last Game: Sept. 22, beat South Alabama, 30-10
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Kentucky Wildcats
Previous Ranking: 22
No game scheduled.
No. 20: Nebraska Cornhuskers
Poll Points: 135
Record: 4-1 (1-0, Big Ten)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Wisconsin, 30-27
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Ohio State Buckeyes
Previous Ranking: 20
Cornhusker quarterback Taylor Martinez threw two touchdowns and ran for another as Nebraska held off Wisconsin, 30-27.
Martinez completed 17 of 29 passes for 181 yards while running for another 116.
Running back Rex Burkhead added 86 yards on 18 carries for the Cornhuskers.
No. 19: Stanford Cardinal
Poll Points: 150
Record: 3-1 (1-1, Pac-12)
Last Game: Sept. 27, lost to Washington, 17-13
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Arizona Wildcats
Previous Ranking: 10
Stanford's offense struggled in losing 17-13 to Washington on Thursday night. The Cardinal were only able to muster 235 yards of total offense in the upset loss.
Running back Stepfan Taylor ran for 75 yards on 21 carries for Stanford as it suffered its first loss of the season.
Stanford quarterback Josh Nunes struggled, completing just 18 of 37 passes for 170 yards while also throwing an interception.
No. 18: Oregon State Beavers
Poll Points: 160
Record: 3-0 (2-0, Pac-12)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Arizona, 38-35
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Washington State Cougars
Previous Ranking: 21
Beavers quarterback Sean Mannion threw for 433 yards and three touchdowns as Oregon State held on to beat Arizona, 38-35.
Running back Storm Woods ran for 161 yards on 29 carries and scored a touchdown for the Beavers.
No. 17: Louisville Cardinals
Poll Points: 169
Record: 5-0 (0-0, Big East)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Southern Miss, 21-17
Next Game: Oct. 13 at Pittsburgh Panthers
Previous Ranking: 18
Louisville running back Senorise Perry ran for 118 yards and two touchdowns as Louisville beat Southern Miss, 21-17.
Running back Jeremy Wright added another 84 rushing yards for the Cardinals.
Louisville held Southern Miss to 249 yards of total offense.
No. 16: Oklahoma Sooners
Poll Points: 210
Record: 2-1 (0-1, Big 12)
Last Game: Sept. 22, lost to Kansas State, 24-19
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Texas Tech Red Raiders
Previous Ranking: 16
No game scheduled.
No. 15: Clemson Tigers
Poll Points: 263
Record: 4-1 (1-1, ACC)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Boston College, 45-31
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Previous Ranking: 14
Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd completed 28 of 38 passes for 367 yards and three touchdowns as the Tigers beat the Eagles, 45-31. Boyd also rushed for 42 yards and another score.
Running back Andre Ellington ran for 132 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries for the Tigers.
Clemson racked up 576 yards of total offense.
No. 14: TCU Horned Frogs
Poll Points: 289
Record: 4-0 (1-0, Big 12)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat SMU, 24-16
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Iowa State Cyclones
Previous Ranking: 15
TCU struggled on offense but was still able to beat SMU, 24-16, on Saturday night. The Horned Frogs were only able to muster 148 yards of total offense against the Mustangs.
Frog quarterback Casey Pachall completed just 10 of 26 passes for 99 yards, but he threw two touchdown passes.
While the offense struggled, the defense was stellar, intercepting Mustang quarterback Garrett Gilbert five times.
No. 13: Ohio State Buckeyes
Poll Points: 290
Record: 5-0 (1-0, Big Ten)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Michigan State, 17-16
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers
Previous Ranking: 17
Buckeye quarterback Braxton Miller threw for 179 yards and a touchdown while running for another 136 yards as Ohio State beat Michigan State, 17-16.
Ohio State wide receiver Philly Brown had 12 receptions for 84 yards.
The Buckeyes' defense limited the Spartans' Le'Veon Bell to a season-low 45 yards on 12 carries.
No. 12: Florida Gators
Poll Points: 328
Record: 4-0 (3-0, SEC)
Last Game: Sept. 22, beat Kentucky, 38-0
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. LSU Tigers
Previous Ranking: 13
No game scheduled.
No. 11: USC Trojans
Poll Points: 337
Record: 3-1 (1-1, Pac-12)
Last Game: Sept. 22, beat Cal, 27-9
Next Game: Oct. 4 at Utah Utes
Previous Ranking: 11
No game scheduled.
No. 10: Texas Longhorns
Poll Points: 341
Record: 4-0 (1-0, Big 12)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Oklahoma State, 41-36
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. West Virginia Mountaineers
Previous Ranking: 12
Texas quarterback David Ash threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns as Texas beat Oklahoma State, 41-36, on Saturday night.
Jaxon Shipley was Ash's primary target, as he caught five passes for 82 yards and three touchdowns.
Running back Joe Bergeron scored twice on the ground for the Longhorns.
No. 9: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Poll Points: 394
Record: 4-0
Last Game: Sept. 22, beat Michigan, 13-6
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Miami Hurricanes
Previous Ranking: 8
No game scheduled.
No. 8: Kansas State Wildcats
Poll Points: 408
Record: 4-0 (1-0, Big 12)
Last Game: Sept. 22, beat Oklahoma, 24-19
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Kansas Jayhawks
Previous Ranking: 9
No game scheduled.
No. 7: West Virginia Mountaineers
Poll Points: 437
Record: 4-0 (1-0, Big 12)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Baylor, 70-63
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Texas Longhorns
Previous Ranking: 6
Mountaineer quarterback Geno Smith tied the Big 12 record for most touchdown passes in a game with eight as West Virginia held off Baylor, 70-63. Smith completed 45 of 51 passes for a school-record 656 yards.
Wide receivers Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin combined for 27 catches for 518 receiving yards and seven touchdowns for the Mountaineers.
West Virginia gained 807 total yards of offense, another school record.
No. 6: South Carolina Gamecocks
Poll Points: 439
Record: 5-0 (3-0, SEC)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Kentucky, 38-17
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Georgia Bulldogs
Previous Ranking: 7
Gamecock running back Marcus Lattimore ran for 120 yards and two touchdowns as South Carolina beat the Wildcats, 38-17.
South Carolina was actually down 17-7 at halftime before putting it on the Wildcats in the second half.
Quarterback Connor Shaw threw for 148 yards and two touchdowns while running for another 76 yards for the Gamecocks.
No. 5: Georgia Bulldogs
Poll Points: 482
Record: 5-0 (3-0, SEC)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Tennessee, 51-44
Next Game: Oct. 6 at South Carolina Gamecocks
Previous Ranking: 5
Georgia running backs Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall combined for 293 yards and five touchdowns as the Bulldogs held off the Volunteers, 51-44.
Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray completed 18 of 24 passes for 271 yards and two touchdowns.
The Bulldogs finished with 289 yards rushing.
No. 4: LSU Tigers
Poll Points: 507
Record: 5-0 (1-0, SEC)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Towson, 38-22
Next Game: Oct. 6 at Florida Gators
Previous Ranking: 3
Quarterback Zach Mettenberger completed 15 of 26 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns as LSU beat Towson, 38-22.
LSU was actually down 9-7 in the second quarter before pulling away.
Wide receiver Odell Beckham caught five passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns for LSU.
No. 3: Florida State Seminoles
Poll Points: 515
Record: 5-0 (2-0, ACC)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat South Florida, 30-17
Next Game: Oct. 6 at North Carolina State Wolfpack
Previous Ranking: 4
Seminole quarterback EJ Manuel threw for 242 yards and a touchdown as Florida State beat South Florida, 30-17.
The stingy Bulls defense held the high-powered Seminole offense to 26 points under their average.
Seminole Chris Thompson led the charge on the ground with 74 yards on 16 carries.
No. 2: Oregon Ducks
Poll Points: 543
Record: 5-0 (2-0, Pac-12)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Washington State, 51-26
Next Game: Oct. 6 vs. Washington Huskies
Previous Ranking: 2
Running back Kenjon Barner ran for 195 yards and three touchdowns as Oregon defeated Washington State, 51-26.
Oregon struggled in the first half for the second straight week, leading just 23-19 at the half, but the defense settled down and only allowed seven points in the second half.
The Ducks finished the game with 469 yards of total offense.
No. 1: Alabama Crimson Tide
Poll Points (first-place votes): 575 (23)
Record: 5-0 (2-0, SEC)
Last Game: Sept. 29, beat Ole Miss, 33-14
Next Game: Oct. 13 at Missouri Tigers
Previous Ranking: 1
Alabama's defense picked off three Ole Miss passes as the Crimson Tide defeated the Rebels, 33-14.
Quarterback A.J. McCarron completed 22 of 30 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns for the Crimson Tide.
Alabama held Ole Miss to 218 yards of total offense.
Bleacher Report Voters: David Mayer (Poll Coordinator), Adam Jacobi, Alex Joseph, Alex Callos, Amy Daughters, Barrett Sallee, Carl Stine, David Luther, Rich Thomaselli, Eric Bowman, Ian Berg, James Brown, Jason Fraychineaud, John Greely, John Rozum, Jonathan McDanal, Kay Jennings, Luke Pashke, Marty Sondermann, Max Rausch, Michael Felder, Sanjay Kirpalani, Zach Dirlam.