AP College Football Poll 2014: Complete Week 3 Rankings Released
After another week of clashes between ranked teams and a few closer-than-expected results, Florida State remains the No. 1 team in the Associated Press Top 25. But the Seminoles are beginning to hear footsteps.
On the back of a second-half thrashing of Michigan State, Oregon leapfrogged Alabama to sit comfortably in the second spot, while the Crimson Tide dropped to No. 3. Nick Saban and Co. took a dive despite being in much finer form in their 41-0 win over Florida Atlantic. Oklahoma and Auburn, who scored 111 points combined in dominant wins, round out the Top Five.
Here's a look at how the remainder of the rankings played out, along with Bleacher Report's Top 25:
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
| 1 | Florida State (38) | 2-0 | 1,463 | 1 | Florida State |
| 2 | Oregon (16) | 2-0 | 1,415 | 3 | Oregon |
| 3 | Alabama (1) | 2-0 | 1,334 | 2 | Georgia |
| 4 | Oklahoma (2) | 2-0 | 1,303 | 4 | Alabama |
| 5 | Auburn | 2-0 | 1,236 | 5 | Auburn |
| 6 | Georgia (1) | 1-0 | 1,201 | 6 | Oklahoma |
| 7 | Texas A&M (2) | 2-0 | 1,101 | 9 | USC |
| 8 | Baylor | 2-0 | 1,043 | 10 | Texas A&M |
| 9 | Southern California | 2-0 | 1,039 | 14 | LSU |
| 10 | LSU | 2-0 | 1,029 | 12 | Baylor |
| 11 | Notre Dame | 2-0 | 815 | 16 | Notre Dame |
| 12 | UCLA | 2-0 | 779 | 11 | Michigan State |
| 13 | Michigan State | 1-1 | 751 | 7 | UCLA |
| 14 | Mississippi | 2-0 | 703 | 15 | Ole Miss |
| 15 | Stanford | 1-1 | 592 | 13 | Stanford |
| 16 | Arizona State | 2-0 | 570 | 17 | Arizona State |
| 17 | Virginia Tech | 2-0 | 532 | NR | Virginia Tech |
| 18 | Wisconsin | 1-1 | 391 | 18 | Kansas State |
| 19 | Kansas State | 2-0 | 285 | 20 | South Carolina |
| 20 | Missouri | 2-0 | 237 | 24 | Ohio State |
| 21 | Louisville | 2-0 | 234 | 25 | Clemson |
| 22 | Ohio State | 1-1 | 222 | 8 | Wisconsin |
| 23 | Clemson | 1-1 | 206 | 23 | Florida |
| 24 | South Carolina | 1-1 | 199 | 21 | Missouri |
| 25 | BYU | 2-0 | 179 | NR | Nebraska/BYU (tie) |
The most talked-about result of the week came in Eugene, Oregon, where the Ducks outscored then-No. 7 Michigan State 28-3 in the second half en route to a 46-27 win. Marcus Mariota threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns while adding 42 yards on the ground, a dominant performance against what was considered arguably college football's best defense.
The Spartans, having scored 24 points in the second quarter to put themselves in position for a statement win, fell apart in the second half. Their defense proved unable to keep up with Oregon's speed, running back Jeremy Langford could not break free for long gains and signal-caller Connor Cook accounted for both the game's turnovers. His second interception of the game came deep inside Oregon territory, leading to an 11-play, 96-yard touchdown drive that effectively sealed the deal for the Ducks.
Bleacher Report's Michael Felder and Barrett Sailee broke down the Ducks' win and made the case for them being the best team in the country:
"Defensively, blowing two coverages, they hit us on another one on a blitz, too many big plays, too many explosive plays, but that's Oregon, we understand that's part of this,'' Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio, whose team fell from No. 7 to No. 13 in the rankings, told reporters. "Things started to snowball and we couldn't stop it from snowballing.''
Oregon, which spent most of its 2013 season at No. 2 before struggling down the stretch, is back to where it's comfortable. The win brought Ducks head coach Mark Helfrich to 3-1 against ranked opponents. The Ducks have opened the season scoring 108 points in two impressive wins.
"We think we're physical," Helfrich told reporters. "Our style of play is different. … We believe very strongly in what we do."
Michigan State's loss, meanwhile, was part of a nightmare Saturday for the Big Ten. Ohio State and Michigan joined the Spartans in the loser's circle, while Nebraska narrowly escaped one of the most embarrassing upsets in school history against McNeese State.
The Buckeyes found themselves overpowered in a 35-21 home loss to Virginia Tech. J.T. Barrett, in his second game taking over for Braxton Miller, threw three interceptions and completed only 9 of 29 passes. Barrett was also taxed with being the team's only option in the ground game, as running backs Ezekiel Elliott, Curtis Samuel and Dontre Wilson combined for 15 carries total.
Losing Miller seems to have been a death knell for Ohio State, which came into 2014 with national championship aspirations.
"I still have confidence that we have enough skill on this football team to get by people," Ohio State coach Urban Meyer told reporters. "It didn't look like it (tonight). But we have to get by people or you're going to see what you saw today every week."
Virginia Tech's win sends the Hokies into the Top 25 at No. 17. Frank Beamer's program has gone through its worst stretch in two decades over the last couple seasons, going 15-11 and missing out on the Top 25 in both 2012 and 2013. A signature win like this should remove Beamer from any "hot seat" discussions for the time being.
Sitting directly on the hot seat is Michigan's Brady Hoke, who saw his team get trounced 31-0 by rival Notre Dame. The No. 11 Irish got 226 yards passing and three touchdowns from Everett Golson in what will be the last matchup between these two historic programs until at least the 2020 season. Golson's return to the lineup has helped stabilize the Notre Dame offense and has Brian Kelly's team looking like a legitimate contender.
Losses from its most prominent programs—including Wisconsin last week—leave the Big Ten looking unlikely to earn a berth in the new College Football Playoff. Currently seven of the Top 10 teams come from either the SEC or Pac-12, which have separated themselves as the nation's top two conferences. The lone exceptions are Oklahoma, Baylor and Florida State, all three of which have more than enough firepower to compete with the nation's best.
The Sooners have scored 100 points in their two season-opening wins, led by a vastly improved Trevor Knight and a dominant ground game. Backs Keith Ford and Alex Ross are both averaging better than seven yards per carry.
Baylor stayed red hot despite missing Heisman contender Bryce Petty, as backup Seth Russell threw for five touchdowns in a 70-6 blowout of Northwestern State. Petty suffered a back injury in Week 1 and his status for Friday's trip to Buffalo remains up in the air.
Overall, the Big 12 has three teams in the Top 25, equivalent to the Big Ten behind the power two and the ACC. The SEC has a nation-high eight teams, while the Pac-12 comes in with five. The ACC has four, highlighted by the Seminoles.
Dropping out of the rankings this week are North Carolina and Nebraska. The Tar Heels barely squeaked past San Diego State on Saturday, joining them with the Huskers in near-infamy.
Taking their place this week are BYU and Virginia Tech. The Cougars ascend into the national conversation after a 41-7 thrashing of Texas.
Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
