Last week’s rank in parentheses:
TOP 25
1. Alabama, 8-0 (1): At LSU this week. Enough said.
2. Oregon, 8-0 (2): At USC this week. Enough said.
3. Notre Dame, 8-0 (4): Smooth sailing for three weeks until USC game.
4. Kansas State, 8-0 (5): Wildcats should win out, rest up to computers.
5. LSU, 7-1 (8): Saturday is the Tigers’ shot.
6. Ohio State, 9-0 (9): Probation as inspiration? Apparently.
7. Georgia, 7-1 (13): At Auburn no longer daunting.
8. Florida, 7-1 (3): Missouri will be punished for Gators’ letdown at Georgia.
9. Florida State, 8-1 (11): Spent last week smacking the Dukies. Hokies this week.
10. Clemson, 7-1 (14): At Duke this week, where, inexplicably, Duke is undefeated.
11. South Carolina, 7-2 (16): Here’s hoping Marcus Lattimore gets better.
12. Louisville, 8-0 (17): Hate to have Cardinals this high. Won’t play a ranked team until bowl game.
13. USC, 6-2 (6): Lane Kiffin making Paul Wulff’s offense look extravagant.
14. Stanford, 6-2 (12): Bumpy against Cougars last week, gets to punish Colorado this week.
15. Oregon State, 6-1 (7): Washington ends Beavers’ feel-good story. ASU another challenge this week.
16. Boise State, 7-1 (18): This week’s layup: San Diego State.
17. Texas A&M, 6-2 (21): Johnny (Manziel) Be Good trying to keep Aggies afloat in SEC West.
18. Mississippi State, 7-1 (19): Bulldogs had their shot at Alabama, Aggies next, followed by LSU.
19. Texas Tech, 6-2 (23): Still averaging 506.9 yards per game.
20. Texas, 6-2 (22): Win against Red Raiders on Saturday and Horns will close with big game against Kansas State.
21. West Virginia, 6-2 (24): Still hanging around. Still don’t know what to make of Mountaineers.
22. Arizona, 5-3 (NR): No idea how Wildcats lost three straight.
23. UCLA, 6-2 (NR): Has every opportunity to win South Division.
24. Louisiana Tech, 7-1 (NR): Bulldogs allow more than 500 yards per game.
25. Toledo (NR): Winners of eight in a row should close season on 11-game run.
PAC-12
1. Oregon 8-0, 5-0 (1): At USC. Ducks likely to run over Trojans, too.
2. Stanford 6-2, 4-1 (4): This ranking, like much of this list, is by default now.
3. USC 6-2, 4-2 (2): Trojans’ skill players keep them up here.
4. Oregon State 6-1, 4-1 (3): Beavers will get right with QB Vaz back in control.
5. Arizona 5-3, 2-3 (7): Epitome of the middle of the conference. Up, down, all over.
6. UCLA 6-2, 3-2 (6): Could end up playing for Pac-12 title.
7. Arizona State 5-3, 3-2 (5): Sun Devils suddenly having problems, trip to Corvallis, Ore., no easy cure.
8. Washington 4-4, 2-3 (9): Could win out. Could finish .500.
9. Utah 3-5, 1-4 (10): Big showing last week against Cal.
10. Cal 3-6, 2-4 (8): Coach Jeff Tedford’s seat now brought to you by Dante.
11. Washington State 2-6, 0-5 (11): Maybe coach Mike Leach can ban the players from texting, too.
12. Colorado 1-7, 1-4 (12): Working hard to reclaim Worst Team in the Country title.
todd.dybas @thenewstribune.com
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