Week 1 AP Top-25 poll released

AP Poll voters watched the opening weekend of college football. With plenty of Power Five matchups and a top-five showdown in Charlotte, there was plenty to evaluate.

Montana upset No. 20 Washington. Fifth-ranked Georgia escaped Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte with a 10-3 win over No. 3 Clemson, putting the Bulldogs squarely in the College Football Playoff conversation. Florida State nearly knocked off No. 9 Notre Dame, thanks to a fourth-quarter comeback led by former UCF quarterback McKenzie Milton.

Defending national champions and preseason No. 1 Alabama reminded the country just how hard it will be to knock the Crimson Tide off their throne. They routed No. 14 Miami 44-13 in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta.

In the Big Ten, No. 17 Indiana was drubbed by No. 18 Iowa, while No. 19 Penn State upset No. 12 Wisconsin in Madison in a defensive battle.

And don’t forget Chip Kelly announced he is back. With No. 16 LSU at the Rose Bowl, Kelly’s unranked UCLA team showed flashes of the brilliance he put on display during his time at Oregon. The result? The Bruins picked up a commanding 38-27 win.

Ohio State pulled out a win with a first-time starting quarterback against Minnesota, Oregon needed a second-half comeback to beat Fresno State at home, and Virginia Tech fans stormed the field Friday night as the Hokies knocked off No. 10 North Carolina.

And to close out the weekend, Ole Miss put their high-powered offense on display in a 43-24 win over Louisville sans head coach Lane Kiffin, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday and could not travel with the team.

The AP Poll voters have voted. Here is where the top-25 stands after the opening weekend of the college football season.

The full AP Poll can be found below.

AP Poll (Sept. 7)

No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide (1-0) (59)

No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs (1-0) (4)

No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes (1-0)

No. 4 Oklahoma Sooners (1-0)

No. 5 Texas A&M Aggies (1-0)

No. 6 Clemson Tigers (0-1)

No. 7 Cincinnati Bearcats (1-0)

No. 8 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1-0)

No. 9 Iowa State Cyclones (1-0)

No. 10 Iowa Hawkeyes (1-0)

No. 11 Penn State Nittany Lions (1-0)

No. 12 Oregon Ducks (1-0)

No. 13 Florida Gators (1-0)

No. 14 USC Trojans (1-0)

No. 15 Texas Longhorns (1-0)

No. 16 UCLA Bruins (2-0)

No. 17 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (1-0)

No. 18 Wisconsin Badgers (0-1)

No. 19 Virginia Tech Hokies (1-0)

No. 20 Ole Miss Rebels (1-0)

No. 21 Utah Utes (1-0)

No. 22 Miami Hurricanes (0-1)

No. 23 Arizona State Sun Devils (1-0)

No. 24 North Carolina Tar Heels (0-1)

No. 25 Auburn Tigers (1-0)

The SEC leads the way with six teams in the Top 25. The Pac-12 has five and the Big Ten and ACC each have four.

Two SEC teams sit at No. 1 and No. 2, and neither team has a big challenge in the coming weeks. Alabama travels to College Station on Oct. 9 to face No. 5 Texas A&M, and Georgia does not face a ranked opponent until Oct. 30 when they play No. 13 Florida.

The ACC gained a Top-25 team in Virginia Tech, but each of their previously ranked teams fell substantially. After losing their Week 1 matchups, Clemson fell four spots, North Carolina fell 14 spots and Miami fell eight spots.

Two Top-12 matchups headline Week 2

The most exciting matchups in the second full weekend of college football are No. 12 Oregon visiting No. 3 Ohio State and No. 10 Iowa visiting No. 9 Iowa State.

The Buckeyes are 14-point favorites in Columbus and will look to avoid an upset bid from Oregon’s dual-threat quarterback Anthony Brown. Their loaded wide receiver room put on a show in the second half against Minnesota last weekend, but a faster start may be required of Ohio State starting at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Iowa started the season No. 18 and slid up eight spots this week. Despite a shaky 16-10 win over Northern Iowa last weekend, Iowa State is a 4.5-point favorite over the Hawkeyes and will host ESPN’s College Gameday this weekend for the second time in three years. The “Cy-Hawk” rivalry game begins at 3:30 p.m. CT on Saturday. Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell has never beaten Iowa, and the Hawkeyes lead the all-time series 45-22.