Rankings In RUINS: AP Top 25 Poll Gets Absolutely DESTROYED By Saturday's Shocking Upsets!

Oregon, Ohio State, Texas and Penn State managed to keep their top-four spots in the latest AP Top 25 college football poll released on Sunday despite a chaotic weekend of games. However, the same cannot be said for the rest of the teams, as upsets ravaged the rest of the rankings, sending shockwaves throughout the college football world.

This past Saturday was a relatively quiet day at the top, but the stakes will only intensify moving forward. With only a handful of regular-season games remaining, teams are beginning to position themselves for potential spots in the College Football Playoff (CFP) and other prestigious bowl games.

Despite their continued success, Oregon and Ohio State are both sitting pretty at the top due to their stiff competition ahead and neither program can afford to slip up now. A strong case can be made that the real action starts now with Thanksgiving week looming and rivalry games starting to come thick and fast.

Ohio State is less than three weeks away from potentially facing its nemesis when it takes on Michigan in their annual matchup. That contest will likely determine which team advances to the Big Ten Championship Game. For the Buckeyes to reach the CFP for the fifth year in a row, they must defeat their arch-nemesis down the stretch.

Furthermore, Oregon can make a massive statement by upsetting Washington next Saturday in what promises to be an instant classic. The top-ranked Ducks need to pass that test with flying colors and prove to the nation why they deserve to be referred to as one of the premier programs in college football today.

Although Penn State and Texas continue to pace near the very top, these programs have more manageable challenges on the horizon before they worry about making a potential appearance in the SEC Championship or the CFP.

One massive loser in this week’s poll ended up being Georgia, which suffered an overtime loss at Tennessee. Due to this loss, the Bulldogs dropped six places, falling from fifth to eleventh overall.

Other top teams such as Washington and Alabama enjoyed meteoric rises given other programs underwhelming performances over the weekend. One trend is beginning to emerge – most programs have one loss this season. Whether that will play a key role in which team advances to the College Football Playoff remains to be seen.

North Carolina State had perhaps the most eye-popping upset as it shocked then-No. 10 Louisville on its home turf. With one month to go before the bowls, games like these have plenty of significance and weight attached to them and could provide that difference in either securing a New Year’s Six bowl or not.

This season’s results can flip rankings on any given week with upsets around every corner. Now is the best time to be watching NCAA football as teams provide memorable performances left and right.