Ranked teams in college football are never safe.
Unranked foes lurk around every corner. Upstarts and upsets abound. Madness lives here in college football. Crazy is the norm. Wacky is the way.
So, in many ways, college football’s Week 6 delivered exactly what we’ve come to expect. And, perhaps, then some.
Four top-11 ranked teams lost to unranked foes: (1) Vanderbilt’s historic win over No. 1 Alabama; (2) Arkansas’ fourth-quarter comeback against No. 4 Tennessee; (3) Washington’s revenge win in a national title rematch against No. 10 Michigan; and (4) Minnesota’s wild — and risky — fourth-down goal-line gamble that beat No. 11 USC.
It’s the first time since 2007 that four teams ranked so high lost to unranked opponents on the same day. It’s the first time in history that two top-five SEC teams lost to unranked conference opponents. And it’s the first time that Vanderbilt beat a top-ranked team in 61 tries.
Six undefeated teams lost, including those two top-five squads as well as Duke (to Georgia Tech), Missouri (at Texas A&M), UNLV (to Syracuse) and James Madison (to UL-Monroe). It has left us with 12 unbeatens in all of FBS, two of whom meet next week (Oregon-Ohio State).
Army and Navy are 5-0 for the first time since the 1940s. Iowa State is 5-0 for the first time since 1980. Indiana is 6-0 for the first time since 1967. Pitt is 5-0 for the first time since 1991.
Beyond the upsets, there was plenty of other madness.
How about Heisman Trophy favorite Ashton Jeanty? The Boise State running back ran for a 63-yard touchdown on the first snap Saturday and broke the 1,000-yard mark for the season on his 90th carry and in the fifth game of the year.
Who would’ve thought the Texas A&M Aggies and first-year coach Mike Elko would sit atop the SEC standings at 3-0? And that Texas, five weeks into the season, would be the only undefeated team in its new league?
Meanwhile, there was plenty of misery. Kansas lost a fifth straight game after leading in the fourth quarter; Auburn and coach Hugh Freeze lost a third straight; Mack Brown’s Tar Heels fell to Pitt for a third consecutive defeat; Florida State dropped to 1-5; and USC is now 22-10 in Year 3 under $10 million-a-year coach Lincoln Riley.
The wild Saturday produced a pretty wild Top 10. Remember that we do not factor in preseason rankings or results beyond this season into our poll. The Top 10 leans heavily on strength of schedule and quality wins. Enjoy!
1. Penn State Nittany Lions
This week: beat UCLA 27-11
Next week: at USC
Surprised that the Nittany Lions sit atop the rankings? Don’t be. They’ve got two good wins — a road victory at West Virginia and at home to a ranked Illinois team. On Saturday, they got a ho-hum win over the Bruins. Fine showing from the offense. Great showing from the defense. James Franklin’s team didn’t overlook one LA team for another. A win at USC next week would eliminate the Trojans from playoff contention and thrust Penn State into position for an at-large or automatic berth.
2. Oregon Ducks
This week: beat Michigan State 31-10
Next week: vs. Ohio State
The Ducks started the season with lackluster performances against Idaho and Boise. Since then, they’ve outscored Oregon State, UCLA and Michigan State 114-37. Dan Lanning’s group is humming with the Buckeyes on deck for a Big Ten showdown on Saturday night. Can RB Jordan James (269 yards in the last two games) keep tearing it up?
3. Texas Longhorns
This week: Bye
Next week: vs. Oklahoma (Dallas)
The Longhorns should get back a healthy (or mostly healthy) Quinn Ewers just in time for their annual rivalry clash with the Sooners at the old Cotton Bowl followed by a most anticipated game against Georgia in Austin. That win at Michigan is looking less impressive and there’s really not much else (so far) on the resume.
4. Ohio State Buckeyes
This week: beat Iowa 35-7
Next week: at Oregon
The Buckeyes — finally — make their debut in the Top 10. And if you’re wondering why it took so long, just look at their early season schedule (Akron, Western Michigan, Marshall). Blowout wins over Michigan State and Iowa is enough to get them into the rankings a week ahead of the showdown against the Ducks, where a question lingers: Can freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith make it three straight games with a one-handed touchdown catch?
5. Miami Hurricanes
This week: beat Cal 39-38
Next week: Bye
Down 25 points late in the third quarter, the Hurricanes needed a wild fourth-quarter comeback for a second straight week. QB Cam Ward led the charge, running for a 24-yard score, completing an 18-yard touchdown pass and then hitting his favorite target, Xavier Restrepo, for 77 yards to put the Canes in position for the game-winning touchdown with 26 seconds left.
6. BYU Cougars
This week: Bye
Next week: vs. Arizona
You may question a top-five BYU, but the Cougars have two good wins (Kansas State and SMU), sit atop the Big 12 standings and have one of the country’s best defenses. Dual-threat QB Jake Retzlaff is averaging 272 yards in total offense.
7. Georgia Bulldogs
This week: beat Auburn 31-13
Next week: vs. Mississippi State
After Georgia’s loss at Alabama last Saturday, Nick Saban says he texted Kirby Smart a message: “This is not the worst thing that ever happened. Most of our best teams lost a game somewhere and they responded the right way,” Saban said he wrote to Smart. Well, a week later, the Bulldogs mostly coasted to a victory at Auburn, perhaps the first in a long line of them?
8. Clemson Tigers
This week: beat Florida State 29-13
Next week: at Wake Forest
Since the 31-point, season-opening loss to Georgia in Atlanta, Dabo Swinney’s Tigers have won four straight by an average of 28 points. The path to 11-1 and a bid into the ACC championship game is very real. Currently, none of Clemson’s seven remaining regular season opponents are ranked.
9. Iowa State Cyclones
This week: beat Baylor 43-21
Next week: at West Virginia
The Cyclones are 5-0 for the first time since Donnie Duncan coached at the school (that year, 1980, they lost five of the next six). For their sake, hopefully this 5-0 ends differently. And it should. Matt Campbell’s team had a 100-yard rusher, 100-yard receiver and QB Rocco Becht nearly hit the 300-yard mark.
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
This week: Bye
Next week: vs. Stanford
The Irish don’t yet have any really great wins (though that one in College Station is certainly looking better), but we’re running out of teams to put in the Top 10! Saturday’s mayhem caused a complete shuffling of the rankings, with three teams falling out. And so here we sit, with a team that lost to Northern Illinois ranked No. 9!
Dropped out: Alabama (1), Tennessee (2), Miami (5), Missouri (10)
