Iowa, Cincinnati Move Into Top Five of AP Top 25 Poll as Clemson Drops Out

Clemson dropped out of the Top 25 for the first time since 2014 while a showdown awaits between No. 3 Iowa and No. 4 Penn State.

Iowa and Cincinnati broke into the top five of the latest AP Top 25 poll while Clemson dropped out of the poll for the first time since 2014.

Following a dominant 51–14 win over Maryland, Iowa is now third in the nation where Oregon previously sat before its overtime loss to unranked Stanford. Looming next weekend is a highly-anticipated Big Ten showdown between the Hawkeyes and No. 4 Penn State in what will be the first game between top-five teams at Kinnick Stadium since 1985 when No. 1 Iowa beat No. 2 Michigan.

Cincinnati's win over then-No. 9 Notre Dame on Saturday propelled the Bearcats to their highest ranking since 2009, when coach Brian Kelly led the team to a fourth-place regular-season finish. 

Last week, Clemson saw its streak of 97 straight weeks in the top 10 come to an end after its second straight loss. Now, the Tigers find themselves out of the Top 25 entirely, ending their streak of 107 consecutive weeks in the rankings, following an unconvincing 19–13 win against Boston College 

Alabama, who received 53 of 62 first-place votes, and Georgia remain in the top two spots after their respective wins over now-No. 17 Ole Miss and No. 13 Arkansas. Overall, nine ranked teams, including four top-10 teams, lost this weekend. 

Kentucky enters the rankings for the first time this season after its surprising 20-13 win over then-No. 10 Florida. Texas moved back into the rankings at No. 21 ahead of its Red River Rivalry with No. 6 Oklahoma this weekend. 

AP Top 25

1. Alabama (53) 
2. Georgia (9)
3. Iowa
4. Penn State
5. Cincinnati
6. Oklahoma
7. Ohio State
8. Oregon
9. Michigan
10. BYU
11. Michigan State
12. Oklahoma State
13. Arkansas
14. Notre Dame
15. Coastal Carolina
16. Kentucky
17. Mississippi
18. Auburn
19. Wake Forest
20. Florida
21. Texas
22. Arizona State
23. NC State
24. SMU
25. San Diego State

Others receiving votes: Clemson 96, Texas A&M 41, Oregon St. 27, Baylor 24, Mississippi St. 18, Virginia Tech 13, Stanford 11, UTSA 10, Pittsburgh 6, Fresno St. 5, Texas Tech 4, W. Michigan 3, Kansas St. 2, Appalachian St. 2, UCLA 1, Boston College 1.