Did the Miami Hurricanes do enough to jump Notre Dame in the upcoming AP Top 25 poll? It certainly feels that way.
The Hurricanes and Fighting Irish had similar challenges today. Both were on the road against teams that we believe are at the mid-level in the ACC. Notre Dame knocked off North Carolina 37-26 in a game that the Tar Heels got within 21-20 before the Fighting Irish ran off 16 straight points to pull away.
Meanwhile, Miami did work down in Death Valley and whipped Clemson 41-13. The Hurricanes systematically beat down the Tigers over four quarters. The game was never in doubt and that's why I see the Hurricanes moving up into the top 3:
1. Texas Longhorns did not play
2. Georgia Bulldogs, 38-14 win over Vanderbilt
3. Miami Hurricanes, 41-13 win over Clemson
4. Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 37-26 win over North Carolina
5. Indiana Hoosiers, 47-15 win over Rutgers
6. Ohio State Buckeyes, 31-14 win over Iowa
7. Alabama Crimson Tide, 56-23 win over Mississippi State
8. BYU Cougars, 17-10 win over TCU
9. Ole Miss did not play
10. LSU Tigers, 63-14 win over McNeese State
I have Alabama holding it out at No. 7, but I wouldn't be surprised if the voters give the Crimson Tide more credit for beating Mississippi State than they deserve, especially with Georgia next on the schedule. This isn't a knock on Alabama necessarily because I think the Crimson Tide is very good, but Mississippi State was a flash in the pan with a good quarterback.
There was nothing to suggest the Bulldogs were close to being a fringe top-15 team. And why should Alabama jump Ohio State, who beat a ranked Iowa team on the road? And Iowa, unlike Mississippi State, is a pretty consistent team in the back-end of the polls from year-to-year.
Missouri proves their worth as Florida takes a free-fall
11. Texas Tech Red Raiders, 29-7 win over Colorado
12. Oregon Ducks did not play
13. Utah Utes did not play
14. Tennessee Volunteers, 24-14 win over Auburn
15. USC Trojans, 25-21 win over Washington
16. Missouri Tigers, 45-17 win over Florida
17. Oklahoma State Cowboys did not play
18. Florida Gators, 45-17 loss to Missouri
19. Iowa Hawkeyes, 31-14 loss to Ohio State
20. Houston Cougars, 27-17 win over UCF
The dream Miami-Florida CFP match took a major hit after the Gators got absolutely smoked by Missouri on the road. Florida took a 10-spot tumble in the polls because the Gators had moved up so high based on some overachieving in the first few weeks. Missouri moves up nine spots based on the win, but I don't know how much staying power the Tigers truly have.
Iowa dropped as well, but the fall wasn't as bad as Florida's. The Hawkeyes were punching above their weight class against Ohio State and kept it interesting for as long as they could.
It's time for Pitt to jump into these polls
21. SMU Mustangs, 25-16 win over Boston College
22. UCLA Bruins did not play
23. Boise State Broncos, 37-18 win over Utah State
24. Pittsburgh Panthers, 35-33 win over Virginia Tech
25. Kentucky Wildcats, 35-34 win over South Carolina
Mississippi State tumbles out of the polls so we can get Pitt in there. The Panthers earn this spot with a road win over previously unbeaten Virginia Tech and I think it would be ridiculous for the pollsters not to reward them. The only reason I could see Pittsburgh not getting in the Top 25 is Mason Heintschel's season-ending ACL injury, but if football is truly the team sport they claim it is, the Panthers need to be in the top 25.
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