Upset-Filled Saturday Sets Stage for New Teams in AP Top 25 Rankings

AP Top 25 Poll Prediction

1. Ohio State Buckeyes
2. Georgia Bulldogs
3. LSU Tigers
4. Penn State Nittany Lions
5. Oregon Ducks
6. Miami Hurricanes
7. Florida State Seminoles
8. Texas Longhorns
9. Illinois Fighting Illinis
10. Texas A&M Aggies
11. Oklahoma Sooners
12. Alabama Crimson Tide
13. Iowa State Cyclones
14. Ole Miss Rebels
15. Vanderbilt Commodores
16. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
17. Utah Utes
18. Texas Tech Red Raiders
19. Indiana Hoosiers
20. Michigan Wolverines
21. Tennessee Volunteers
22. Auburn Tigers
23. Missouri Tigers
24. Arizona State Sun Devils
25. USC Trojans

Upset-Filled Weekend

Early AP Top 25 Polls can have some volatility as everyone is still figuring out the quality of teams and coaches and how they perform in different environments. For instance, will Notre Dame, Clemson, and South Carolina fall completely out of the top-25?

No. 18 USF lost to No. 5 Miami as the Hurricanes ran away with a ranked with, while No. 15 Tennessee lost to No. 6 Georgia at home in overtime after failing to convert a game-winning field goal attempt. Will Georgia and Miami move even closer to the top of the rankings?

On the other hand, how far will Tennessee and USF be dropped by AP voters? The No. 7 Texas Longhorns' offense struggled against UTEP, scoring 27 points in the win.

Texas quarterback Arch Manning completed 44 percent of his passes for 114 yards, one touchdown and one interception, adding 51 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

USC Trojans' Case For Top-25 Ranking

In the Big Ten, No. 1 Ohio State, No. 2 Penn State, No. 4 Oregon, and No. 9 Illinois all took care of business. The conference also has No. 16 Indiana and No. 17 Michigan ranked, while the Trojans look to join them towards the back half of the top-25.

The final score of USC's win over Purdue might not resemble the blowouts handed out by the Trojans in weeks 1 and 2, but a win's a win. More importantly, the Trojans dealt with a three-hour lightning delay on the road, but Riley and company were able to leave West Lafayett, Indiana, with a win.

In one of the best plays of the weekend, USC defensive lineman Jamal Jarrett intercepted a deflected pass from Purdue quarterback Ryan Browne, and Jarrett returned the interception for a 70-yard touchdown.

Trojans safety Bishop Fitzgerald had two interceptions of his own while linebacker Eric Gentry also turned heads with two sacks and three tackles for loss. USC's opportunistic defense ended multiple drives for Purdue that were in threatening field position, and the Trojans offense scored 17 points off of the extra possessions.

USC running back Waymond Jordan led all Trojans rushers with 77 yards and a touchdown while quarterback Jayden Maiava completed 61 percent of his passes for 282 yards with a rushing touchdown of his own.

Was it enough for USC to be ranked?

As for Arizona State, the Sun Devils started the year at No. 11 in the preseason poll, and AP voters could be eager to rank them again after rebounding from the upset to Mississippi State.