Despite winning on the road in Tallahassee over the weekend, Clemson football fell to the fifth spot in the latest AP Poll.
Georgia claimed the top spot with Ohio State coming in at second, followed by Tennessee in third after the Volunteers took down Alabama by a score of 52-49 Saturday.
Michigan, who blasted previously unbeaten Penn State 41-17 jumped Clemson to move into fourth, followed by the Tigers.
I have previously been critical of the Wolverines’ schedule and hype, but given their victory and the way it occurred Saturday I have no issues with them being ranked ahead of Clemson this week.
It’s still to be determined how good Penn State is or isn’t, but if we’re going to give Clemson credit for a top-10 win by virtue of beating North Carolina State, Michigan deserves the same respect until proven otherwise.
Alabama fell to number 6, followed by Ole Miss, TCU, UCLA and Oregon to round out the top 10.
The second ten includes Oklahoma State, Southern Cal, Wake Forest, Syracuse, Utah, Penn State, Kansas State, Illinois, Kentucky and Texas.
The final five are Cincinnati, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Mississippi State and Tulane.
Clemson and Syracuse square off in Death Valley Saturday in a battle of unbeatens as the 6-0 Orange travel to meet the 7-0 Tigers.
Clemson has been installed as an early 14 point favorite over the Orange.
Continuing to win is all Clemson football needs to do and the rest will take care of itself
While there has been some questions around Clemson’s ranking in the AP Poll, including by me, the reality is “just win baby”. Ohio State and Michigan play each other, as do Tennessee and Georgia, meaning at least two of the teams ahead of Clemson will have a regular season loss.
Clemson also has a top 10 victory over North Carolina State and a top 15 win over Wake Forest, with another top 15 opponent scheduled for next Saturday.
After Syracuse, the Tigers have an off week and then travel to Notre Dame on November 5 for another prime time TV appearance.