Notre Dame edges up to No. 6 in AP Top 25

Field Level Media|published: Sun 17th November, 15:37 2024

Notre Dame wide receiver Jayden Thomas (83) celebrates a touchdown during a NCAA college football game against Virginia at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, in South Bend.

A lack of upsets at the top of college football resulted in little movement at the top of the Associated Press Top 25 poll on Sunday, as Oregon remained undefeated and keeps its hold on the No. 1 ranking after avoiding an upset at Wisconsin.

The Ducks (11-0) prevailed 16-13 in Madison, Wis., while No. 2 Ohio State (9-1), No. 3 Texas (9-1) and No. 4 Penn State (9-1) all won as well, preserving the top four. Indiana (10-0) remained No. 5 after a bye week.

Previous No. 6 Tennessee lost to Georgia, and previous No. 7 BYU was upset by Kansas, opening the door for Notre Dame (9-1) to move up to No. 6 with its 35-14 blowout of Virginia.

The Fighting Irish have barely been tested since their shocking upset loss to Northern Illinois in Week 2, only once winning by less than 18 (31-24 vs. Louisville on Sept. 28). That could change soon with next weekend's game against No. 18 Army (9-0).

Four SEC schools round out the Top 10 with identical 8-2 records: No. 7 Alabama, No. 8 Georgia, No. 9 Ole Miss and No. 10 Tennessee.

BYU (9-1) fell seven spots to No. 14 after losing for the first time this season, landing one spot below a team it beat earlier this year, SMU (9-1), who survived an upset bid from Boston College.

Arizona State (8-2) rejoined the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2021 at No. 21 after its 24-14 road win at previous No. 20 Kansas State. Other newcomers included No. 22 Iowa State (8-2), No. 23 UNLV (8-2) and No. 24 Illinois (7-3).

Kansas State, LSU, Louisville and Missouri all fell from the rankings following losses.

The third in-season edition of the College Football Playoff committee's rankings will be released Tuesday night.

The full AP Top 25 poll after Week 12:

1. Oregon

2. Ohio State

3. Texas

4. Penn State

5. Indiana

6. Notre Dame

7. Alabama

8. Georgia

9. Ole Miss