This college football season might be as wide-open as any we\u2019ve seen in years.<\/p>\n
The introduction of NIL and unlimited transfers has accelerated player movement at an unprecedented rate and lowered the ceiling at the top of the sport. The days of Alabama and Georgia hoarding all the top players for a dynasty appear to be done. Talent is more spread out. Every team has flaws.<\/p>\n
Three weeks into the season, it\u2019s fair to say every single FBS conference and the College Football Playoff field feels completely wide open, and that\u2019s a whole lot of fun.<\/p>\n
It doesn\u2019t make for easy rankings, however. Welcome to the No. 1 spot in The Athletic\u2019s\u00a0136 rankings this week, Ohio State, though I don\u2019t feel great about it.<\/p>\n
The Buckeyes beat Ohio 37-9, an underwhelming performance that was a 13-9 score early in the second half. But it was enough to slide up because of what happened elsewhere. LSU beat Florida 20-10, and Brian Kelly is probably not happy to see the Tigers slip to No. 3 here, but it\u2019s more for the fact that the opening win at Clemson doesn\u2019t look nearly as good after the (Clemson) Tigers lost to Georgia Tech. Ohio State\u2019s win against Texas is still fine, but the Longhorns have looked disappointing, too, after a 27-10 win against UTEP.<\/p>\n
Another weekly reminder: These rankings are volatile early as they wait for everyone to play a team of note. Big wins are rewarded but are re-evaluated (like Clemson). Close losses help, too. You might win and drop or lose and rise, but it\u2019s influenced by what happened around you, such as if a team ranked below you won a big game. Teams that haven\u2019t played a notable opponent mostly just float around and don\u2019t really matter yet. The rankings lean heavily into results and resume more than my preseason feelings.<\/p>\n
We truly have no idea how this season will play out. The early-season results already take a different look than they did a few weeks ago. The rest of this year is going to be fun.<\/p>\n
I was extremely close to putting Miami at No. 1. The resume argument is there. The reason I didn\u2019t was because the Notre Dame win lost some shine with the Irish loss to Texas A&M, and Florida\u2019s performance against LSU dings USF.<\/p>\n
Georgia moves up to No. 5 with the overtime win at Tennessee. Any of the teams in the top five here have a case for No. 1, to be honest, but thus far, FSU\u2019s dominant win against Alabama has held up. Georgia was also one play away from losing to Tennessee three times. Overall, a very good performance from Georgia that has me reevaluating them as a true national title contender.<\/p>\n
Texas A&M jumps up to No. 6 because it won on the road at Notre Dame, while the Longhorns have that close loss to Ohio State, but haven\u2019t impressed in wins. Oregon and Penn State remain at the bottom of this group, floating around without playing any real notable opponents. Thankfully, they play each other in two weeks.<\/p>\n
Vanderbilt bumps up a couple spots to No. 14. The 31-7 win at South Carolina was mighty impressive, but the previous win at Virginia Tech loses that luster. Georgia Tech climbs to No. 15 after the last-second win at Clemson, and the Yellow Jackets might be a favorite to reach Charlotte.<\/p>\n
Notre Dame slides to No. 21 as the toughest team to rank. They\u2019re winless, but have lost two games by a combined four points in the final minute against undefeated teams. I still think they\u2019re pretty good, but teams lose any favors when they drop a second game.<\/p>\n
USF drops after its blowout loss at Miami, but wins against Boise State and Florida are enough to stay at No. 22 for now. Tennessee actually moves up to No. 20 after the overtime loss to Georgia, because of how close the Vols were in a big game, and their play this season has been better than my preseason prediction. Tulane moves into No. 25 after beating Duke. Good news for the American Conference\u2019s CFP hopes: USF and Tulane don\u2019t play each other in the regular season.<\/p>\n
Indiana and Utah are still hanging around in this group, waiting to play someone of note. The Utes have fallen back from their original jump now that the UCLA win isn\u2019t valuable anymore.<\/p>\n
South Carolina drops down to No. 28 after the loss to Vandy, let\u2019s hope LaNorris\u2019 Sellers\u2019 injury isn\u2019t serious<\/a>. Clemson falls all the way to No. 32. With two (close) losses and an underwhelming win against Troy, Clemson has lost all benefit of the doubt<\/a>.<\/p>\n Cal jumps up to No. 34 after its win against Minnesota, and Houston\u2019s win against Colorado sees the Cougars move up to No. 45. Meanwhile, West Virginia rebounds with an overtime win against Pitt to climb up to No. 46.<\/p>\n Teams like Texas Tech, BYU, Washington and USC are still just floating around until they play someone of note, so don\u2019t look too much into their position. The Red Raiders travel to Utah this week.<\/p>\n Not much real movement in this group. No. 52 Arkansas and No. 53 Minnesota fall back into this group after losses, though the Razorbacks lost by just six at Ole Miss. No. 58 Duke slips a few spots after a loss to Tulane, while Colorado falls back to No. 59 for the loss at Houston. Wisconsin drops to No. 66 after a 38-14 loss at Alabama.<\/p>\n Keep an eye on North Texas, which is 3-0 and up to No. 72 after a 59-10 win against Washington State. If the Mean Green have fixed their defensive issues, they\u2019ll have something to say about the American Conference race.<\/p>\n Hawaii moves up to No. 77 after a win against Portland State, but more so because the win against Stanford now looks better after the Cardinal beat Boston College, which drops to No. 80. Kansas State\u2019s tumble continues, down to No. 82 after a loss to Arizona.<\/p>\n New Mexico\u2019s 35-10 win at UCLA sees the Lobos jump up to No. 83<\/a>, just ahead of No. 84 Old Dominion, which blew out Virginia Tech. The 0-3 Hokies fall to No. 92, just ahead of UCLA for the worst Power 4 program thus far this season. Both UCLA<\/a> and Virginia Tech<\/a> fired their coaches on Sunday.<\/p>\n Southern Miss moves up to No. 95 after beating Appalachian State, while Bowling Green and Georgia Southern climb into the top 100 after wins against Liberty and Jacksonville State.<\/p>\n Liberty continues to fall, now down to No. 108 after the loss to Bowling Green. Utah State moves up to No. 101 after beating Air Force. Louisiana Tech continues to look improved, now up to No. 104 after a lopsided win against New Mexico State.<\/p>\n FIU won the Shula Bowl over FAU to move up to No. 117, while Coastal Carolina fell to No. 119 after a 38-0 loss to East Carolina.<\/p>\n Middle Tennessee moves up to No. 132 after beating Nevada for its first win of the season. Akron\u2019s loss to UAB drops the Zips to No. 135, but UMass remains at the bottom after a loss to Iowa.<\/p>\n (Photo:\u00a0Carmen Mandato \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This college football season might be as wide-open as any we\u2019ve seen in years. 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