Oregon has become the fourth team this season to hold the number one ranking in The Associated Press college football poll. The Ducks moved into the top spot for the first time in twelve years after Texas lost at me to Georgia. Vanderbilt at number twenty five makes its first appearance since the 2013 season and defending national champion Michigan is out after a second straight loss. The news is worse for Alabama.
Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer now has something in common with the retired Nick Saban. That’s dealing with a two loss season in Tuscaloosa. The Tide lost to Tennessee twenty four to seventeen at Neyland Stadium. That defeat pushed Alabama to number fifteen, and currently out of the twelve slots in the new playoff system. Observers think the Tide’s win over Georgia might keep those playoffs alive down the road. Coach DeBoer says you can’t win with mistakes and penalties.
“There's always, I guess, a common, a common feel in the locker room at a fair loss, he said. “But you know, these guys have no doubt in my mind that they poured everything into the preparation, you know, just frustrated we can't get over the hump.”
Unbeaten Oregon followed its one-point home win over Ohio State with a 35-0 rout at Purdue. The Ducks received fifty-nine out of the sixty-one first-place votes. Georgia got the other two. Georgia, which has won three straight games since its loss to Alabama, made a three-spot jump to number two on the strength of its 30-15 win at previously number ranked Texas. The Bulldogs got the other two first-place votes. Number three Ohio State and number four Penn State were idle Saturday and held their spots. Texas dropped to number five. Miami prevailed in a wild game at Louisville and remained number six. LSU, Clemson and Iowa State are included in the top ten. Tennessee rose four spots to number seven following its win over Alabama. Coach Deboer says Tennessee adjusted during the game and the Tide didn’t…
“We just can't play team football,” he said. “Can't bring it together. One side of the ball has highlighted moments, and the other side, you know stumbles and you know some missed opportunities and that, you know, you try to try to look inward.”
After beating Georgia, Alabama got its moment at number one in the AP top 24, which lasted one week before the team was upset at Vanderbilt. That allowed Texas to return to the top for two weeks. The Tide plays Missouri next Saturday for Homecoming. The Tigers are coming off a twenty-one to seventeen win over Auburn. After that the Alabama will play LSU, Mercer, Oklahoma, and Auburn in the annual Iron Bowl.
