The new AP Top 25 college football poll is out. The Oregon Ducks cruised past the Illinois Fighting Illini and held onto the No. 1 spot for another week.
Quarterback Dillon Gabriel threw three touchdown passes and the Ducks had 527 yards of total offense to avoid being the third top-ranked team to lose this season.
In the weekend’s only game involving top-15 opponents, the Texas A&M Aggies, powered by Marcel Reed, rallied from a 10-point deficit to beat the LSU Tigers and stay undefeated in SEC play.
What does it all mean for the new AP Top 25? Let’s break down the rankings.
Stats courtesy of ESPN Research.
All times Eastern
Previous ranking: 1
2024 record: 8-0
Week 9 result: Defeated Illinois 38-9
Stat to know: Dillon Gabriel now has 143 career touchdown passes, the second most in FBS history.
What’s next: Saturday at Michigan, 3:30 p.m., CBS
Previous ranking: 2
2024 record: 6-1
Week 9 result: Idle
What’s next: Saturday vs. Florida (in Jacksonville), 3:30 p.m., ABC/ESPN+
Previous ranking: 3
2024 record: 7-0
Week 9 result: Defeated Wisconsin 28-13
Stat to know: Penn State is 3-0 this season when trailing at halftime. From 2021 to 2023, Penn State went 0-7 when trailing at halftime.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Ohio State, noon, Fox
Previous ranking: 4
2024 record: 6-1
Week 9 result: Defeated Nebraska 21-17
Stat to know: With eight touchdown catches this season, Jeremiah Smith has tied Cris Carter for the most by a freshman in Ohio State history.
What’s next: Saturday at Penn State, noon, Fox
Previous ranking: 6
2024 record: 8-0
Week 9 result: Defeated Florida State 36-14
Stat to know: Miami has started the season 8-0 for the first time since 2017 and ended a three-game losing streak to FSU.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Duke, noon, ABC
Previous ranking: 5
2024 record: 7-1
Week 9 result: Defeated Vanderbilt 27-24
Stat to know: Quinn Ewers completed 17 straight passes during the game, tied for the third-best streak in Texas history. Ewers holds the UT record of 19 straight, done in 2023 against Oklahoma.
What’s next: Nov. 9 vs. Florida, noon
Previous ranking: 7
2024 record: 6-1
Week 9 result: Idle
What’s next: Saturday vs. Kentucky, 7:45 p.m., SEC Network
Previous ranking: 12
2024 record: 7-1
Week 9 result: Defeated Navy 51-14
Stat to know: The Irish have now won five straight games against AP-ranked opponents and seven straight games against the Midshipmen.
What’s next: Nov. 9 vs. Florida State, 7:30 p.m., NBC
Previous ranking: 11
2024 record: 8-0
Week 9 result: Defeated UCF 37-24
Stat to know: BYU has scored 30-plus points in six straight games in a season for the first time since 1999.
What’s next: Nov. 9 at Utah
Previous ranking: 14
2024 record: 7-1
Week 9 result: Defeated LSU 38-23
Stat to know: Texas A&M is the first SEC team to lose its season opener and then win seven straight games since Arkansas in 2006.
What’s next: Saturday at South Carolina, 7:30 p.m., ABC
Previous ranking: 9
2024 record: 6-1
Week 9 result: Idle
What’s next: Saturday vs. Louisville, 7:30 p.m., ESPN
Previous ranking: 10
2024 record: 7-0
Week 9 result: Idle
What’s next: Saturday vs. Texas Tech, 3:30 p.m., ESPN
Previous ranking: 13
2024 record: 8-0
Week 9 result: Defeated Washington 31-17
Stat to know: The Hoosiers never trailed against the Huskies. They are the first team in the past 20 years to not trail at any point in their first eight games of the season.
What’s next: Saturday at Michigan State
Previous ranking: 15
2024 record: 6-2
Week 9 result: Defeated Missouri 34-0
Stat to know: Alabama has not lost consecutive regular-season games since 2007.
What’s next: Nov. 9 at LSU
Previous ranking: 17
2024 record: 6-1
Week 9 result: Defeated UNLV 29-24
Stat to know: Boise State has its best record through seven games since 2019.
What’s next: Friday vs. San Diego State, 8 p.m., FS1
Previous ranking: 8
2024 record: 6-2
Week 9 result: Lost to Texas A&M 38-23
Stat to know: The loss ended LSU’s 104-game winning streak when leading by 10 or more points at halftime.
What’s next: Nov. 9 vs. Alabama
Previous ranking: 16
2024 record: 7-1
Week 9 result: Defeated Kansas 29-27
Stat to know: Avery Johnson has 16 passing touchdowns this season, most by a Kansas State player through eight games in a season in the past 20 years.
What’s next: Saturday at Houston, 3:30 p.m., Fox
Previous ranking: 19
2024 record: 7-0
Week 9 result: Defeated Syracuse 41-13
Stat to know: Pitt is 7-0 for the first time since 1982.
What’s next: Saturday at SMU, 8 p.m., ACC Network
Previous ranking: 18
2024 record: 6-2
Week 9 result: Defeated Oklahoma 26-14
Stat to know: With 311 yards, Jaxson Dart has 12 career games at Ole Miss with 300 passing yards, tied for the most in program history with Chad Kelly and Jordan Ta’amu.
What’s next: Saturday at Arkansas, noon, ESPN
Previous ranking: 22
2024 record: 7-1
Week 9 result: Defeated Duke 28-27 (OT)
Stat to know: SMU is the second team to win a game with a minus-six turnover margin or worse in the past 20 seasons (Marshall at Memphis in 2011).
What’s next: Saturday vs. Pittsburgh, 8 p.m., ACC Network
Previous ranking: 23
2024 record: 7-0
Week 9 result: Idle
What’s next: Saturday vs. Air Force, noon, CBS
Previous ranking: NR
2024 record: 7-1
Week 9 result: Defeated San Diego State 29-26
Stat to know: After the Aztecs scored 20 straight points in the second half, the Cougars responded with the game’s final 15 to seal the victory.
What’s next: Nov. 9 vs. Utah State
Previous ranking: NR
2024 record: 6-2
Week 9 result: Defeated Cincinnati 34-23
Stat to know: With the win, the Buffaloes became bowl eligible for the first time since 2020 and for the first time in a full season since 2016.
What’s next: Nov. 9 at Texas Tech
Previous ranking: 20
2024 record: 6-2
Week 9 result: Lost to Oregon 38-9
Stat to know: This was Illinois’ second-largest loss in a ranked vs. ranked matchup in school history.
What’s next: Saturday vs. Minnesota, noon, FS1
Previous ranking: 21
2024 record: 6-2
Week 9 result: Lost to Alabama 34-0
Stat to know: The Tigers were shut out for the first time in the past 59 games.
What’s next: Nov. 9 vs. Oklahoma