Week 9 provided a little bit of clarity in the national championship picture, as three undefeated teams suffered their first loss of the season.
How would these results impact this week’s rankings? Be sure to check out the latest installment of the TSS Power 16 Poll below.
| Rank | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama (4) | 79 |
| 2 | Washington (1) | 72 |
| 3 | Michigan | 69 |
| 4 | Clemson | 68 |
| 5 | Ohio State | 58 |
| 6 | Louisville | 55 |
| 7 | Wisconsin | 49 |
| 8 | Texas A&M | 47 |
| 9 | Nebraska | 32 |
| 10 | Auburn | 23 |
| 11 | LSU | 22 |
| Tie | Florida | 22 |
| 13 | Oklahoma | 20 |
| 14 | Utah | 17 |
| 15 | Western Michigan | 12 |
| 16 | Colorado | 10 |
| Others receiving votes: Penn State 9, Florida State 5, West Virginia 4, Boise State 3, Baylor 3, Washington State 2, Houston 1, Virginia Tech 1 | ||
Notes and Observations
- As always, remember that these standings are fluid, and will change from week-to-week.
- Alabama remains atop the poll after receiving four first-place votes and 79 points out of a possible 80. The Tide could be the unanimous No. 1 next week with a convincing win over LSU this weekend.
- The Tigers made the biggest move of any ranked team this week, moving up from No. 16 to No. 11, thanks to all of the carnage in the top 10.
- Washington was the only other team to receive a first-place vote this week. As Associate Editor Terry Johnson pointed out, the Huskies win over Utah demonstrated that they have what it takes to play for the national championship this season.
- Michigan moved up to No. 3 after avenging last year’s loss to Michigan State. Although the Wolverines are second in the AP and Coaches’ polls, we’ve got them one step behind Alabama and Washington.
- Even though it rallied to defeat Florida State, Clemson drops to No. 4 in this week’s poll. This prompted Associate Editor Bart Doan to ask, “why does it feel like we’re sleeping on Clemson?”
- Strength of schedule clearly matters to our panel, which is why we have two-loss Wisconsin in front of one-loss Texas A&M.
- Nebraska remains the most polarizing team in our rankings. One voter listed the Huskers as the eighth-best team in the country, while two others left them off the ballot completely. Nebraska could change our minds if it can upset Ohio State this weekend.
