2. Oregon Ducks (2-0) - After a rollercoaster of a first half, Marcus Mariota settled down and led the Ducks' offense past the Spartans at home. The most promising thing for Oregon though was not offensively; it is on defense, where the Ducks shut down MSU through the air.
Blake Sims |
4. Oklahoma Sooners (2-0) - For the second straight week, the Sooners blew past a Non-Power Five school, routing American Athletic Conference bottom feeder Tulsa. While seeing the team put up a lot of points is impressive, Oklahoma has to win some big games before they start ascending in my power rankings.
5. Auburn Tigers (2-0) - Nick Marshall made his season debut against San Jose State and looked solid, passing for 101 yards and rushing for 103 more, while back Cameron Artis-Payne ran for 112 and three scores. If the offense continues to run the ball like they have been doing so well under Malzahn, nobody is going to get an easy win over the Tigers, that is obvious.
6. Georgia Bulldogs (1-0) - The Bulldogs got a much needed rest before a pivotal SEC East battle against South Carolina. Todd Gurley will be rearing and ready to go, while the defense hopes to replicate the success they had against Clemson.
7. Baylor Bears (2-0) - Most teams are sure to struggle without their Heisman candidate starter, even against a FCS team like Northwestern State. But, it is Baylor, and that means the offense won't skip a beat without Bryce Petty. Backup Seth Russell threw for 438 yards and five touchdowns, throwing three of those to speedy receiver K.D. Cannon.
8. Texas A&M Aggies (2-0) - Kenny Hill followed up a magical performance against South Carolina with a great outing against lowly Lamar, chucking the ball all over the place as the Aggies had no issues. It certainly appears "Kenny Trill" and the Aggies will continue to give defenses headaches.
9. USC Trojans (2-0) - Steve Sarkisian has opened his USC head coaching career with a bang, first manhandling Fresno State and then getting a huge Pac-12 victory over Stanford. While the offense wasn't great, the defense stepped up and the pass rush was ferocious, led by NFL draft prospect Leonard Williams.
10. LSU Tigers (2-0) - The Tigers had really no issues with the Bearkats of Sam Houston State, putting up 56 points on the scoreboard and shutting down a pretty explosive offense. While the passing game still has some questions, we got to see Leonard Fournette put together a pretty great game, something that will get fans very excited in Baton Rouge.
11. UCLA Bruins (2-0) - Is there any reason to place them any higher? A week after struggling with Virginia, UCLA escaped with a seven-point victory over Memphis. While Brett Hundley had a great game the defense looked very bad, allowing 496 yards to a Memphis offense that isn't considered to be very good at all. Those two performances raise questions about how well UCLA will perform against their first real test, Texas.
12. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (2-0) - It is hard to know just how good Michigan really is, but beating them by 31 points deserves some credit no matter what. Everett Golson continues to make big plays and the defense has been a pleasant surprise, it is the first time ND has ever shut out the Wolverines in this infamous rivalry.
13. Ole Miss Rebels (2-0) - Bo Wallace and the Rebels kicked off their SEC schedule with a blowout victory over Vanderbilt, who clearly appears to be in serious trouble (lost 37-7 to Temple in their opener). The offense continues to produce big numbers, while the defense's athleticism and speed give Ole Miss a very dangerous team.
14. Michigan State Spartans (1-1) - The Spartans made it clear they could hang with Oregon for 45 minutes, sticking in the game until the fourth quarter, when the Ducks absolutely turned on the jets. The defense played well until that fourth quarter, where they made some uncharacteristic mistakes, something that definitely worries Mark Dantonio and fans.
15. Arizona State Sun Devils (2-0) - Once more, the Sun Devils' offense had no problems producing, as they put up 621 total yards (216 of those from back D.J. Foster) against New Mexico in a rout of the Lobos. While the schedule only gets tougher, if ASU continues to put up those numbers the Pac-12 better be on watch.
16. Ohio State Buckeyes (1-1) - After escaping with a victory over Navy, the Buckeyes just couldn't get past Virginia Tech, where Bud Foster's quick, athletic defense shut them down. After another pretty poor week, the question becomes: it is time to move on already from J.T. Barrett at QB?
17. Wisconsin Badgers (1-1) - While the rest of the Big Ten was losing, the Badgers won without very many issues, although granted it is Western Illinois. After struggling against LSU, QB Tanner McEvoy showed real promise, throwing for 283 yards while running for 55 more and producing four total touchdowns.
18. Nebraska Huskers (2-0) - A week after putting up crazy offensive numbers against FAU, the Huskers offense slowed down a bit, but they still found a way to beat McNesee State. While Ameer Abdullah wasn't as dominant as he was in the opener, he made some big plays to secure an important Nebraska win.
19. Stanford Cardinal (1-1) - The Cardinal really didn't play bad at all against USC, and might have even outplayed the Trojans. Unfortunately, that won't show up on their record, where Stanford is now 1-1, their chances of a Playoff taking a major hit. Their meeting with Oregon is now so much bigger down the line, it could catapult them back into contention. They have to get there unfazed though, not an easy thing to do in the Pac-12.
20. Kansas State Wildcats (2-0) - K-State really wasn't very impressive against Iowa State this week, escaping with a four-point victory over the Cyclones, who had been dominated a week earlier by NDSU. Still, a Power Five team who is still undefeated, the Wildcats are going to be in the mix for a Playoff if they can keep it up.
21. South Carolina Gamecocks (1-1) - Even with RB Mike Davis making big plays again, South Carolina wasn't great in a close victory over East Carolina. While East Carolina is a good team, the performance raises questions as the Gamecocks meet up with Georgia, who was gifted with a bye week this past week.
22. Missouri Tigers (2-0) - Toledo is not completely terrible, so seeing Maty Mauk throw six touchdowns against the Rockets was certainly exciting four Mizzou, who is definitely relying on the sophomore QB. Defensively, the unit has made up well for the loss of Michael Sam with two speedy ends, Markus Golden and Shane Ray.
23. UNC Tar Heels (2-0) - The Tar Heels weren't great against SDSU a week after a relatively pedestrian performance against Liberty. The offense is putting up great numbers, but the defense needs to step up, especially against the run.
24. Virginia Tech Hokies (2-0) - Going into the horseshoe to steal a victory from Ohio State is never an easy feat, even if the Buckeyes were very young offensively. The defense was constantly in the OSU backfield, while the offense showed some potential led by Texas Tech transfer Michael Brewer. The Hokies made a clear statement with this victory, and they should be a favorite now in the ACC Coastal.
25. Clemson Tigers (1-1) - The Tigers blew out South Carolina State, but there are still some question marks. Who is the clear guy at QB? Is the running game going to be a strength? How good is the pass defense? The Tigers will have to figure some of those questions out before their huge date with FSU, who embarrassed them a year ago.
Others Receiving Votes
Washington
Florida
BYU
Penn State
Mississippi State
Duke
Louisville
Marshall
Oklahoma State
TCU
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