College Football 2024: B/R’s Top 25 Rankings After Week 10
College Football 2024: B/R’s Top 25 Rankings After Week 100 of 4
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With Penn State, Iowa State and Pittsburgh each losing for the first time this season in Week 10, while Texas A&M, Clemson and Kansas State also came up short, it will be a new-look Top 25 ranking heading into Week 11 action.
The big game atop the rankings was a clash of Big Ten contenders, with No. 4 Ohio State pulling out a 20-13 victory over No. 3 Penn State, and that should lead to a shake-up behind No. 1 Oregon.
The weekend’s other matchup of ranked teams saw No. 20 SMU crush No. 18 Pittsburgh, and the Mustangs are now one of only two ACC teams with an undefeated record in conference play, along with No. 5 Miami.
All of that meant plenty of shuffling for the Bleacher Report college football crew when it came to filling out this week’s Top 25 ballot.
This week’s panel included David Kenyon, Adam Kramer, Joel Reuter and Brad Shepard. A first-place vote was worth 25 points, a second-place vote worth 24 points and so on.
Top 251 of 4
Oregon quarterback Dillon GabrielGregory Shamus/Getty Images
B/R Top 25
1. Oregon
2. Ohio State
3. Georgia
4. Texas
5. Miami
6. BYU
7. Indiana
8. Penn State
9. Tennessee
10. Notre Dame
11. Alabama
12. Iowa State
13. Ole Miss
14. Texas A&M
15. LSU
16. Clemson
17. SMU
18. Boise State
19. Army
20. Colorado
21. Pittsburgh
22. Washington State
23. Tulane
24. Missouri
25. Kansas State
Who’s Hot: Heisman Trophy Contenders2 of 4
Jaxson DartWesley Hitt/Getty Images
It was a good week for many of the nation’s highest profile players, as several of the favorites in this year’s Heisman Trophy race all showed out.
The exceptions were Colorado teammates Travis Hunter (+210) and Shedeur Sanders (+3000) who were on a bye, and Cade Klubnik (+2000) who struggled against the Louisville defense in a – loss.
The other five players who ranked among the top eight candidates to take home the hardware all put up eye-popping numbers while leading their team to Week 10 wins.
QB Cam Ward, Miami (+200): 25/41, 400 yards, 5 TD, 1 INT
QB Dillon Gabriel, Oregon (+290): 22/34, 294 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT, rushing TD
RB Ashton Jeanty, Boise State (+500): 31 carries, 149 yards, 2 TD
QB Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss (+1400): 25/31, 515 yards, 6 TD, 0 INT
QB Kurtis Rourke, Indiana (+2500): 19/29, 263 yards, 4 TD, 0 INT
Ward, Gabriel and Rourke all kept their teams undefeated on Saturday.
Miami pulled away late from a good Duke team, while Oregon and Indiana cruised to victory on the road in the Big Ten against Michigan and Michigan State, respectively. Rourke showed no signs of rust after spending Week 9 on the sidelines with a thumb injury.
Jeanty now has an FBS-leading 1,525 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns through eight games following a lopsided 56-24 win over San Diego State on Friday night, and that should keep the Broncos in the top spot among Group of Five teams.
Dart had the most eye-popping numbers of the day in a 63-31 shellacking of upset-minded Arkansas to keep the Rebels alive in the playoff picture, and he threw for 294 yards and four touchdowns before halftime.
Note: Odds reflect the most recent available odds from DraftKings.
Who’s Not: Chaos in the Big 123 of 4
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No conference was more wide open heading into the 2024 season than the Big 12, and a quick look back at the preseason poll shows just how unpredictable things have been relative to expectations:
1. Utah (4-4, 1-4)
2. Kansas State (7-2, 4-2)
3. Oklahoma State
4. Kansas (2-6, 1-4)
5. Arizona (3-6, 1-5)
6. Iowa State (7-1, 4-1)
7. West Virginia (4-4, 3-2)
8. UCF (4-5, 2-4)
9. Texas Tech (6-3, 4-2)
10. TCU (5-3, 3-2)
11. Colorado (6-2, 4-1)
12. Baylor (4-4, 2-3)
13. BYU (8-0, 5-0)
14. Cincinnati (5-3, 3-2)
15. Houston (4-5, 3-3)
16. Arizona State (5-2, 2-2)
BYU (9), Iowa State (11), Kansas State (17) and Colorado (23) were the only ranked teams in the conference heading into Week 10, and while the Cougars and Buffaloes were on a bye week, the other two teams both suffered upset losses.
The Cyclones fell 23-22 at home against Texas Tech for their first loss of the season, with Red Raiders quarterback Behren Morton leading a 12-play, 71-yard drive for the go-ahead touchdown with 24 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
The Wildcats have three fourth quarter comebacks this season, but they were on the wrong end of those late-game heroics on Saturday as Houston came away with a 24-19 victory behind a pair of fourth quarter touchdown drives from Zeon Chriss who finished a perfect 11-of-11 with 103 yards and a touchdown through the air while adding 75 rushing yards and a score on the ground.
Will we see more chaos in Week 11 with the top three teams in the conference standings all playing on the road?
What’s Next4 of 4
Alabama quarterback Jalen MilroeJason Clark/Getty Images
The SEC will be front and center once again in Week 11 with a pair of matchups between ranked teams. No. 2 Georgia will travel to No. 19 Ole Miss after both teams recorded wins on Saturday, while No. 14 Alabama at No. 16 LSU square off following a bye for both squads in Week 10.
The only team among those four who can afford to suffer a loss and still stay alive in the playoff picture is one-loss Georgia. The other three teams all have two losses on their ledger, so those two games should bring some clarity to the projected playoff field.
Meanwhile, ACC contenders Miami (at Georgia Tech) and Clemson (at Virginia Tech) both face dangerous opponents on the road, so the door is open for a potential upset that would reshape the projected ACC championship game.
After a chaotic Week 10 in the Big 12, more upsets could be on the horizon next weekend as BYU (at Utah), Iowa State (at Kansas) and Colorado (at Texas Tech) all play on the road. The Cougars are the conference’s lone undefeated team left standing, while the Cyclones and Buffaloes are tied for second place in the Big 12 standings with a 4-1 record.
As for the Group of Five slate, keep an eye on No. 21 Army on the road against North Texas in AAC action.
The Black Knights improved to 8-0 with a 20-3 victory over Air Force on Saturday, but did it without star quarterback Bryson Daily. They will have to slow down a high-powered Mean Green offense that is piloted by TCU transfer Chandler Morris, who has thrown for 2,873 yards and 26 touchdowns on the year.
See you next Saturday!
