Kirk Herbstreit ranks top seven teams from college football Week 13

ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit is back at it with his list of the top performing teams in Week 13 of the college football season. It was a chaotic week with multiple upsets happening, leaving him with a plethora of choices.

Herbstreit ultimately landed on Oklahoma as his No. 1 team for the week following the Sooners’ 24-3 upset of Alabama, knocking the Crimson Tide out of College Football Playoff contention. OU was one of several teams to shake up the CFP race with upset wins.

In fact, Herbstreit’s entire top three was filled with SEC teams who pulled off unlikely victories. Florida and Auburn came in right behind the Sooners after their wins against Ole Miss and Texas A&M, respectively.

You can view Kirk Herbstreit’s full list of the top performing teams from Week 13 below.

1. Oklahoma Sooners

The Sooners played spoiler to Alabama’s national title hopes and have Crimson Tide fans up in arms after their dominant 24-3 win in Norman. OU rushed for 260 yards and its defense forced three interceptions, including a pick six, from Jalen Milroe.

The victory earned them bowl eligibility and eases some of the tension toward the end of the season surrounding the job security of coach Brent Venables. Oklahoma heads to Tiger Stadium next week where it will look to keep the magic alive.

2. Florida Gators

The Gators chomped away the postseason hopes of Ole Miss with a 24-17 victory in The Swamp on Saturday. The defense forced interceptions on two drives late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory as Montrell Johnson Jr. rushed for 107 yards and a touchdown.

The victory marked the second straight against a top 25 team for Florida, which achieved bowl eligibility as well. They enter a matchup against in-state rival Florida State next week as the favorite with a chance to reach seven wins for the first time under Billy Napier.

3. Auburn Tigers

Auburn defeated No. 15 Texas A&M in a 43-41 four-overtime thriller on its Senior Day. Auburn trailed 31-28 late before marching downfield to a kick a game-tying field goal with five seconds remaining and force overtime.

The game was still tied heading into the fourth extra period when Payton Thorne found KeAndre Lambert-Smith for the winning score over the middle. The Tigers now have a chance to reach bowl eligibility if they can manage a win in the Iron Bowl against Alabama this weekend.

4. Kansas Jayhawks

The Jayhawks have been a chaos causer in the Big 12 of late, having beat Iowa State, BYU and Colorado over the past three weeks. They handed the Buffaloes a 37-21 loss on Saturday to force a four-way tie atop the conference standings and keep themselves alive for a bowl.

Running back Devin Neal put the team on his back to rush for 207 yards and three touchdowns in addition to four catches for 80 yards and another score. KU faces Baylor to close out the season on Saturday.

5. Arizona State Sun Devils

The Sun Devils were also an agent of chaos in the Big 12 this past week as they handed BYU a 28-23 loss to move into a tie for first place. They now have an opportunity to make the conference championship as they head into a game against Arizona to close the year.

Cam Skattebo ran the ball 28 times for 147 yards and three touchdowns in the win. He faces a Wildcats defense that ranks 93rd in the country with 119.7 rushing yards allowed per game in Week 14.

6. Ohio State Buckeyes

In any other week, what Ohio State did likely would have warranted it a position in the top three. The Buckeyes handed previously undefeated Indiana its first loss of the season, winning 38-15 at The Shoe.

Will Howard threw for 201 yards and two touchdowns to one interceptions as the Buckeyes came back from an early 7-0 deficit to take control. A win against rival Michigan next week guarantees them a spot in the Big Ten Championship game.

7. Oregon State Beavers

Oregon State rounds out Kirk Herbstreit’s list of top performing teams from Week 13. The Beavers snapped a five-game losing streak to escape on a game-winning field goal with 20 seconds remaining for a 41-38 victory.

They head into a pivotal matchup against Boise State next week with a chance to not only gain bowl eligibility with a win, but also shake up the College Football Playoff picture in the process.