Amway College Football Poll 2019: Week 8 Rankings Unveiled for Top 25 Teams
Week 7 was one hell of a wild ride.
From crucial conference matchups to one particularly stunning upset, the race for the College Football Playoff took a few interesting twists and turns Saturday that had interesting repercussions on the Amway Coaches Poll as well.
Below, we'll take a look at the new rankings and take a look back at how we got here.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Rankings
1. Alabama
2. Clemson
3. LSU
4. Ohio State
5. Oklahoma
6. Wisconsin
7. Penn State
8. Notre Dame
9. Florida
10. Georgia
11. Auburn
12. Oregon
13. Boise State
14. Utah
15. Texas
16. Michigan
17. Arizona State
18. Baylor
19. SMU
20. Minnesota
21. Cincinnati
22. Iowa
23. Washington
24. Appalachian State
25. Temple
Teams dropped from rankings: Wake Forest, Virginia, Memphis, Texas A&M.
Recap
Saturday was a huge day around college football, and no result was more shocking than South Carolina's 20-17 upset win over Georgia in double overtime, a result that had major reverberations atop the rankings.
The Bulldogs and quarterback Jake Fromm—who had four turnovers in the loss—will be kicking themselves for dropping a game that saw them win the yardage battle 468-297 and hold a significant advantage in time of possession (36:04).
But overcoming four turnovers from Fromm and two missed field goals from Rodrigo Blankenship was beyond the Bulldogs on Saturday.
"You can't beat anybody when you have a 4-0 turnover margin," Georgia coach Kirby Smart said after the game, per the Associated Press. "We didn't force any on defense. We didn't cause any problems on defense and we didn't take care of the ball."
The one positive for Georgia on the day was that the loss didn't dramatically hurt their chances at winning the SEC East and earning a berth in the conference title game after LSU knocked off Florida 42-28 behind strong performances from Heisman hopeful Joe Burrow (293 passing yards, three touchdowns) and running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire (134 rushing yards, two scores).
But Burrow said it was LSU's offensive line that stole the show.
"We knew that last year they got after us up front. Our offensive line took that personally," he said, per the AP. "I was just so proud of those guys. There was no pressure the entire night."
Alabama hasn't been put under much pressure yet this season, easily dispatching of the best opponent it has yet to face in Texas A&M on Saturday 47-28. Tua Tagovailoa continued to build his Heisman resume, throwing for 293 yards, four touchdowns and an interception.
Speaking of Heisman candidacies, Jalen Hurts kept his name in the ring by leading Oklahoma to a 34-27 win over Texas in the Red River Shootout. Hurts did it through the air (235 passing yards, three touchdowns, one interception) and on the ground (17 rushes for 131 yards and a score), consistently coming up with big play after big play when the Sooners needed them.
But Hurts was more focused on what he could have done better Saturday.
"I would say I didn't put the team in the greatest and best situation," he said, according to the AP. "Not a complete game, but a step in the right direction."
And one step closer to a playoff berth for the Sooners.
Those weren't the only key results of the day, as Clemson smoked Florida State, Penn State traveled to Iowa and left with a 17-12 win, and Notre Dame escaped with a three-point win over USC.
The big matchups will only keep coming. The Nittany Lions host the Michigan Wolverines next Saturday night, while Week 8 will also include a key Pac-12 showdown between Arizona State and Utah and Temple battling SMU fresh off the Owls upset win over of Memphis.
Not the loaded slate college fans were treated to in Week 7, but some solid matchups nonetheless.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
