Big Ten gives poll 1-2 punch
Ohio State is No. 1 and Michigan State is No. 2 in the Associated Press college football poll, giving the Big Ten the top two teams in the rankings for the first time since 2006.
The Buckeyes received 40 first-place votes after a lackluster victory against Northern Illinois on Saturday. Michigan State has seven first-place votes. The last time the Big Ten held the top two spots in the AP poll was November 2006 when Ohio State and Michigan went into their annual rivalry game Nos. 1 and 2, respectively.
No. 3 Mississippi made a big jump from 15 after winning at Alabama. The Tide dropped from No. 2 to No. 12. The Rebels received 11 first-place votes.
TCU is tied for third with Ole Miss and Baylor is No. 5.
Notre Dame is sixth, followed by LSU, Georgia, UCLA and Florida State. LSU received one first-place vote.
Rebels rising
Mississippi is on the rise again after knocking off Alabama in a game full of turnovers and lucky bounces.
The Rebels ran off to a big lead and then held on for a 43-37 win in Tuscaloosa on Saturday night that made a huge impression in the college football rankings.
The victory saw Ole Miss jump 12 spots to No. 3 in the AP Top 25 poll Sunday.
The Rebels say they’re ready to be one of the nation’s elite after their first win in Tuscaloosa since 1988.
“It feels so comfortable, the team’s so comfortable with each other, and we’re not worried about anybody else or even the West rankings,” Ole Miss defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche said. “We’re just worried about being in this moment and savoring it. Everybody’s believing it.”
Irish lose another
Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly is worried about the number of season-ending injuries hitting the sixth-ranked Fighting Irish.
“Certainly we can’t afford to lose any more players at key positions: Quarterback, running back, you start to get into true freshmen, and that will be obviously a significant change in what we look like,” Kelly said Sunday.
Sophomore safety Drue Tranquill became the sixth player for the No. 6 Fighting Irish to sustain a season-ending injury when he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee Saturday while celebrating a pass breakup in the end zone against Georgia Tech.
Tranquill sustained the injury just before halftime and spent the second half on the sideline on crutches with a brace on his knee as the Irish held on for the 30-22 victory.
Kelly said Tranquill is expected to undergo surgery within two weeks after doing some rehabilitation work. Tranquill was making his first start of the season after starting three games last season, when he missed the final two games with a torn ACL in his left knee.