College Football Rankings 2015: Breaking Down Best Teams in Week 4 AP Poll

The Associated Press released its Week 4 college football rankings Sunday. Despite a close call in its most recent contest, reigning national champion Ohio State continues to reign supreme as No. 1.

Another marquee Big Ten program in Michigan State is just behind the Buckeyes in second. It won't be until November when the two teams meet, but that matchup figures to go a long way in shaping the College Football Playoff picture.

Two teams are tied for third in the latest AP poll. Ole Miss shot up from 15th and actually have the second-most first-place votes, while the Spartans passed TCU, which held firm at No. 3.

Check out the complete Top 25 below, followed by a more detailed breakdown of the best teams in the country. 

Rank	Team (1st-Place Votes)
1	Ohio State (42)
2	Michigan State (7)
T3	Ole Miss (11)
T3	TCU
5	Baylor
6	Notre Dame
7	Georgia
8	LSU (1)
9	UCLA
10	Florida State
11	Clemson
12	Alabama
13	Oregon
14	Texas A&M
15	Oklahoma
16	Arizona
17	Northwestern
18	Utah
19	USC
20	Georgia Tech
21	Stanford
22	Wisconsin
23	BYU
24	Oklahoma State
25	Missouri

Ohio State

Head coach Urban Meyer's Buckeyes have played exceptional defense but are struggling most with the position that appeared to be a luxury of sorts entering the 2015 campaign.

Meyer has flip-flopped between quarterbacks Cardale Jones and J.T. Barrett. Neither player has looked particularly good through the first three games, perhaps due to the lack of conviction Meyer has had about who will run the show for OSU's explosive offense.

For people who look at the Buckeyes' QB depth chart with that type of perspective, Meyer had a resounding retort on Monday, per ESPN.com's Austin Ward:

"

I hear someone say, 'How can you play quarterback with someone looking over your shoulder.' My comment to that person was, 'How do you not?' If you think you're going to play at the next level, there's going to probably be one better than you standing right next to you, so get used to it. It doesn't mean you get hooked [permanently], but if you have a bad day, you get replaced. That might not be everyone's philosophy, and that's OK.

"

After only managing to beat Northern Illinois 20-13 at home, Ohio State has to use the upset bid as a wake-up call. The team did resort to running more with Ezekiel Elliott (23 carries, 108 yards), which should be the strategy regardless of who's in at QB.

SportsCenter highlighted how low the Buckeyes sank this past Saturday:

It seems as though OSU has so many playmakers that Meyer is struggling to determine how to integrate everyone into the lineup. Not a bad problem to have, but it would behoove the entire team for Meyer to stick with either Jones or Barrett and live with the consequences.

There's no doubt the Buckeyes have a playoff-caliber defense. Between defensive end Joey Bosa, linebacker Darron Lee and safety Vonn Bell, there is first-round-caliber NFL talent at every level of a unit that's allowing only 3.31 yards per play.

As long as Ohio State continues to stymie the opposition, its status atop the rankings shouldn't be seriously threatened. By the time November's road trip to East Lansing rolls around, the offense ought to be in far better shape than it is now.

Michigan State

Al Goldis/Associated Press

Former Buckeyes defensive coordinator Mark Dantonio has done well during his Spartans tenure, but he has never been this close to national title contention.

Spartans Football illustrates the historical significance of Michigan State's new AP standing:

One big reason fans of the program can be so optimistic is the experience and high level of play from quarterback Connor Cook. The senior signal-caller could have gone to the NFL but opted to return in 2015 and proceeded to defeat Oregon and avenge last year's defeat.

Dane Brugler of CBSSports.com praised Cook's knack for stepping up when it matters most:

Three first-half touchdown passes against Air Force kept Cook's promising year going in the right direction.

With two freshmen running backs in Madre London and LJ Scott counted on to pound the rock, it's vital for someone such as Cook to put Michigan State's offense in a position to succeed.

Dantonio can be counted on to make the defense stout. Even though the total yardage numbers aren't pretty (94th in yards per game allowed), Sparty already has a plus-five turnover margin. Cook is a savvy field general who can take care of the ball and be the difference-maker the Spartans need at the most important position to make a playoff run.

Ole Miss

Speaking of defense, the Rebels' anchor on that side of the football, defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche, has been touted as a blue-chip recruit and has struggled to live up to borderline unrealistic expectations.

Whatever doubts anyone had about Nkemdiche matching the hype were extinguished when he helped Ole Miss hound Alabama for most of three quarters in a landmark 43-37 victory. ESPN's Mike Greenberg felt compelled to say the following after Nkemdiche's performance against the Crimson Tide:

And to highlight the impact the Nkemdiche-led defense had, let's return to the topic of turnovers. ESPN CollegeFootball alludes to how Ole Miss forced a characteristically composed Alabama team into numerous, game-costing mistakes:

As strong as the Rebels look defensively, they have a QB in Chad Kelly who's playing exceptional football. Kelly passed for 341 yards, tossed three TDs and had zero interceptions in his most recent start. He's averaging a whopping 12.3 yards per attempt thus far in 2015.

The nephew of Jim Kelly appears to have the intangibles and playmaking ability to allow Ole Miss to ascend to the top of the SEC. It's going to be interesting to see how Chad Kelly handles the early success as the gauntlet of the conference slate gets underway.

While Ohio State and Michigan State have rather easy roads to tread before meeting each other on November 21, the Rebels have to be on their guard every week given the quality of competition they face on a weekly basis.

After its triumph in Tuscaloosa, though, Ole Miss can take solace in the fact that its two remaining ranked SEC opponents are Texas A&M and LSU. The Aggies and Tigers have to travel to Oxford on October 24 and November 21, respectively.

The key is for Ole Miss to avoid a letdown until those marquee matchups, which is far easier said than done—as Buckeyes fans could attest to after this past weekend.

Note: Stats courtesy of NCAA.com unless otherwise indicated.