Each Saturday night, I rank the 10 best teams in the country. The order fluctuates from week to week based on new information.
Even on a week when five of my Top 10 from last week were off, we still had a couple of changes based off Saturday’s results.
1. Alabama (8-0): Finally, next Saturday, we get to see Tua Tagovailoa and the Tide offense go against an elite defense. LSU ranks 22nd nationally in yards per play allowed (4.79). None of Alabama’s opponents to this point came into Saturday ranked higher than 92nd.
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2. Clemson (8-0): If you still don’t believe Clemson is on Alabama’s level, you haven’t watched the Tigers since freshman QB Trevor Lawrence took over. They’ve outscored their past three opponents (Wake Forest, N.C. State and Florida State) by a combined 163-20. Their 59-10 win in Tallahassee on Saturday marked the worst home loss in FSU history.
3. Notre Dame (8-0): The Irish went up 27-0 at halftime on Navy in San Diego and went on to win 44-22. Brian Kelly’s team turns around and visits 5-3 Northwestern, plays its only remaining home game Nov. 10 against woeful Florida State, faces 6-2 Syracuse at Yankee Stadium and finishes at USC. Can the Irish remain consistent enough to run the table?
4. LSU (7-1): As teams’ résumés come into fuller focus, we can now say this about LSU’s: Its early wins over Miami and Auburn probably weren’t as impressive as we thought at the time, but beating Georgia by 20 points and holding Mississippi State to three points will hold up well, and the Tigers suffered their lone loss on the road to a Florida team that likely will finish the season with at least nine wins.
5. Michigan (7-1): Weird stat of the week: The Wolverines’ last four wins — against Northwestern, Maryland, Wisconsin and Michigan State — have come against teams that are now 5-3.
6. Oklahoma (7-1): Oklahoma’s offense is an absolute machine. The Sooners rolled up 702 yards (10.3 per play), gained 32 first downs and didn’t have a turnover in their 51-14 rout of Kansas State. Next week, they travel to Texas Tech for what should be an interesting test of whether OU’s defense truly has turned a corner post-Mike Stoops.
7. Georgia (7-1): QB Jake Fromm had such a bad game against LSU two weeks ago that some Dawgs fans wanted to bench the nation’s fifth-rated passer. He was magnificent Saturday — 17-of-24 for 240 yards and three TDs — in Georgia’s impressive 36-17 rout of rival Florida. Now he’s got to turn around and face Kentucky in a play-in to the SEC title game.
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8. Washington State (7-1): When a Mike Leach quarterback gets in the zone, it becomes pretty darn tough to stop his offense. Gardner Minshew completed 19 consecutive passes at one point in Saturday’s big 41-38 win at Stanford. At no point in the second half did it feel like the Cardinal could stop him. And Washington State’s impressive offensive line continues to give him superb protection.
9. UCF (7-0): Rival USF suffered its first defeat Saturday, preventing what could have been an epic season-ending showdown. That being said, the team that beat USF, Houston, is now 7-1 and sitting atop the AAC West. The Cougars are averaging nearly 50 points per game. They now represent UCF’s greatest threat in its quest for another perfect season.
10. Kentucky (7-1): All hail the Wildcats, who managed to win at Missouri 15-14 on a walk-off Terry Wilson 2-yard touchdown pass that happened to be their only offensive touchdown of the day. Kentucky rallied from a 14-3 deficit thanks to a 67-yard Lynn Bowden Jr. punt return and another dominant performance from linebacker Josh Allen (11 tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles).
(Photo by Kim Klement / USA TODAY Sports)