Amway College Football Poll 2019: Complete Week 3 Rankings Revealed
Week 2 on the college football schedule didn't disappoint, with a number of high-profile games and close calls and the nation's top team continuing its impressive win streak.
As always, the implications were felt on the Amway Coaches Poll.
Rankings
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1. Clemson
2. Alabama
3. Georgia
4. Oklahoma
5. LSU
6. Ohio State
7. Notre Dame
8. Florida
9. Auburn
10. Michigan
11. Penn State
12. Utah
13. Texas
14. Wisconsin
15. Texas A&M
16. UCF
17. Oregon
18. Iowa
19. Michigan State
20. Washington State
21. Washington
22. Boise State
23. Mississippi State
24. USC
25. Maryland
Schools dropped out: Syracuse, Stanford and Nebraska
Analysis
Clemson's spot is secure after its dominant 24-10 victory over Texas A&M on Saturday. Save for a garbage-time touchdown, Clemson's defense was stifling, frustrating Kellen Mond and the Aggies offense all afternoon.
It was a far cry from the matchup last year, when Clemson survived a tight battle with Texas A&M, winning 28-26. "We wanted to leave no doubt this year," quarterback Trevor Lawrence said, per the Associated Press (h/t ESPN). "I think we did that."
The Tigers served notice to the rest of the country.
Like Clemson, several top teams cruised, including Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma and Ohio State, aka the usual suspects. But a number of teams found themselves in real battles, some more surprising than others.
Michigan, for example, needed double overtime to survive against Army 24-21. For a team with title aspirations, the Wolverines have a lot of work to do.
"The entire football game we made mistakes offensively—penalties, and turnovers, and turnovers on downs," Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said, per the AP (h/t ESPN). "The defense was not in the best positions, but they played great."
LSU and Joe Burrow survived a shootout with Texas, meanwhile, showing composure and resilience in a back-and-forth slugfest. The Tigers quarterback finished 31-of-39 for 471 yards, four touchdowns and an interception, out-dueling the equally impressive Sam Ehlinger (401 yards, four passing scores, one rushing).
The new-look LSU offense seems like it will present major problems for opponents in 2019, especially if Burrow continues to play like a potential Heisman finalist.
Chalk mostly held Saturday, though a few ranked teams suffered losses, including Washington, Syracuse, Stanford and Nebraska. Add in Texas losing and Michigan struggling, and the rankings always seemed likely to look a lot different Sunday.
They could face a major shake-up next week as well when Stanford faces UCF, Iowa takes on Iowa State and Clemson matches up with Syracuse. Week 3 won't feature the premier matchups we saw in Week 2, but in college football, the upsets always come.
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