With losses by Penn State and Pitt this week, there isn’t a snowflake’s chance that any local teams wind up in the college football polls, but let’s take a look at how the rankings are likely to shake out. There were no losses by top ten teams this week (and that includes Ohio State), and I doubt No. 1 Oregon or No. 2 Auburn will see any movement (despite Oregon’s close win over Cal). No. 3 TCU had to stage a comeback over San Diego State, however, while No. 4 Boise State had an easy 52-14 win over Idaho on Friday, so it’s possible TCU and Boise State could switch places.
After that, LSU had an easy win this week and should hold steady at No. 5. No. 6 Wisconsin put up a ridiculous 83 points against Indiana and should hold as well. No. 7 Stanford had a close win against Arizona State, so it’s possible the Cardinal could get leapfrogged by No. 8 Ohio State or No. 9 Nebraska, but I doubt it. No. 10 Michigan State was off. The AP Poll this week could look something like this:
1. Oregon
2. Auburn
3. Boise State
4. TCU
5. LSU
6. Wisconsin
7. Stanford
8. Ohio State
9. Nebraska
10. Michigan State
Obviously, there won’t be any Big East teams in the top 25. In the Big Ten, the top 25 should probably include Iowa in addition to Wisconsin and Ohio State, but the Hawkeyes will take a tumble this week after Northwestern came from behind to beat them.