Clemson stumbled while Arkansas continued to rumble to heights not seen in nearly a decade.
Ranked second in the preseason, Clemson tumbled 16 spots to No. 25 in the latest AP Top 25 presented by Regions Bank following a rare ACC loss. That ends a streak of 97 straight weeks in the AP top 10, a streak that is currently matched only by top-ranked Alabama.
If you’re keeping score at home, Alabama still has some work to do to catch Miami’s record of 137 straight weeks in the top 10, a string that began in 1985 and ended in 1993.
Meanwhile, Arkansas pulled off its second upset of the season against a ranked foe, beating Texas A&M 20-10 in Arlington, Texas. The Razorbacks’ last appearance in the Top 10 was in 2012. The ranking of No. 8 was short-lived – Arkansas lost to Louisiana-Monroe and vacated the poll for the rest of the season.
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Poll Points
• Clemson did manage to extend its streak of weeks ranked to 107, the third-longest active streak behind Alabama (218) and Ohio State (150).
• The Buckeyes’ streak does not include polls in which they were ineligible during the 2020 season because the Big Ten was not planning to play due to the coronavirus pandemic.
• Alabama’s current streak of poll appearances is second all-time to Nebraska’s 348 from 1981-2002.
Who’s In
After six ranked teams lost this weekend, four to unranked opponents, four new teams entered the rankings of the first time this season.
• No. 19 Oklahoma State improved to 4-0 by beating Kansas State. The Cowboys finished last season ranked.
• No. 21 Baylor is 4-0 after upsetting Iowa State at home and is ranked for the first time since the final 2019 poll.
• No. 23 North Carolina State (3-1) snapped an eight-game losing streak against Clemson to move into the ranking. The Wolfpack was ranked briefly at No. 23 last season.
• No. 24 Wake Forest is 4-0 for the first time since 2019, when the Demon Deacons were ranked for a total of five weeks with a peak of No. 19. That’s the only season Wake has been ranked since 2008.
Who’s Out
Two teams that started the season in the top 10 are now unranked.
• Iowa State started No. 7, its best ranking in school history after finishing ninth in 2020, but now sits at 2-2 and unranked.
• North Carolina was No. 10 to start the season but fell out after being routed by Georgia Tech to fall to 2-2.
• Wisconsin began the season No. 12 but after losing to Penn State and Notre Dame to fall to 1-2 is unranked. Kansas State spent one week in the rankings and dropped out.
Conference Call
The Southeastern Conference has four teams in the top 10 and five of 12 in the top 12, including Mississippi at No. 12.
The Atlantic Coast Conference, meanwhile, has no teams in the top 20 for the first time since the final poll of the 2011 season. The last time there were no top-20 ACC teams this early in the season was Sept. 16, 1986, before Miami and Florida State were members and before the poll expanded from 20 to 25.
• SEC — 7 (Nos. 1, 2, 8, 10, 12, 15, 22).
• Big Ten — 5 (Nos. 4, 5, 11, 14, 17).
• ACC — 3 (Nos. 23, 24, 25).
• Big 12 — 3 (Nos. 6, 19, 21).
• Pac-12 — 2 (Nos. 3, 20).
• American — 1 (No. 7).
• Sun Belt — 1 (No. 16).
• Mountain West — 1 (No. 18).
• Independents — 2 (Nos. 8, 13).
Ranked vs. Ranked This Week
• No. 12 Mississippi at No. 1 Alabama. First ranked matchup between the Rebels and Tide since 2017.
• No. 8 Arkansas at No. 2 Georgia. Razorbacks’ resurgence has been one of the stories of the first month of the season.
• No. 7 Cincinnati at No. 9 Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish obliged the Bearcats, who need Notre Dame to be as good a possible if they have any shot to sneak into the playoff.
• No. 21 Baylor at No 19 Oklahoma State. Might be a short stay in the rankings for one of the Big 12 rivals.