TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — While the University of Alabama made a strong case to move up from fifth to first in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings, both the Associated Press and Amway Coaches polls had it at No. 2 Sunday.
Following another close victory, this time over Miami, undefeated Florida State moved back to No. 1 in both polls, with Oregon third and Mississippi State fourth.
Alabama, which defeated previously No. 1 Mississippi State 25-20 on Saturday, landed 16 first-place votes in the AP poll, and 17 from the coaches.
“When you beat the No. 1 team in the country, I think that’s a significant accomplishment,” Coach Nick Saban said Saturday night.
“We have tough games coming up. It’s like being in the playoff now.”
As for the computers that were used for the Bowl Championship Series, most had the same top four, albeit not necessarily in the same order:
• Jeff Sagarin: 1. Alabama, 2. Ole Miss, 3. Georgia, 4. Baylor, 5. Oregon.
• Anderson & Hester: Rankings have not been updated yet.
• Richard Billingsley: 1. Florida State, 2. Alabama, 3. Mississippi State, 4. Oregon, 5. Ohio State.
• Colley Matrix: 1. Alabama, 2. Florida State, 3. Mississippi State, 4. Oregon, 5. Ohio State.
• Kenneth Massey: 1. Alabama, 2. Oregon, 3. Baylor, 4. Mississippi State, 5. Ole Miss
• Dr. Peter Wolfe: 1. Florida State, 2. Alabama, 3. Mississippi State, 4. Oregon, 5. TCU.
The playoff committee’s updated rankings will be announced Tuesday. The top four teams in the final rankings will receive invitations to play in the inaugural playoff, with the top seed playing closer to home between the Sugar and Rose bowls.
Alabama hosts Western Carolina on Saturday (4 p.m. ET, SEC Network) and Auburn next week. A win against the Tigers and it’ll represent the Western Division in the SEC Championship Game against either Missouri or Georgia.
“It’s really big, and I’m glad that we got the win,” senior quarterback Blake Sims said. “I’m looking forward to seeing what else we have this year.”
Associated Press poll
Rank, Team, Record, Points
1 Florida State (43) 10-0 1476
2 Alabama (16) 9-1 1439
3 Oregon (1) 9-1 1385
4 Mississippi State 9-1 1289
5 TCU 9-1 1237
6 Baylor 8-1 1232
7 Ohio State 9-1 1167
8 Ole Miss 8-2 1064
9 Georgia 8-2 948
10 Michigan State 8-2 941
11 UCLA 8-2 876
12 Kansas State 7-2 868
13 Arizona State 8-2 720
14 Wisconsin 8-2 707
15 Arizona 8-2 695
16 Auburn 7-3 531
17 Georgia Tech 9-2 523
18 Marshall 10-0 383
19 Missouri 8-2 376
20 Utah 7-3 349
21 Nebraska 8-2 291
22 Colorado State 9-1 281
23 Oklahoma 7-3 206
24 USC 7-3 195
25 Duke 8-2 85
Dropped from rankings: Notre Dame 15, Clemson 18, LSU 20
Others receiving votes: Notre Dame 74, Clemson 52, Boise State 29, Louisville 29, LSU 26, Minnesota 10, West Virginia 8, Miami (FL) 3, Texas A&M 3, Arkansas 2
Amway coaches poll
1 Florida State (39) 10-0 1518
2 Alabama (17) 9-1 1494
3 Oregon (6) 9-1 1434
4 Mississippi State 9-1 1296
5 TCU 9-1 1279
6 Baylor 8-1 1272
7 Ohio State 9-1 1228
8 Ole Miss 8-2 1041
9 Michigan State 8-2 1030
10 Georgia 8-2 981
11 Kansas State 7-2 880
12 UCLA 8-2 862
13 Arizona 8-2 726
14 Arizona State 8-2 721
15 Wisconsin 8-2 715
16 Georgia Tech 9-2 511
17 Auburn 7-3 508
18 Marshall 10-0 427
19 Nebraska 8-2 409
20 Missouri 8-2 406
21 Utah 7-3 286
22 Oklahoma 7-3 265
23 Colorado State 9-1 259
24 USC 7-3 132
25 Duke 8-2 130
Dropped from rankings: Notre Dame 16, Clemson 17, LSU 20
Others receiving votes: Notre Dame 118, Clemson 69, LSU 43, Boise State 32, Minnesota 29, Louisville 19, Iowa 7, Miami (FL) 6, Texas 5, Cincinnati 3, Texas A&M 3, Stanford 2, Northern Illinois 2, West Virginia 1, Arkansas 1
Christopher Walsh has covered Alabama football since 2004 and is the author of 19 books. In his free time, he writes about college football.
