NCAA Football Rankings 2017: Week 11 Standings for College's Top 25 Teams
The college football rankings are bound for a major shakeup heading into Week 11.
Seven games on the Week 10 slate were between ranked teams, this coming the weekend after the first College Football Playoff rankings of the season. There were upsets, offensive outbursts, suffocating defenses and the epitome of bedlam in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Here's a look at the latest standings for the top 25 teams in the country.
Top 25 Teams Week 11 Standings
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Team Week 10 Result
1. Georgia (9-0) W, 24-10 vs. South Carolina
2. Alabama (9-0) W, 24-10 vs. No. 19 LSU
3. Notre Dame (8-1) W, 48-37 vs. Wake Forest
4. Clemson (8-1) W, 38-31 at No. 20 NC State
5. Oklahoma (8-1) W, 62-52 at No. 11 Oklahoma State
6. Ohio State (7-2) L, 55-24 at Iowa
7. Penn State (7-2) L, 27-24 at No. 24 Michigan State
8. TCU (8-1) W, 24-7 vs. Texas
9. Wisconsin (9-0) W, 45-17 at Indiana
10. Miami (8-0) W, 28-10 vs. No. 13 Virginia Tech
11. Oklahoma State (7-2) L, 62-52 vs. No. 5 Oklahoma
12. Washington (8-1) W, 38-3 vs. Oregon
13. Virginia Tech (7-2) L, 28-10 at No. 10 Miami
14. Auburn (7-2) W 42-27 at Texas A&M
15. Iowa State (6-3) L, 20-16 at West Virginia
16. Mississippi State (7-2) W, 34-23 vs. UMass
17. USC (8-2) W, 49-35 vs. No. 22 Arizona
18. UCF (8-0) W, 31-24 at SMU
19. LSU (6-3) L, 24-10 at No. 2 Alabama
20. North Carolina State (6-3) L, 38-31 vs. No. 4 Clemson
21. Stanford (6-3) L, 24-21, at No. 25 Washington State
22. Arizona (6-3) L, 49-35 at No. 17 USC
23. Memphis (8-1) W, 41-14 at Tulsa
24. Michigan State (7-2) W, 27-24 vs. No. 7 Penn State
25. Washington State (8-2) W, 24-21 vs. No. 21 Stanford
Some questioned Georgia's status as the top team in the nation, ahead of the perennial contenders in the Alabama Crimson Tide, but the Bulldogs are unlikely to relinquish their top spot when the next rankings are revealed on Tuesday.
Both Georgia and Alabama won home games by scores of 24-10 against SEC opponents with 6-3 records. While Alabama played a ranked foe in No. 19 LSU and Georgia played unranked South Carolina, nothing in either game stood out so much as to make the committee rethink its decision to grant Georgia top billing.
No game was crazier than No. 5 Oklahoma's 62-52 road win over No. 11 Oklahoma State. The two teams combined for 1,446 yards of total offense, 62 first downs, 15 offensive touchdowns and there was somehow time for five turnovers.
No player was more magnificent than Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield, who burnished his Heisman credentials with an eye-popping statline, per ESPN College Football:
Oklahoma might be able to move up a spot in the standings, but it's hard to fault No. 4 Clemson for holding on against No. 20 North Carolina State 38-31 in a hostile road environment. No. 3 Notre Dame is also set to stay put with a solid win over Wake Forest.
It was a bad week for the heavyweights from the Big Ten. Both Ohio State and Penn State lost on Saturday, a week after the former beat the latter 39-38 in a hugely entertaining rivalry game. The Nittany Lions dropped a squeaker to No. 24 Michigan State on Saturday, while the Buckeyes fell in truly shocking fashion, 55-24 to the unranked Iowa Hawkeyes.
Tied at 17-17 in the first quarter, Iowa went on a tear, scoring 31 unanswered points and whipping Ohio State in about every facet of the game. Nate Stanley threw five touchdown passes, while cornerback Josh Jackson notched three interceptions.
NFLDraftScout.com's Dane Brugler noted Jackson is a breakout star this season:
Iowa was in such a good mood, they even converted a fourth down with a nifty swinging gate play, as seen in this video from the Big Ten Network:
With the Buckeyes and Penn State now each holding two losses, their playoff hopes are likely over. Every team ahead of them in the rankings won, and the likes of undefeated Wisconsin and Miami should pass them in the standings, as well as 8-1 Texas Christian.
CBS Sports' Jerry Palm noted Wisconsin is the best hope for the Big Ten to keep a team in the College Football Playoff but said the Badgers will have to stay perfect to do so:
"I still believe the Badgers have to be undefeated to get that spot, and like Florida State in 2014, would be seeded behind at least one one-loss team. That year, the Seminoles were the only major-conference unbeaten team but were seeded third because of a weak schedule. I will not believe that the CFP Selection Committee will leave out an undefeated, major conference team until it actually does it. If Wisconsin does not win the Big Ten title at 13-0, then the league will likely get shut out of the playoff for the first time in its brief history."
Miami is flirting around the edges of the playoff picture, but the Hurricanes can perhaps take a big leap forward next week as they take on Notre Dame. The 'Canes are one of only five undefeated teams remaining in the top-25—Central Florida deserves note for putting together a fantastic season after years of dismal play—and a win over Notre Dame would make things especially tough on the CFP selection committee.
They dispatched No. 13 Virginia Tech 28-10 on Saturday in cooly efficient fashion, their first top-25 win of the season. Miami's defense came up with four turnovers, leading to multiple appearances of the coveted turnover chain, per ESPN:
The defense will have its hands full against the Fighting Irish, who put up 710 yards of offense against Wake Forest. Notre Dame gave up more than 500 yards of their own, but they still won rather comfortably.
"It was a little sloppy, but the message is a win's a win," offensive lineman Mike McGlinchey said, per the Chicago Tribune's LaMond Pope. "We have a good thing going here right now and we have to make sure we keep it going."
Miami will still need to see some teams ahead of them stumble, but the school is lurking and could shake up the rankings with a win in Week 11. ESPN College Gameday will be in South Beach for the pivotal contest. It's one that has major implications for the College Football Playoff as the season gets into the home stretch.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
