College football rankings: Plenty of changes in ESPN's top 25 rankings

What the ESPN top 25 ranking's look like after an action-packed opening weekend in college football.

Aug 29, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Detail view of a ESPN college football emblem on a end zone broadcast camera during the first half between the North Dakota State Bison against the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports / Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Big games and important statements were made during the first week of college football. Upsets and crushing defeats included, this week gave way to a very interesting shake-up of the CFB rankings. Of course, after an action-packed Saturday, ESPN made efforts to re-arrange their top 25 list. The list is likely to change following USC defeating LSU on Sunday night. Here is the updated list after Saturday's games:

College football rankings: ESPN reveals top 25 poll for Week 2

1. Georgia
2. Alabama
3. Texas
4. Ohio State
5. Penn State
6. Notre Dame
7. Tennessee
8. Ole Miss
9. Oklahoma
10. Oregon
11. Miami
12. Missouri
13. Louisville
14. LSU
15. Michigan
16. Auburn
17. Florida State
18. Texas A&M
19. USC
20. Kansas
21. UCF
22. Kansas State
23. Clemson
24. Arizona
25. Utah

Biggest takeaway's and moves going into week 2:

Teams on the rise:

Newcomers to the top 25 list include Louisville, Auburn, and UCF. The latter of which didn't earn a vote in either the preseason AP poll or the preseason coaches poll. UCF ended week 1 with a 57-3 win over New Hampshire. They put their run-heavy offense on display as the RB room totaled an astounding 454 total rushing yards on 54 carries with five total rushing touchdowns. Auburn came into the season at 41st in the AP poll and 32nd in the coaches poll, but now sits at 16 after a dominating performance against Alabama A&M, winning 73-3. Louisville (+13) started the season just outside the top 25 rankings, but made a statement against Austin Peay with a shutout and final score of 62-0.

The three biggest winners that improved their position within the top 25 this week were Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Miami. Each of these three teams cemented themselves in the rankings, and moved up a substantial amount. Tennessee (+8) had full control of its game against Chattanooga under new starting QB Nico Iamaleava who threw for 314 yards and three touchdowns in the 69-3 win. Oklahoma (+7) also had a one-sided game against Temple behind QB Jackson Arnold who threw four touchdowns with a final score of 51-3. Miami (+8) had perhaps one of the biggest statement games of the week. The Hurricanes went into The Swamp at Florida, and came out with a 41-17 win as they dominated both sides of the ball.

MOOD 😅 pic.twitter.com/X5hiaeGpUl

— ACC Network (@accnetwork) August 31, 2024

Teams on the decline:

Both Oregon (-7) and Michigan came into the season as heavy-hitters in the Big 10 conference, but they both dropped significantly in the rankings this week due to shaky performances against easy opponents. Oregon barely escaped its game against Idaho after a clutch 4th quarter touchdown from Dillon Gabriel to Tez Johnson gave the Ducks a two-possession lead. Oregon ended up winning 24-14, but the game did not emphasize its preseason rank of #3. Michigan (-6) also had a tough time scoring against Fresno State in Sherrone Moore's first win as head coach. Through the first three quarters, the defending national champions only scored 13 points, but the Wolverines did end up dominating the fourth quarter after an 18-yard touchdown from Davis Warren. The Fresno State coffin was finally sealed after an 86-yard pick-six by first-team All-American Will Johnson.

Will Johnson is on a different level#GoBlue pic.twitter.com/ZHepbESKED

— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) September 1, 2024

Clemson (-9) and FSU (-7) both suffered some bad losses in week 1 which caused a significant decline in each of their rankings. Clemson was blown out 34-3 by the #1 ranked team, Georgia, in the Mercedes Benz Dome. FSU was in the CFB debut in Ireland where they got upset by Georgia Tech 24-21. The game was put away as time expired when Georgia Tech's kicker Aiden Birr nailed a 44-yard field goal.

Iowa, Oklahoma State, and North Carolina State were the 3 teams to be pushed out of the top 25 even though they all got the job done in week 1.

Week 2 will kick-off with a heavy-weight matchup between Michigan and Texas at 12pm EST on FOX.

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