College football rankings: ESPN updates Top 25 for Week 3

The updated ESPN top 25 college football rankings entering the Week 3 schedule

College football placed a call to Upset City in Week 2, with seven teams in the top 25 rankings going down, including three in the top 10.

And two of those at home, as Notre Dame took an L to Marshall and Texas A&M lost at Kyle Field to Appalachian State, both unranked Sun Belt teams.

That should put Notre Dame out of the College Football Playoff once and for all, but A&M still has a fighter's chance once the SEC tilt begins.

With all that change in mind, let's take a look at the updated ESPN top 25 college football rankings going into the Week 3 games.

College football rankings: ESPN updates top 25 for Week 3

ESPN Football Power Index (FPI) college football rankings and computer prediction model are a measure of team strength that predicts a team’s future performance. 

Rankings and scores predictions are based on 20,000 simulations of a team’s season, using a combination of analytics, including scores to date, quality of opponents, and a team’s schedule.

25. Washington

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Rankings change: Up 15

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 0.8%

Where Washington is right now: Suddenly looking at a 2-0 mark after putting up 97 points in wins over Kent State and Portland State. Take the opponents into consideration, but transfer quarterback Michael Penix, Jr. went over 300 yards in both games and has helped bring this offense to life for new coach Kalen DeBoer. Hopefully he can stay healthy, something he hasn't been able to do in his career.

24. BYU

Rankings change: Up 4

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 2.7%

Where BYU is now: Perfect through 2 after a statement double-overtime win over No. 9 Baylor at home, roaring back despite some costly special teams blunders and not having its two most productive receivers on the field. A much tougher schedule lies ahead, but the Cougars are in position to make some noise.

23. Minnesota

Rankings change: Up 10

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 0.6%

Where Minnesota is now: Suddenly the only undefeated team in the Big Ten West through two games after taking care of non-conference foes. Star back Mo Ibrahim rumbles for 132 yards and 2 scores while 6th year quarterback Tanner Morgan tacked on 2 more on the ground in Week 2.

22. Kentucky

Rankings change: Down 2

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 0.7%

Where Kentucky is now: Inspired after a statement win at Florida, but the index rankings always produce a head-scratcher or two, and it's hard to defend knocking UK down 2 spots after the victory. Kentucky owns 2 straight over the Gators for the first time since the mid-1970s and sitting pretty in the SEC East with a chance to build real momentum for the Georgia game in November.

21. Arkansas

Rankings change: Up 5

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 0.4%

Where Arkansas is now: Coming off a solid victory over its cross-division rival behind another powerful rushing statement of almost 300 yards with Raheim Sanders scoring twice and a defensive showing that produced 6 sacks and 9 tackles for loss. Watch out for the Hogs in the SEC West.

20. Oklahoma State

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Rankings change: Up 2

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 1.8%

Where Oklahoma State is now: Looking more itself after allowing 44 to Central Michigan in the opener, securing a 17-point win over Arizona State in which Spencer Sanders was efficient throwing the ball and Dominic Richardson went over 130 yards rushing.

19. Cincinnati

Rankings change: Up 12

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 1.2%

Where Cincinnati is now: There were some who thought it was too early to drop Cincy from the rankings after a close loss at ranked Arkansas, and the index is keeping the Bearcats around after a 63-10 thrashing of Kennesaw State. There's a good offense to be made here if Ben Bryant can cut down on the mistakes against better teams.

18. Notre Dame

Rankings change: Down 12

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 0.4%

Where Notre Dame is now: Very suddenly unsure of who it is as Marcus Freeman becomes the first Irish coach to ever start 0-3 at the school following an ugly loss to unranked Marshall in Rockne's house. ND was outclassed on offense and threw a bad pick-6 late in the game.

17. Miami

Rankings change: Down 8

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 5.5%

Where Miami is now: The boo birds were out in force early in the Southern Miss game while the Hurricanes actually trailed, but they made a comeback in the second half to make the score look a little more respectable. Up next is a major road tilt at Texas A&M that could help define both teams' seasons.

16. Ole Miss

Rankings change: Up 1

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 1.8%

Where Ole Miss is now: Still not sure who its starting quarterback is after Jaxson Dart and Luke Altmyer both threw a pair of TDs in another easy, early season win, but this offense does still seem to have some real punch regardless of who's behind the wheel. The Rebs should be perfect when October starts.

15. Oklahoma

Rankings change: Down 4

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 4.5%

Where Oklahoma is now: Coming off a closer-than-expected 30-point win over Kent State where the offense seemed stuck in neutral for most of the first half before findings its identity after the break. Brent Venables' defense did what his defenses usually do ahead of a trip to a reeling Nebraska.

14. Baylor

Rankings change: Down 6

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 1.8%

Where Baylor is now: The defending Big 12 champs took one on the chin in two overtimes at BYU, but didn't quite develop its passing game adequately enough to take advantage of the Cougars' special teams mistakes, and couldn't punch the ball in on the goal line after some costly penalties.

13. Penn State

Rankings change: Up 3

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 5.7%

Where Penn State is now: A glimpse of the future when Drew Allar came in late, going 6 for 8 passing with 2 scores, but as important, this offense moved well on the ground as Nicholas Singleton powered for 2 more scores while covering 179 yards on the ground and the team as a whole averaged almost 7 ypc on the day. Developing this phase is crucial looking ahead to Big Ten play

12. LSU

Rankings change: None

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 1.0%

Where LSU is now: Another curious selection for the index, even as LSU smothered Southern in the home opener behind a 37-point first quarter effort. Kayshon Boutte was a non-factor again, though, catching 5 passes for 42 yards

11. Michigan State

Rankings change: Up 4

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 5.7%

Where Michigan State is now: A 260-yard rushing performance helped tie things over while Payton Thorne had a meh passing day with no TDs and 2 picks. Jalen Berger had 17 carries for 107 yards and 3 touchdowns while the unit had 5.4 yards per carry and Sparty collected 5 sacks against Akron.

10. Utah

Rankings change: Up 9

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 5.4%

Where Utah is now: Taking its anger out on Southern Utah in a 73-7 romp, putting up 9 touchdowns on offense and a 10th on defense. This front seven unit is still a bruiser and the Utes can move the ball with relative ease behind Cam Rising and Tavion Thomas, but the Florida loss looms large in the playoff picture, especially with the Gators' loss.

9. Mississippi State

Rankings change: Up 4

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 5.6%

Where Mississippi State is now: Despite two fumbles and a deflected pick, Will Rogers still hot on 39 of 49 passes for over 300 yards and 4 TDs, two for Caleb Ducking and two more for Austin Williams in the 39-17 win late at Arizona. Getting these kind of non-conference road wins is nice with the kind of schedule that awaits the Bulldogs in the SEC West. But a top 10 team? This is another curious pick for the index.

8. USC

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Rankings change: Up 6

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 19.7%

Where USC is now: Still showing off those shiny new pieces it got in the transfer portal after Caleb Williams hit Jordan Addison for 2 more TDs in a big win at Stanford. Williams had 4 TDs on the day and Travis Dye rushed for another while the Trojans' defense run continued with 4 takeaways.

7. Tennessee

Rankings change: Up 3

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 10.6%

Where Tennessee is now: Hendon Hooker got off to a hot start with this superb Vols passing attack, but cooled off considerably in the second half as UT put up just 3 points after the break. But when Pitt played for overtime, Hooker bounced back with the game-winner to Cedric Tillman in the extra period. One more tune-up before the SEC slate beckons against Florida. The defense looked solid, too, after getting major pressure on the quarterback.

6. Texas

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Rankings change: Up 1

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 19.0%

Where Texas is now: Still getting plenty of respect from the index after playing CFP favorite Alabama to a 1-point loss at home. The defensive front looked terrific against the Tide's good line and threw Bryce Young's offense into some ugly plays most of the day. But now there are questions around star quarterback Quinn Ewers after he sustained a shoulder injury in the game.

5. Michigan

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Rankings change: None

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 25.4%

Where Michigan is now: Opening up the J.J. McCarthy era after Jim Harbaugh confirmed the quarterback switch late Saturday. Cade McNamara took UM to the playoff a year ago, but didn't repeat that success into this year to his coach's satisfaction. The offense does seem to click with the more mobile, dynamic McCarthy taking charge.

4. Clemson

Rankings change: None

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 45.3%

Where Clemson is now: Coming off a relatively close 35-12 win over Furman in which the offense still didn't quite open things up well enough. DJ Uiagalelei was efficient moving the ball, and he got help from Will Shipley and the backfield again, but there are big plays here that aren't being made.

3. Georgia

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Rankings change: Down 1

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 70.4%

Where Georgia is now: Apparently not as good as it was a week ago, according to the index rankings. UGA went on autopilot in  a 33-0 win over Samford where it didn't really have to do much. Still, 15 receivers got in on the act for the Bulldogs, who wanted to see what kind of depth they have before the season really gets underway.

2. Ohio State

Rankings change: Up 1

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 79.5%

Where Ohio State is now: Not having Jaxon Smith-Njigba on the field didn't hurt this week, as CJ Stroud hit on 4 TDs passing, including 3 bombs for Marvin Harrison, Jr. while TreVeyon Henderson scored twice on the ground. Another cupcake at home against Toledo is next before the Big Ten slate opens against Wisconsin.

1. Alabama

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Rankings change: None

Chance to make College Football Playoff: 83.8%

Where Alabama is now: Likely hearing about all those penalties from Nick Saban in another fiery film room meeting. There wasn't much offense to speak of as the line got overwhelmed by Texas at times and the Tide's receivers struggled. So did the secondary when Ewers was in the game. Good thing Bryce Young is still there: the reigning Heisman winner led two gutsy scoring drives late, including the game-winner on as clutch a run as a quarterback can make, setting up the winning FG.

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