My AP top 25 rankings: Tennessee moves to No. 1, TCU and Syracuse climb, KU falls out
Tennessee was destined to move up my rankings after the Volunteers defeated Alabama in thrilling fashion on Saturday. The only question was how far they would climb.
Turns out, they made it all the way to the top.
Congratulations to the Vols. They are the new No. 1 team on my AP top 25 college football ballot.
Tennessee has looked electric all year, and now they have the most impressive victory of the entire season to back up the “eye test.”
The Vols are a perfect 6-0 with road wins over Pittsburgh and LSU, plus home wins over Florida and Alabama. Hendon Hooker is a Heisman contender. Josh Heupel is looking like the coach of the year. Their defense obviously has some issues, but when you can score 52 points on the Crimson Tide that isn’t much of an issue.
It was a tough call between Tennessee and Georgia for No. 1. I have been voting the Bulldogs ahead of everyone else for several weeks, mostly because their blowout victory over Oregon has aged like a fine wine. But I think beating Alabama is slightly more impressive.
Georgia falls to No. 2 this week, followed by Ohio State, Clemson and Michigan.
Alabama dropped to No. 6. It’s hard to penalize the Crimson Tide too much for losing on a last-second field goal at Tennessee.
Illinois, Syracuse and TCU also climb
Tennessee was far from the only big riser in my rankings this week.
TCU also surged into the top following its overtime victory against Oklahoma State. The Horned Frogs are no the team to beat in the Big 12 at No. 8.
Syracuse also climbed to No. 15 following its win over North Carolina State. The Orange have lived a charmed life so far, with five of their six games at home and their only road game at Connecticut. But an undefeated record still looks mighty impressive this time of year. We will see if they are for real with a road trip to Clemson up next on the schedule.
Illinois jumped five spots up to No. 16 and Utah also moved back into the top 15 by beating USC.
Saying goodbye to the Jayhawks
It was fun while it lasted.
Kansas was the story of college football when the Jayhawks shockingly began the season with five straight wins. But they dropped out of my rankings this week following back-to-back losses to TCU and Oklahoma.
Playing without starting quarterback Jalon Daniels has no doubt been difficult the past two weeks, but defense (or lack thereof) is the main reason why I am no longer voting for KU. The Sooners gained 701 yards against the Jayhawks on Saturday.
Coastal Carolina and James Madison also exited my ballot this week following their first losses of the season.
Say hello to Tulane and South Alabama at the bottom of my rankings. The Green Wave are 6-1 with a road victory over Kansas State. South Alabama looks like the best team in the Sun Belt and nearly pulled off an upset at UCLA earlier this season.
On deck
If I ranked 30 teams instead of 25 I would strongly consider the following teams: Kansas, Purdue, Maryland, North Carolina and UTSA.
Kellis Robinett’s Top 25
1. Tennessee (8)
2. Georgia (1)
3. Ohio State (3)
4. Clemson (4)
5. Michigan (5)
6. Alabama (2)
7. Mississippi (9)
8. TCU (19)
9. UCLA (10)
10. Wake Forest (11)
11. Oregon (13)
12. USC (6)
13. Oklahoma State (7)
14. Utah (19)
15. Syracuse (17)
16. Illinois (21)
17. Kansas State (18)
18. Texas (22)
19. Cincinnati (20)
20. Penn State (14)
21. Kentucky (NR)
22. Mississippi State (15)
23. North Carolina State (12)
24. Tulane (NR)
25. South Alabama (NR)
Last week’s ranking in parentheses.
This story was originally published October 16, 2022 at 9:00 AM with the headline "My AP top 25 rankings: Tennessee moves to No. 1, TCU and Syracuse climb, KU falls out."