NCAA Football Rankings 2017: Week 10 Standings and Analysis for Latest Polls
As the first release of the College Football Playoff rankings loom and more ranked teams line up across the field from each other, the AP Top 25 will continue to experience shakeups.
After Week 9's drama, Georgia and Ohio State moved right beneath Alabama after losses by Penn State and TCU. Further down the rankings, Iowa State jumped 11 spots following its second win over a top five team.
The rest of the Top 25 provides us with a look at who is a playoff favorite, a contender and who has plenty of work left to do to reach the biggest bowl games in the sport.
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AP Top 25
1. Alabama (8-0)
2. Georgia (8-0)
3. Ohio State (7-1)
4. Wisconsin (8-0)
5. Notre Dame (7-1)
6. Clemson (7-1)
7. Penn State (7-1)
8. Oklahoma (7-1)
9. Miami (FL) (7-0)
10. TCU (7-1)
11. Oklahoma State (7-1)
12. Washington (7-1)
13. Virginia Tech (7-1)
14. Iowa State (6-2)
15. UCF (7-0)
16. Auburn (6-2)
17. USC (7-2)
18. Stanford (6-2)
19. LSU (6-2)
20. NC State (6-2)
21. Mississippi State (6-2)
22. Memphis (7-1)
23. Arizona (6-2)
24. Michigan State (6-2)
25. Washington State (7-2)
Ohio State's Early Loss Not Scaring Voters
As we compare resumes over the next month, Ohio State's home loss to Oklahoma on September 9 will stick out to some voters, especially if a few teams remain unbeaten.
However, it looks like losing early will only benefit the Buckeyes, who have slowly climbed back up to No. 3 and now have a quality win on their resume following Saturday's victory over Penn State.
What will help the Buckeyes in the coming weeks will be the success of the Sooners. If Oklahoma is able to navigate the Big 12, starting with Saturday's Bedlam game against Oklahoma State, Ohio State's loss will only look better.
As long as they take care of business in the final full month of the regular season, the Buckeyes will remain a favorite in the eyes of the voters and have a clear path into the College Football Playoff.
Notre Dame is a Clear Playoff Contender
There are a lot of nervous teams in the Big 12, Pac-12 and ACC looking at how high Notre Dame is after Week 9. If they win out, the Irish will steal a playoff bid from one of the power conferences.
The Fighting Irish, who sit at No. 5 with a 7-1 record, have dominated each of their opponents since the Week 2 defeat at home to Georgia. The wins in the last two weeks over USC and NC State have solidified Notre Dame among the playoff contenders. The last time the Irish beat two Top 15 teams in a season was 2012, when they went to the national championship, per ESPN Stats and Info on Twitter:
Much like Ohio State, Notre Dame's loss is to a Top 10 team, but unlike the Buckeyes, the one that beat the Irish should run the table before the SEC Championship. The other difference between the Buckeyes and Brian Kelly's lineup is the final two tests of the season for the Irish come on the road at Miami (FL) and Stanford.
A four-spot leap after a home win over a ranked team made it clear the Irish have everyone's attention, and they'll only get more love if they come out of Miami and Palo Alto, California, with an added number in the win column.
Iowa State is for Real
Iowa State added an extra element to the mess atop the Big 12 with a home victory over TCU on Saturday. The Cyclones are joined by Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and TCU at 4-1 in Big 12 play.
If anyone had doubts about Matt Campbell's team following the upset of Oklahoma, they were erased over the weekend as it limited the Horned Frogs to seven points. With the win over TCU, the Cyclones became the first team since 2005 to beat two teams in the Top Five before November, per AP's Ralph D. Russo on Twitter:
The hype surrounding the Cyclones will only get louder if they beat West Virginia and Oklahoma State in the next two weeks to gain control in a conference that is harder to solve than a Rubik's Cube.
Iowa State has been rewarded for its resume, one that rivals any program in the country. In order to crack the Top 10 in the coming weeks, the Cyclones must win while the top-notch teams above them fight out for national supremacy.
Keep an Eye on Arizona
If you haven't been paying attention to Khalil Tate and the Arizona Wildcats, it's time to start tuning in. The Wildcats entered the rankings after a 58-37 win over Washington State on Saturday in Tucson, Arizona.
Tate is the main reason Arizona is catching headlines, as he's run for over 100 yards in each of his last four games and has had a run of 70-plus yards in the same stretch.
The quarterback is one of a few stars out West looking to challenge Saquon Barkley in the Heisman Trophy race. Tate is averaging three more yards per carry than Stanford's star running back and Heisman candidate Bryce Love, per Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports on Twitter:
Saturday's trip to USC will be a big test for Tate and the Wildcats, as a win would put them in the driver's seat in the Pac-12 South.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
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