NCAA Football Rankings 2015: Predicting Week 3 College Top 25 Standings

The 2015 NCAA football rankings will experience an inevitable shake-up in the Top 10 thanks to Saturday's clash between Oregon and Michigan State.

Those teams are ranked seventh and fifth, respectively, in the current Associated Press poll. East Lansing proved to be too hostile of an environment for the Ducks to thrive in, as the Spartans notched a huge 31-28 victory to avenge last year's defeat in Eugene.

Check out the latest projections for the Top 25 college football hierarchy, along with a closer look at Oregon-Michigan State and the other marquee matchups that are bound to impact the rankings significantly.

Ranking	Team
1	Ohio State
2	Alabama
3	TCU
4	Michigan State
5	Baylor
6	Florida State
7	USC
8	Georgia
9	UCLA
10	Oregon
11	Notre Dame
12	Clemson
13	LSU
14	Mississippi
15	Oklahoma
16	Texas A&M
17	Georgia Tech
18	Arizona
19	Mississippi State
20	Auburn
21	Utah
22	Boise State
23	Northwestern
24	Wisconsin
25	Arizona State

Ducks signal-caller Vernon Adams Jr. was already dealing with the pressure of succeeding Marcus Mariota at quarterback, and he threw two key interceptions in his first big test running Oregon's offense.

As big as the triumph was for Michigan State, though, its Big Ten rival, Ohio State, is still the clear-cut best team in the country. Its offense was understandably flat to start against facile opponent Hawaii, but the Buckeyes defense welcomed back Joey Bosa for the team's home opener and stymied Hawaii's traditionally pass-heavy attack in a 38-0 shutout.

Cardale Jones, who went to the bench in favor of J.T. Barrett at one point but was an efficient 12-of-18 passing for 111 yards, wasn't thrilled with the Buckeyes' form but hinted at the bottom-line success achieved:

Florida State, another playoff team from last year, had a sluggish first half against South Florida before Seminoles running back Dalvin Cook took matters into his own hands. He ran for 266 yards and three touchdowns to break the game open 34-14.

ESPN analyst Joey Galloway believes Cook deserves to be in the Heisman conversation after helping FSU avoid a potential early-season disaster:

Notre Dame came far closer to an upset before beating Virginia, but starting QB Malik Zaire went down for the season with a fractured ankle, per Irish Illustrated's Pete Sampson. The Fighting Irish suddenly have to turn to DeShone Kizer at their most important position, though he acquitted himself well with a 39-yard game-winning TD toss to Will Fuller.

The Auburn Tigers, meanwhile, had a much tougher challenge than they bargained for against Jacksonville State on Saturday. Auburn was pushed to overtime before finally prevailing 27-20.

For all the hype the Tigers garnered with new defensive coordinator Will Muschamp and fresh QB Jeremy Johnson, the early returns have been less than promising.

Muschamp can't really be faulted for how poorly Johnson has performed in what's supposed to be a run-heavy offense. Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee passed along footage of one of Johnson's picks from Saturday:

ESPN College Football highlights how historically careless Johnson has been with the ball:

The team's record may be 2-0, but don't be surprised if Auburn takes a tumble in the next rankings release from both major polls. Joel Klatt of Fox Sports is especially low on Auburn:

Ranked sixth in the AP poll before the game, the Tigers are in for a steep drop—and matters only worsen for coach Gus Malzahn's team next week, as Auburn travels to Baton Rouge to take on LSU.

Speaking of the other Tigers, coach Les Miles' team faced a far better opponent Saturday in Mississippi State. In its first stern test without departed coordinator John Chavis, now with Texas A&M, the traditionally vaunted LSU defense staved off a comeback bid by Bulldogs QB Dak Prescott in a 21-19 win.

Elsewhere in the reputable SEC, it was a mixed bag. Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Alabama rolled to blowout wins, while Arkansas fell to Toledo and Tennessee blew a 17-point lead to lose to Oklahoma in overtime. Missouri had to grind past Arkansas State by seven points as well.

The other incumbent Top 25 teams shouldn't experience too much movement after taking care of business against inferior opponents. This early juncture of the season doesn't often present danger for the true national title contenders.

While Oregon still has time to bolster its resume and can be commended for competing hard against Michigan State, a team like Auburn will be hard-pressed to climb back into the playoff picture.

The good news for those near the top of the college football crop who are struggling is that it's still early and there is plenty of time to turn things around. But one fact certainty still remains: Ohio State is the team to beat.