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The USA TODAY Coaches Poll was released Sunday after the completion of Week 12 on Saturday night and, while only 1 of the top 6 teams in the poll comes from the SEC, the conference still boasts 7 teams in the top 25 even after Missouri and LSU dropped out.
Oregon nearly fell from the mountaintop but stayed No. 1 in the new poll after surviving at Wisconsin, and Ohio State remained at No. 2 after easily taking care of Northwestern in a charming matchup at historic Wrigley Field. Then comes the only SEC team in the top 6, No. 3 Texas, which wasn’t overly impressive but still did enough to win at Arkansas in a tidy 20-10 victory.
Tennessee’s loss at Georgia on Saturday night allowed Penn State, Indiana and Notre Dame to each move up 1 spot to No. 4, 5 and 6, respectively. The SEC floodgate happens between Nos. 7-11, led by 7th-ranked Alabama, which easily handled Mercer on Saturday. Georgia moved up 2 spots to No. 8 after that impressive win over Tennessee, with idle Ole Miss also moving up 2 spots to No. 9.
After No. 10 Miami came Tennessee, which plummeted 7 spots to No. 11 after getting shut out in the 2nd half of that 31-17 loss in Athens. Texas A&M was the next SEC team in the rankings at No. 14, and South Carolina moved up 4 spots to No. 19 after that dramatic home victory over Missouri, which knocked the Tigers out of the poll.
There were 3 SEC teams that received votes for the poll, with Missouri getting 44 votes, and Vanderbilt and LSU each receiving 1 vote.
Here is the full Coaches Poll Top 25 with Week 13 on the horizon:
1. Oregon
2. Ohio State
3. Texas
4. Penn State
5. Indiana
6. Notre Dame
7. Alabama
8. Georgia
9. Ole Miss
10. Miami
11. Tennessee
12. SMU
13. Boise State
14. Texas A&M
15. BYU
16. Clemson
17. Army
18. Colorado
19. South Carolina
20. Tulane
21. Iowa State
22. Arizona State
23. UNLV
24. Memphis
25. Kansas State
Others receiving votes
Washington State 65; Illinois 56; Missouri 44; Syracuse 18; James Madison 11; Duke 9; Pittsburgh 7; Louisiana 5; Louisville 2; Vanderbilt 1; Sam Houston 1; LSU 1; Colorado State 1
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
