College Football Rankings 2014: Twitter Reacts to AP and Amway Week 4 Polls
What a difference a week can make in college football.
Last weekend, USC was riding high after a 13-10 win over Stanford and entered the Top 10 in both the Associated Press and Amway polls. On Sunday, the team plummeted after losing to Boston College on the road.
South Carolina and Georgia both had their roles reversed in the eyes of SEC followers. The Gamecocks pulled off the upset at home to heal the wounds from a blowout loss to Texas A&M, while the Bulldogs likely dropped out of the College Football Playoff picture.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Here's a look at the full AP and Amway Week 4 polls following yet another enthralling weekend. The Amway Poll can be found here and the AP Poll can be found here.
| 1 | Florida State (50) | Florida State (37) |
| 2 | Alabama (1) | Oregon (17) |
| 3 | Oregon (6) | Alabama (1) |
| 4 | Oklahoma (4) | Oklahoma (2) |
| 5 | Auburn | Auburn |
| 6 | Baylor | Texas A&M (3) |
| 7 | Texas A&M | Baylor |
| 8 | LSU | LSU |
| 9 | Notre Dame | Notre Dame |
| 10 | UCLA | Ole Miss |
| 11 | Michigan State | Michigan State |
| 12 | Ole Miss | UCLA |
| 13 | Arizona State | Georgia |
| 14 | Georgia | South Carolina |
| 15 | Stanford | Arizona State |
| 16 | South Carolina | Stanford |
| 17 | Wisconsin | USC |
| 18 | Ohio State | Missouri |
| 19 | Missouri | Wisconsin |
| 20 | Kansas State | Kansas State |
| 21 | USC | BYU |
| 22 | Nebraska | Clemson |
| 23 | BYU | Ohio State |
| 24 | Clemson | Nebraska |
| 25 | North Carolina | Oklahoma State |
Reaction
A loss to Boston College meant a huge drop for the Trojans, but just how far?
The loss knocked USC outside of the Top 20 in the Amway Poll. As ESPN Stats & Info notes, the loss was a huge shock this early in the season:
The numbers were staggering for USC, as its defense allowed 452 rushing yards. A nonconference loss hurts the Trojans in the national landscape, but Josh Furlong of KSL.com points out how much it hurt the Pac-12:
Georgia shared USC's upset woes, as the Bulldogs also dropped out of the Top 10 in both polls.
South Carolina was able to pull off a thrilling 38-35 win over UGA, moving to 2-1 on the young season. It wasn't all bad news for the Bulldogs, though, as they remained ahead of the Gamecocks in the Amway Poll.
Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports shares his thoughts on the change for the two programs:
Both are talented teams and remain contenders in the SEC. Unfortunately for both teams, early losses have likely dashed their hopes of participating in the College Football Playoff.
One team that has now entered the Playoff discussion is 3-0 Notre Dame. The Irish followed up a 31-0 win over Michigan with a decisive 30-14 victory against Purdue.
The early results have pushed the Irish into the Top 10 in the Coaches poll, per Comcast SportsNet:
With Everett Golson back under center, Notre Dame has looked strong thus far. But opponents such as Florida State, Arizona State and USC await them.
One trend that continued was the fact that preseason favorites in the Amway Poll have been underwhelming. The Gamecocks and Cardinal bounced back in Week 3, but were among teams that fell early.
But they weren't alone, as Jon Solomon of CBS Sports points out:
Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports also notes just how rare the occurrence is this early in the year:
Another wild week in college football means the rest of the season promises to bring more shakeups. Notre Dame and South Carolina may be on the rise for now, but each has a tough road ahead.
Several shocking results in Week 3 appear to be setting the stage for an interesting stretch leading up to the first College Football Playoff. The class of the country remains Florida State, but the season is far from over.
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