AP College Football Poll 2015: Week 4 Rankings, Projections for Top 25 Teams
After a wild weekend of college football, the Top 25 has received a major shake-up.
Alabama and USC suffered tough home losses, resulting in precipitous falls down the rankings. Meanwhile, Ole Miss, LSU and Notre Dame put together convincing wins against quality opponents and are on the rise.
Here's a look at the updated polls and a quick look through next week's action, along with a breakdown of the key games on the schedule.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
| 1. | Ohio State | Ohio State | Ohio State |
| 2. | Michigan State | TCU | Michigan State |
| 3. | TCU (T-3) | Michigan State | Ole Miss |
| 4. | Ole Miss (T-3) | Baylor | TCU |
| 5. | Baylor | Ole Miss | Baylor |
| 6. | Notre Dame | Georgia | Notre Dame |
| 7. | Georgia | Florida State | Georgia |
| 8. | LSU | Notre Dame | LSU |
| 9. | UCLA | LSU | Clemson |
| 10. | Florida State | Clemson | Alabama |
| 11. | Clemson | UCLA | UCLA |
| 12. | Alabama | Alabama | Florida State |
| 13. | Oregon | Oregon | Texas A&M |
| 14. | Texas A&M | Oklahoma | Oregon |
| 15. | Oklahoma | Texas A&M | Oklahoma |
| 16. | Northwestern | Arizona | Arizona |
| 17. | Arizona | Utah | USC (T-17) |
| 18. | Utah | USC | Utah (T-17) |
| 19. | USC | Northwestern | Georgia Tech |
| 20. | Georgia Tech | Georgia Tech | Northwestern |
| 21. | Stanford | Wisconsin | Wisconsin |
| 22. | Wisconsin (T-22) | Oklahoma State | BYU |
| 23. | BYU (T-22) | Missouri | Oklahoma State |
| 24. | Oklahoma State | Stanford | Stanford |
| 25. | Missouri | Auburn | West Virginia |
| - | Fri., Sept. 25 | - | - |
| 10 p.m. | No. 21 Stanford (-16.5) at Oregon State | FS1 | STAN |
| - | Sat., Sept. 26 | - | - |
| 12 p.m. | No. 22 BYU at Michigan (-6) | ABC | BYU |
| 12 p.m. | Central Michigan at No. 2 Michigan State (-28.5) | BTN | CMU |
| 12 p.m. | No. 20 Georgia Tech (-10) at Duke | ESPN2 | GT |
| 12 p.m. | Southern at No. 7 Georgia (N/A) | ESPNU | - |
| 12 p.m. | No. 8 LSU (-24) at Syracuse | ESPN | LSU |
| 3 p.m. | Rice at No. 5 Baylor (-33) | FSN | RICE |
| 3:30 p.m. | No. 24 Oklahoma State (-5) at Texas | ESPN | TEX |
| 3:30 p.m. | Massachusetts at No. 6 Notre Dame (-28.5) | NBC | ND |
| 3:30 p.m. | Western Michigan at No. 1 Ohio State (-27) | ABC | OSU |
| 4 p.m. | LA-Monroe at No. 12 Alabama (-39) | SEC | BAMA |
| 4:45 p.m. | No. 3 TCU (-9.5) at Texas Tech | FOX | TTU |
| 7 p.m. | No. 14 Texas A&M (-3.5) at Arkansas | ESPN | TAMU |
| 7 p.m. | Vanderbilt at No. 3 Ole Miss (-28) | ESPNU | MISS |
| 7:30 p.m. | No. 25 Missouri at Kentucky (-2.5) | SEC | UK |
| 8 p.m. | No. 9 UCLA (-4.5) at No. 16 Arizona | ABC | UCLA |
| 8 p.m. | Ball State at No. 17 Northwestern (-18) | BTN | NW |
| 8 p.m. | Hawaii at No. 22 Wisconsin (-28) | BTN | WISC |
| 8:30 p.m. | No. 18 Utah at No. 13 Oregon (N/A) | FOX | - |
| 10:30 p.m. | No. 19 USC (-6) at Arizona State | ESPN | USC |
Notable Games
No. 22 BYU at Michigan (-6)
It's extremely rare to see a ranked team as nearly a touchdown underdog to an unranked opponent, but apparently, the Vegas insiders aren't buying into Tanner Mangum's magic.
"Came away VERY impressed with BYU. That's a good team. Yes they are big, old, strong, and Tall. Next at Michigan will tell more.
— Chris Dufresne (@DufresneLATimes) September 20, 2015"
Since a disappointing opening-week loss at Utah, Michigan has been much improved on its home turf, especially on the defensive side of the ball.
To hold off BYU, however, they'll need quarterback Jake Rudock to cut down on the costly mistakes. Through three games, Rudock has tossed five interceptions, already matching his total from 2014.
No. 14 Texas A&M (-3.5) at Arkansas
Arkansas' season rests on this game, as the Razorbacks certainly cannot afford a three-game losing streak before hitting the meat of their schedule.
This could also be a critical game in head coach Bret Bielema's career, as another loss would see the mounting criticisms against him push him closer to the hot seat.
"Bret Bielema has apparently made himself into the Kim Jong-Un of the coaching fraternity.
— Cecil Hurt (@CecilHurt) September 20, 2015"
For Texas A&M, this game serves as a warm-up to a brutal SEC stretch in which they'll play Mississippi State, Alabama and Ole Miss in consecutive games.
No. 9 UCLA (-4.5) at No. 16 Arizona
It's interesting to see UCLA favored by a decent spread on the road, especially after nearly losing at home to BYU.
UCLA's true freshman quarterback Josh Rosen has had moments of greatness, but he showed some flaws against the Cougars.
This has the makings of a high-scoring affair which could simply be decided by who wins the turnover battle—or who has the ball last.
No. 18 Utah at No. 13 Oregon
With both starting quarterbacks' status up in the air, this game is off of the board for now.
Vernon Adams sat out as Oregon cruised to victory over Georgia State, while Travis Wilson missed Utah's victory over Fresno State.
"Whitt says that Travis Wilson could have played tonight, but choose to rest him and play Kendall. Made that decision this morning. #Utes
— Bill Riley (@espn700bill) September 20, 2015"
Regardless of the quarterback situation, this will be a matchup of two great running backs—possibly the best in the conference.
Running back Royce Freeman has already racked up 373 yards on the ground this season, but he was held to a modest 99 yards on 15 carries against Utah last year.
For Utah, Devontae Booker is coming off of a 156-yard performance against Fresno State, but he was held to 65 yards against Oregon last year—his lowest total in Pac-12 play.
Rankings courtesy of Amway Coaches, Associated Press and Bleacher Report.
Note: Games without ATS picks do not have a set line according to Odds Shark at time of publishing.
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.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
