How the Star-Telegram’s Steven Johnson voted in AP poll: Rivalry week awaits
HOUSTON
Week 13 of the college football season served as the appetizer before the main course, as many of the nation’s top teams had bye weeks or what were essentially bye weeks against inferior opponents.
Most of those teams, including Ohio State, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt, handled their business to set up massive showdowns on rivalry week in Week 14.
There were still some intriguing results, as TCU snapped a two-game losing streak to beat previously ranked Houston and Utah survived one of the season’s craziest games against Kansas State.
There wasn’t a ton of movement in the Associated Press Top 25, but don’t worry. That will change next week.
Here’s how the Star-Telegram’s Steven Johnson voted on his weekly AP Top 25 ballot:
Steven Johnson’s AP Top 25 ballot
1. Ohio State (11-0): Even without wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate, the Buckeyes had no issue dispatching Rutgers 42-9. Now it’s Michigan week. Last week: 1
2. Indiana (11-0): The Hoosiers had a bye week. Last week: 2
3. Georgia (10-1): The Bulldogs blew out Charlotte, as most of the SEC played cupcakes. Last week: 3
4. Texas A&M (11-0): The Aggies got their blowout win over Samford on SEC cupcake week. Last week: 4
5. Texas Tech (10-1): The Red Raiders had a bye. Last week: 5
6. Ole Miss (10-1): The Rebels had a bye. Last week: 6
7. Oklahoma (9-2): The Sooners’ defense had an impressive showing, shutting down Missouri 17-6. Last week: 7
8. BYU (10-1): The Cougars added another quality win to their resume at Cincinnati. Last week: 8
9. Oregon (10-1): The Ducks finally added a signature win to a relatively weak resume, pulling away from USC 42-27. Last week: 11
10. Notre Dame (9-2): The Fighting Irish put up video game numbers in a 70-7 blowout of Syracuse. Last week: 9
11. Alabama (9-2): The Crimson Tide cruised to a 56-0 win over Eastern Illinois. Last week: 10
12. Miami (9-2): The Hurricanes kept their playoff hopes alive with a 34-17 win at Virginia Tech. Last week: 13
13. Utah (9-2): The Utes stormed back to beat Kansas State 51-47 and remain in the College Football Playoff hunt. Last week: 12
14. Texas (8-3): Arch Manning had maybe his best game of the season as the Longhorns pulled away from Arkansas. Last week: 15
15. Vanderbilt (9-2): The Commodores tied a program record with nine wins as they hammered Kentucky 45-17. Last week: 16
16. USC (8-3): The Trojans’ playoffs hope ended in Eugene with the defeat to the Ducks. They would need absolute chaos to get in. Last week: 14
17. Michigan (9-2): The Wolverines defeated Maryland 45-20 and set the stage for a massive showdown with Ohio State in rivalry week. Last week: 17
18. Virginia (9-2): The Cavaliers had a bye. Last week: 19
19. Arizona State (8-3): The Sun Devils continued to find ways to win without quarterback Sam Leavitt as they blew out Deion Sanders and Colorado in Boulder. Last week: 22
20. Tennessee (8-3): The Volunteers had no issues taking care of Florida in a 31-11 win. Last week: 23
21. Pittsburgh (8-3): The Panthers ended Georgia Tech’s playoff hopes, jumping out to a 28-0 lead and holding on for a 42-28 win. Last week: NR
22. James Madison (10-1): The Dukes defeated Washington State 24-20. Last week: 21
23. Arizona (8-3): The Wildcats continued their second-half surge by outscoring Baylor 27-0 in the second half to defeat the Bears 41-17. Last week: 25
24. North Texas (10-1): The Mean Green rolled to a 56-24 win over Rice. Last week: 24.
25. Tulane (9-2): The Green Wave defeated Temple 37-13 to increase their winning streak to three games. Last week: NR
Dropped out: Georgia Tech (18), Houston (20)
Moved up: Pittsburgh, Tulane
Explaining the decisions
It was another straightforward week in terms of teams falling off or moving onto the ballot. Georgia Tech has lost two of its past three games as its defense has self-destructed in November.
Houston had a narrow 17-14 loss to TCU, but the Horned Frogs were clearly the better team — and that says a lot with how the Horned Frogs have looked recently.
Pittsburgh earned its way back onto the ballot with the win over Georgia Tech, while Tulane has played its best football late and could snatch the Group of Five playoff berth.
