NCAA Football Rankings 2016: Week 6 Standings for College's Top 25 Teams
Another week of college football action has come and gone, and as has been par for the course this season, the Top 25 is in for a shakeup after a number of exciting finishes.
Michigan held off a plucky Wisconsin team, while the Tennessee Volunteers managed to outlast Georgia. Texas was bested by Oklahoma State, though, and Florida State got knocked off by the North Carolina Tar Heels.
Let's take a look at the current rankings, along with our predicted post-Week 6 rankings. We'll also examine some of the more impactful results to come out of the weekend.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
| 1 | Alabama | W 34-6 vs. Kentucky | 1 | Alabama |
| 2 | Ohio State | W 58-0 vs. Rutgers | 2 | Ohio State |
| 3 | Louisville | L 36-42 @ Clemson | 3 | Michigan |
| 4 | Michigan | W 14-7 vs. Wisconsin | 4 | Clemson |
| 5 | Clemson | W 42-36 vs. Louisville | 5 | Houston |
| 6 | Houston | W 42-14 vs. Connecticut | 6 | Washington |
| 7 | Stanford | L 6-44 @ Washington | 7 | Texas A&M |
| 8 | Wisconsin | L 7-14 @ Michigan | 8 | Tennessee |
| 9 | Texas A&M | W 24-13 @ South Carolina | 9 | Louisville |
| 10 | Washington | W 44-6 vs. Stanford | 10 | Wisconsin |
| 11 | Tennessee | W 34-31 @ Georgia | 11 | Stanford |
| 12 | Florida State | L 35-37 vs. North Carolina | 12 | Baylor |
| 13 | Baylor | W 45-42 @ Iowa State | 13 | Miami |
| 14 | Miami | W 35-21 @ Georgia Tech | 14 | Nebraska |
| 15 | Nebraska | W 31-16 vs. Illinois | 15 | Florida State |
| 16 | Ole Miss | W 48-28 vs. Memphis | 16 | Ole Miss |
| 17 | Michigan State | L 21-24 @ Indiana | 17 | Arkansas |
| 18 | Utah | L 23-28 @ California | 18 | Florida |
| 19 | San Diego State | L 24-42 @ South Alabama | 19 | Boise State |
| 20 | Arkansas | W 52-10 vs. Alcorn State | 20 | Utah |
| 21 | TCU | L 46-52 vs. Oklahoma | 21 | Georgia |
| 22 | Texas | L 49-31 @ Oklahoma State | 22 | Michigan State |
| 23 | Florida | W 13-6 @ Vanderbilt | 23 | TCU |
| 24 | Boise State | W 21-10 vs. Utah State | 24 | Texas |
| 25 | Georgia | L 31-34 vs. Tennessee | 25 | San Diego State |
No. 10 Washington Conquers No. 7 Stanford 44-6
One of the weekend's biggest surprises came on Friday night, when the Washington Huskies embarrassed the Stanford Cardinal 44-6. It wasn't exactly shocking that Washington won this one, as college football analyst Chris Fowler pointed out before the game on the Rich Eisen Show:
The surprise from Friday came from just how dominant the Washington defense was against Christian McCaffrey and the Stanford offense.
McCaffrey averaged 4.1 yards per carry and accumulated 79 combined rushing and receiving yards on the night. Yet as a team, the Cardinal produced just 213 yards of total offense. Stanford was a lowly 2-of-12 on third-down conversion attempts and 2-of-4 on fourth down.
In the meantime, the Washington offense had its way throughout the contest. Jake Browning passed for three scores, Myles Gaskin rushed for 100 yards and two more touchdowns and the Huskies produced 424 yards of total offense.
Stanford came into the game with a 2-0 Pac-12 record and a legitimate chance of making the College Football Playoff with a strong finish to the season. Now, it appears that the Huskies are the Pac-12 team with a championship roster.
Dieter Kurtenbach of FoxSports.com explained how telling Friday night's result was:
"The first real test of the season, No. 7 Stanford, would give us a clear understanding of where the Huskies sat in the Pac-12 food chain.
The answer: at the top. It’s not even close.
The Huskies made a declaration with their dominating 44-6 win over the Cardinal in the de-facto Pac-12 North title game Friday night in Seattle—Washington is the class of the Pac-12, and a bonafide national championship contender.
"
Stanford falls to 3-1 on the year and likely out of playoff contention.
No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Ohio State
There may have been a few upsets this weekend, but they didn't impact the top of the rankings.
Alabama rocked fellow SEC competitor Kentucky 34-6. The Crimson Tide flaunted their defensive prowess throughout the game, holding the Wildcats to just 161 yards of total offense.
The Buckeyes, meanwhile, held their place by thumping Rutgers 58-0 at home.
J.T. Barrett passed for 238 yards and four touchdowns during the contest, and Mike Weber rushed for 144 yards and a score on just 14 carries.
The Buckeyes held Rutgers to a mere 116 yards of total offense.
Given the blowouts administered by Alabama and Ohio State, the top two programs maintain their spots, even if some believe the Buckeyes should probably hold the top spot.
"The Buckeyes' 58-0 destruction of Rutgers on Saturday in Columbus was a fright fest for the rest of the Big Ten—and the nation—to witness," Tom Dienhart of BTN.com wrote after Saturday's game. "How good is Ohio State? Do the Buckeyes have any weaknesses? I haven't really seen any through Ohio State's march to a 4-0 start."
There's a strong chance that these two teams meet in the College Football Playoff.
No. 5 Clemson Bests No. 3 Louisville 42-36
Perhaps the biggest game of the weekend came on Saturday night, when the Louisville Cardinals and Clemson Tigers faced off.
This matchup was significant because it paired Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson and Clemson signal-caller Deshaun Watson.
Both quarterbacks had their ups and downs in the contest. Jackson went 27-of-44 for 295 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Watson went 20-of-31 for 306 yards with five touchdowns and three picks.
In the end, it was Clemson's defense that secured the win, stopping Jackson and Co. a yard short on 4th-and-12 from the Clemson 14-yard line.
Watson—who might end up being the first pick in next year's NFL draft—gets the win over Jackson, who might eventually be a top NFL pick himself.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
