College football rankings: Predicting the AP top 25 poll for Week 9

Let's make our predictions for what the AP top 25 college football rankings will look like after an eventful Saturday

As the dust settles around the latest slate of games on Saturday, let's look ahead to the next AP top 25 college football rankings

Note: this isn't our ranking of the best teams, but our prediction for how top 25 voters will slot them in the official poll

College football rankings: Predicting the AP top 25 poll for Week 9

Predicting the Week 9 college football rankings

25. South Carolina. Shane Beamer continues to build a foundation here, and is coming off an important win over Texas A&M, moving to 5-2 on the year, two wins away from bowl eligibility.

24. Tulane. The Wave took a 35-0 lead into halftime, but were outscored 28-3 in the final two quarters. It's still their fourth straight going into the bye week and good enough to stay in the rankings.

23. NC State. Devin Leary is out for the year, leaving the QB position in the hands of transfer Jack Chambers, who had this week off to learn the system going into the Virginia Tech game next Saturday, but there are two games against teams in the top 25 rankings still to come (Wake, UNC).

22. North Carolina. Still at first place in the ACC Coastal, the Tar Heels are 3-0 in conference and 6-1 overall, boast a legit threat in quarterback Drake Maye, and have Pitt up next and Wake in two weeks.

21. Cincinnati. Ben Bryant hit Josh Whyle on a 3rd down score and UC's defense held off SMU's two-point attempt late to keep Cincy perfect in conference play and 6-1 overall.

20. Kentucky. Idle on Saturday, the Wildcats got some needed rest with the most important games still to come, at Tennessee next week and against Georgia in a month.

19. Kansas State. Down to its third quarterback on the road at TCU, K-State built a 28-10 lead, but injuries at the most important position derailed its offensive game plan in the second half.

18. Syracuse. For most of Saturday's game at Clemson, the Orange had the momentum, building a 21-7 lead off a strong defensive performance, but its offensive line gradually wore down in the face of the Tigers' strong front seven, it moved away from using lead back Sean Tucker, and officials missed a call that could have helped in the second half.

17. LSU. It's time to rank the Tigers, who moved to 3-0 in SEC West games and 4-1 in conference with a major win over Ole Miss, outscoring the Rebs 42-3 to end the game off Jayden Daniels 4 total TDs, including 3 rushing.

16. UCLA. The last perfect team in the Pac-12 came crashing to earth in a 45-30 loss at Oregon and had no answer for the Ducks' fast-paced offense. Losing the crucial head-to-head hurts UCLA, but there's time to see how things shake out in the west.

15. Illinois. Just 3 points keep the Illini from a perfect record and looking ahead, this is a very winnable schedule, with just a game against Michigan to watch out for. Illinois can easily make the Big Ten title game at 2 losses.

14. Penn State. Nick Singleton pounded for 2 touchdowns on the ground while Sean Clifford tacked on four more passing in a big win over Tanner Morgan-less Minnesota. Buckeyes incoming next Saturday.

13. Utah. Off this week, the Utes cashed in on a big win over USC two weeks ago, sitting at second in the Pac-12, still in this conference title race, and looking ahead to a major tilt against Oregon a few weeks from now. 

12. Ole Miss. The 7-game win streak to start the season is over after the Rebels' gifted rushing attack was held down by LSU's front seven. After leading 17-3 in the second, LSU outscored Ole Miss 42-3.

11. Wake Forest. Sam Hartman hit on 5 TDs in a nice win over BC and Wake is still in the mix for a good New Year's bowl, but lost control over the ACC title race after a loss to Clemson a few weeks back.

10. USC. Expect the idle Trojans to move up in the rankings after some movement above them in the polls. USC needs some help, but can still make a run at the Pac-12 against probably Oregon.

9. Oklahoma State. The Pokes overcame a two-TD deficit and scored the game's final 17 points in a win over ranked Texas, enough to move into the top 10 and revive some of those Big 12 title hopes.

8. Oregon. Since the Georgia debacle, the Ducks have won six straight games, including against two top-15 teams, are 4-0 in Pac-12 games, and have scored at least 41 points each time out, most recently in a romp over then-undefeated UCLA.

7. TCU. It looked like trouble for the Frogs against Kansas State, but they rallied to score 28 unanswered points, running for over 200 yards, while Kendre Miller ran for 2 scores to stay perfect and take sole possession of the top spot in the Big 12.

6. Alabama. Nick Saban is now 9-0 coming off a regular season loss after beating Mississippi State, enough to stay put in the top 25 rankings, but you still felt like the Tide left some points on the field.

5. Clemson. Four turnovers and a 21-10 deficit appeared to doom this team against Syracuse, but a change at QB seemed to change the mood, helping a comeback as Cade Klubnik lead a few scoring drives, and Clemson won its ACC record 38th straight home game, staying perfect on the season.

4. Michigan. Another idle team this week, the Wolverines had time to reboot after thrashing Penn State before hosting Sparty next weekend, but dates against Illinois and at Ohio State are still to come.

3. Tennessee. Big Orange should stay put in this slot after dropping 65 on UT Martin in a tune-up coming off the Bama win and going into a home tilt with Kentucky, and a trip to Georgia after that.

2. Ohio State. A slow first half for the Buckeyes against Iowa's legit defense, but CJ Stroud and company piled on 37 unanswered points in a 54-10 drubbing over the Hawkeyes' hapless attack.

1. Georgia. Idle this week, the Bulldogs shouldn't be under threat of getting dropped, but there's a tough month ahead, first against Florida before facing an expected three straight ranked teams, including Tennessee.

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