ESPN updates FPI Top 25 rankings following Week 3 of college football

ESPN updated its Football Power Index (FPI) Top 25 after a loaded Week 2 Saturday of college football.

While there weren’t many surprising upsets, several top squads did find themselves in much closer games than anticipated, which the FPI took notice of. There’s finally a new No. 1 team after Alabama struggled vs. South Florida and plenty of other clubs experienced big jumps or dips based on some surprising final scores.

Below, you can check out where everyone landed in the full FPI top 25 as we round the corner and head towards Week 4.

(Movement in rankings vs. last week)

1. Ohio State (+1)

The Buckeyes beat Indiana and Youngstown State in Weeks 1 and 2 by a combined 58-10 score. Then, this week, they surpassed that total to triumph over Western Kentucky by a 63-10 score thanks to a tremendous day from Kyle McCord.

He passed for 318 yards on just 23 total passes, completing 19 of those while tossing for three touchdowns on the day before he was yanked out. To nobody’s surprise, Marvin Harrison Jr. was again McCord’s favorite target and hauled in 126 yards worth of catches and found the end zone for a score. That 53-point beatdown of the Hilltoppers has OSU topping the FPI.

2. Oklahoma (+6)

Through three games in 2023, Sooner QB Dillon Gabriel is putting up some very respectable stats. The super-senior has more than 900 passing yards already and is taking care of the football with 11 touchdowns to just one interception so far.

Defensively, OU hasn’t faced a power conference challenge yet and will certainly run into higher-octane units in the Big 12 play. But for now, just 28 total points allowed through three games is a step in the right direction for Brent Venables on that side of the football.

3. Georgia

South Carolina simply isn’t scared of the hedges the way many other SEC foes are, because the Gamecocks always seem to give Georgia a real game down in Athens. This Saturday, Shane Beamer’s group gave a little more than a scare when they got up 14-3 by half.

However, after Beamers ran his mouth a bit too much to end the second quarter, the reigning two-time champs came back and knocked South Carolina back into their place. Kirby Smart’s group rolled off three touchdowns in the second half to the Gamecock’s zero and came home with the win.

4. Alabama (-3)

The Crimson Tide controversially stayed at No. 1 in the FPI after last week’s loss to Texas. But now, they’ve finally dropped from the top thanks to a lackluster effort on the road in a two-possession win over USF.

The Bulls really put up a fight and were in it until the bitter end as their defense frustrated the ‘Bama offense all afternoon. Nick Saban gave Notre Dame transfer Tyler Buchner the start but he didn’t do much with it, completing 5/14 passes for 34 yards. Ouch. Luckily, the Tide’s run game was just strong enough to propel them to a score late in the fourth to seal the deal.

5. USC (-1)

After playing in each of Week 0, 1 and 2, USC had this past Saturday off before diving into Pac-12 play with road games against Arizona State and Colorado the next two weeks.

But how about that Trojan offense so far? This USC unit may be even stronger than last year’s, which featured a Heisman winner and a former Biletnikoff winner. In their three contests, USC has scored 56 points, 66 points and 56 points again last Saturday against Stanford.

6. Penn State (+1)

If you wanted to watch beautiful football on Saturday, the Penn State vs. Illinois game was not the one for you. The Nittany Lion defense gave the Illini fits all day, forcing a missed field goal, a fumble and then two interceptions on the first four Illinois possessions. The fun didn’t end there, as Illini QB Luke Altmyer tossed another pair of picks in the second half too.

Thanks to that defensive performance, the offense didn’t put up gaudy numbers nor did they need to. Instead, Drew Allar and the terrific cast of running backs capitalized off the six forced turnovers and cruised to a 30-13 Big Ten road win.

7. Texas (-1)

When they aren’t facing Alabama, Texas hasn’t looked like a complete juggernaut. The Longhorns let local challenger Rice hang around for a while in the first half of the Week 1 win, then entered the fourth quarter of Saturday’s matchup with Wyoming tied at 10-10 before rolling off three TDs to make it 31-10.

A performance where Texas didn’t thoroughly dominate a smaller opponent likely explains the one-spot drop from last week. But UT fans, we all know that their continued standing behind ‘Bama in these FPI rankings is hardly justifiable.

8. Oregon (+3)

The Ducks gained 560 yards of offense in their late-evening win over Hawaii, and Dan Lanning really spread with the wealth. Bo Nix thew for a smidge under 250 yards and tallied three touchdowns before bowing out to allow for Ty Thompson to get some run, where he completed 4/6 passes for 85 yards and a TD.

Meanwhile, the run game was strong against the 50th State, as no ball carrier broke 100 yards, but Noah Whittingham led with 80 while Jordan James and Bucky Irving both totaled roughly 60. Plus, the Duck D held the Rainbow Warrior offense in check for just 201 total yards. A terrific all-around performance.

9. LSU (+4)

LSU let the country know that the Florida State loss is far in the rearview mirror now as the Tigers silenced the bell cows in dominant fashion with a statement win at Mississippi State. The defense held a talented offense down, but it was LSU’s playmakers that stole the show.

Jayden Daniels was truly extraordinary and turned in his best collegiate game for sure. He completed 30 out of 34 passes for 361 yards and two gorgeous touchdown throws of 25+ yards to the back shoulder of Malik Nabers. He also added 64 yards and a pair of TDs on the ground as well.

10. Florida State (-5)

FSU is in a similar boat as Texas sitting just behind an SEC team they’ve already beat. LSU got the bump for their splashy win over Mississippi State while the Seminoles dropped a bit thanks to a close call vs. Boston College.

BC had their way with the FSU defense, out-gaining the ‘Noles 457-340 on the day, with quarterback Thomas Castellanos passing for 305 yards while running for 95 more to give him an even 400 yards of offense on the day — a greater number than Florida State’s whole team! FSU was lucky to come out alive.

FPI Rankings 11-25

11. Washington (+3)
12. Notre Dame (-3)
13. Ole Miss (-1)
14. Michigan (-4)
15. Miami FL
16. Syracuse (+2)
17. Clemson (+3)
18. Texas A&M (+1)
19. Utah (-3)
20. Oregon State (-3)
21. UCF (+2)
22. Kansas State (-1)
23. North Carolina (NEW)
24. Tennessee (-2)
25. Florida (NEW)

There you have it. North Carolina and Florida both entered the fold this week as well. The Gators secured one of the better wins of the weekend when they handled a top-15 ranked Tennessee squad by two scores in The Swamp. Meanwhile, North Carolina advanced to 3-0 and has a win over South Carolina that looked pretty good as the Gamecocks gave Georgia a challenge on Saturday.