College Football Rankings 2018: Updated NCAA Week 8 Standings, Final Poll Review
Clemson, Michigan and Oregon are the high-profile college football programs under the microscope in Week 8.
Each of the three teams face a difficult test Saturday that could either strengthen or hurt their respective College Football Playoff chances.
The Tigers haven't proved much on the national level because of their weak schedule, while the Wolverines and Ducks are looking to extend their strong play into Week 8 after earning impressive wins a week ago.
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With three Top 10 teams off in Week 8, we might not witness as much carnage to the rankings as we did after Week 7, but there's still the potential for a few surprising results to pop up.
Week 8 Polls
AP Top 25
1. Alabama (7-0)
2. Ohio State (7-0)
3. Clemson (6-0)
4. Notre Dame (7-0)
5. LSU (6-1)
6. Michigan (6-1)
7. Texas (6-1)
8. Georgia (6-1)
9. Oklahoma (5-1)
10. UCF (6-0)
11. Florida (6-1)
12. Oregon (5-1)
13. West Virginia (5-1)
14. Kentucky (5-1)
15. Washington (5-2)
16. NC State (5-0)
17. Texas A&M (5-2)
18. Penn State (4-2)
19. Iowa (5-1)
20. Cincinnati (6-0)
21. South Florida (6-0)
22. Mississippi State (4-2)
23. Wisconsin (4-2)
24. Michigan State (4-2)
25. Washington State (5-1)
Amway Coaches Poll
1. Alabama (7-0)
2. Ohio State (7-0)
3. Clemson (6-0)
4. Notre Dame (7-0)
5. LSU (6-1)
6. Georgia (6-1)
7. Michigan (6-1)
8. Texas (6-1)
9. UCF (6-0)
10. Oklahoma (5-1)
11. Oregon (5-1)
12. Florida (6-1)
13. West Virginia (5-1)
14. Washington (5-2)
15. NC State (5-0)
16. Penn State (4-2)
17. Kentucky (5-1)
18. Texas A&M (5-2)
19. Wisconsin (4-2)
20. South Florida (6-0)
21. Cincinnati (6-0)
22. Iowa (5-1)
23. Washington State (5-1)
24. Stanford (4-2)
25. Colorado (5-1)
Clemson Faces Only Ranked Foe On Schedule
Of all the teams in contention for the College Football Playoff, Clemson possesses the weakest schedule.
Saturday's home clash with NC State is the only matchup the Tigers have against a ranked foe in the regular season, and the slate might not look any better with Clemson's ACC Championship Game opponent expected to be out of the Top 25.
Simply put, Clemson needs to win, and to ease any nerves in the playoff debate, the Tigers need to blow out the visiting Wolfpack.
In addition to the offense needing to make a statement, the Tigers have an opportunity to flex their muscles against an NFL-caliber quarterback in NC State's Ryan Finley.
The tenacious defensive line group of Clelin Ferrell, Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence and Austin Bryant was talked about by many pundits at the start of the season, but we haven't seen them at their best because of the low-profile opponents Clemson has faced.
If everything goes right for the Tigers, they'll smother NC State and make a statement to the rest of the nation that they are for real.
Unfortunately for Dabo Swinney's team, a dominant win over the Wolfpack might not be enough to win over every one of its critics, as none of its five remaining opponents is ranked.
Pac-12 Holding Out Hope In Oregon
It feels like this has been said every week, but it remains true.
The Pac-12 is in desperate need of its best team to win Saturday in order to stay relevant in the College Football Playoff conversation.
Oregon upended the previous top Pac-12 hopeful Washington a week ago, and it can take control of the Pac-12 North with a road victory over Washington State.
At this point in time, the Ducks are one of three one-loss teams left in the Pac-12 with Washington State and Colorado, who fell from the ranks of the unbeaten teams in Week 7, the other two.
Winning on the road won't be easy, especially with College GameDay's inaugural visit to Pullman, Washington, putting an extra charge into the crowd.
If Oregon wins, it will most likely outduel the Cougars in a high-scoring affair, as the two teams have combined to throw for 37 touchdowns.
Oregon's Justin Herbert has received plenty of NFL hype, and he's been able to display his skill set in some of the Ducks' marquee games.
However, Washington State's Gardner Minshew, who leads the FBS in passing yards, will be a worthy adversary over four quarters, which means you won't be able to turn your eyes away from this game for long.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90
Statistics obtained from ESPN.com
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