Oregon moved up to No. 2 in The Associated Press college football poll on Sunday, when Ole Miss earned its highest ranking since 2015, Alabama jumped back into the top 10 and Virginia made the AP Top 25 for the first time in six years in the wake of a volatile weekend in which four teams that were ranked in the top 10 lost.
Ohio State won at Washington and remains No. 1 for the fifth straight week. The Big Ten’s Buckeyes received 46 first-place votes, six fewer than a week ago, and the reigning national champions’ 37-point lead over reigning Big Ten champion Oregon is the closest margin between the top two teams since the preseason poll in mid-August.
Oregon’s two-overtime win at Penn State in another league matchup earned the Ducks 16 first-place votes, 15 more than last week, and gave them their highest ranking since they were No. 1 for two months last year.
Atlantic Coast Conference member Miami, which had an open date, slipped one spot to No. 3 and was followed by Ole Miss and idle Oklahoma, both of the Southeastern Conference. The No. 4 Rebels got a nine-rung promotion for beating LSU and have their highest ranking since they were No. 3 in late September 2015. LSU fell to No. 13, swapping places with Ole Miss.
Texas A&M, Penn State, Indiana, Texas and Alabama round out the top 10. Penn State and Indiana are both Big Ten programs, while the other three are in the SEC.