College Football Rankings 2014: Week 13 AP and Amway Standings Revealed

The 2014 college football season has been unpredictable, to say the least, and the resulting Associated Press and Amway Coaches’ Top 25 rankings reflect the madness that took place on Saturday.

With the Alabama Crimson Tide beating the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the game of the week and several other ranked programs taking heartbreaking losses, the turnover in the polls is reflective of the quality of competition.

Here are the Associated Press and Amway Coaches’ polls for Week 13 and the biggest winner and loser from Saturday’s wild on-field action.

Biggest Winner: Alabama Crimson Tide

The biggest winners of the week were the Crimson Tide. The 25-20 victory over Mississippi State proved Alabama was still a top contender for a national championship, but the way the team won proved the current roster can stand toe-to-toe with any team in the nation.

On the offensive side of the ball, head coach Nick Saban has kept the offensive game plan simple, helping quarterback Blake Sims avoid making mistakes. With wide receiver Amari Cooper proving to be an elite target and running back T.J. Yeldon consistently churning out yardage, the Crimson Tide has averaged 33.7 points per game this season.

As good as the offense has been, Alabama’s biggest strength is the defense. Whether it’s stopping the run or shutting down the passing attack, the Crimson Tide are now only allowing 14.5 points per game, the second-fewest in the sport.

Alabama still has tough tests against Auburn and in a possible SEC Championship Game, but the experience of the program in big games was a big reason the team won on Saturday and will enter the College Football Playoff as a legitimate contender.

Biggest Loser: Arizona State Sun Devils

The Arizona State Sun Devils entered Week 12 at No. 6 in the College Football Playoff rankings, but a devastating loss to Oregon State has killed any hope the program had of making it into the top four.

Arizona State has a favorable matchup against Washington State on Saturday and a final regular-season game against Arizona, but the two losses this season ensure the Sun Devils will not make the Playoff. The strength of the team’s victories does not outweigh the way the team was defeated twice.

There is no doubt that beating Notre Dame, USC, Utah and Stanford makes for a successful year, but the most Arizona State can hope for is a top-10 finishing spot. If the Sun Devils had won out and a team like Oregon suffered another defeat, the program would have been a serious Top Four contender.

Unfortunately, Oregon State had different plans. For Sun Devils fans, Saturday’s loss was the worst-case scenario.

*Stats via ESPN.com.