SPEEDYLEE COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS

(Week 8)

Eight teams in the Speedylee top 10 played this weekend and four of them lost. As a result, the rankings are very different from the week before. #2 Oklahoma was stunned by unranked Kansas State, #6 Auburn narrowly fell to #1 LSU, #9 Notre Dame lost badly to Michigan and #10 Wisconsin lost to #4 Ohio State. LSU continues to have the best resume in college football with wins over both Florida and Auburn. The Tigers face Alabama next. Utah and Oregon returned to the top 10. Auburn is, without question, the best 2-loss team in the country. This week’s rankings:

1.      LSU (8-0) beat Auburn 23-20 and has the best resume so far this season. Their next game will be against Alabama.

2.      Ohio State (8-0) won its first game of the season against a quality opponent when it beat Wisconsin 38-7. The Buckeyes jumped from fourth to second.

3.      Clemson (8-0) beat Boston College 59-7 and got leap-frogged by Ohio State.

4.      Alabama (8-0) beat Arkansas 48-7 and has next week off before the annual struggle with #1 LSU.

5.      Oklahoma (7-1) lost to Kansas State 48-41 and fell from #2. But Oklahoma is probably capable of beating any of the teams ranked above it and the Sooners still have a pathway to the Final Four, if they win out.

6.      Georgia (6-1) did not play, which was a smart move. Next week, the Bulldogs play Florida.

7.      Florida (7-1) took the week off before playing its annual brawl with Georgia.

8.      Utah (6-1) defeated California of California 35-0.

9.      Oregon (6-1) beat Washington State 37-35.

10.  Auburn (6-2) lost to top-ranked LSU in a typically tough SEC contest.

WATCHLIST: Baylor (8-0), Michigan (6-2).

INELIGIBLE: Penn State

NOTES: The only positions in the rankings that really matter are the top six, due to the NCAA Final Four tournament. The Final Four will come from the first six teams in the Playoff Committee’s rankings. … Michigan’s victory over Notre Dame was the first over a top 10-ranked opponent by the Wolverines this season. Credit Michigan: The second half of that game was probably the worst 30 minutes of football by a Notre Dame team in decades. … Despite its inconsistent play this season, Southern Cal leads the Pac 12’s Southern Division. The Trojans are tied with Utah at 4-1 in conference play but USC defeated Utah earlier this season. … The Rock is rolling. Slippery Rock defeated Clarion 41-6 in NCAA Division II play and improved to 7-0. The Rock’s next game is against California of Pennsylvania.