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The 2020 college football season will look different than we could have ever imagined thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, but that hasn’t stopped the Associated Press from continuing to rank the field.
Following another busy weekend, the AP Top 25 Poll for Week 8 was released.
This week, we see a number of big changes sparked by the start of Big Ten play and a stunning upset of the then-No. 8 Penn State Nittany Lions who were toppled by the Indiana Hoosiers.
The top teams in the country, Clemson and Alabama, retained their top spots.
Where does your favorite team stand entering the upcoming week in the eyes of the Associated Press voters?
The preseason AP Top 25 poll can be seen below.
AP Top 25 College Football Rankings — Week 8
Indiana pulled off a stunner in OT to jump into The AP Top 25, beating then-No. 8 Penn State to earn the program’s first victory against a team ranked in the AP top 10 since 1987.
Full poll >> https://t.co/7dTTUiSC1j
More coverage >> https://t.co/2qlqr09CPm pic.twitter.com/sN57oIdfTI
— AP Top 25 (@AP_Top25) October 25, 2020
- Clemson
- Alabama
- Ohio State
- Notre Dame
- Georgia
- Oklahoma State
- Cincinnati
- Texas A&M
- Wisconsin
- Florida
- BYU
- Miami
- Michigan
- Oregon
- North Carolina
- Kansas State
- Indiana
- Penn State
- Marshall
- Coastal Carolina
- USC
- SMU
- Iowa State
- Oklahoma
- Boise State
Others receiving votes: Memphis 105, Liberty 85, Tulsa 80, Louisiana-Lafayette 50, Army 44, Auburn 41, Minnesota 40, Utah 36, Northwestern 20, Washington 15, Arkansas 15, Purdue 8, Arizona State 7, Appalachian State 6, California 4, Boston College 2, Texas 2, San Diego State 1
The Associated Press rankings carry more weight than polls like the Coaches Poll and FWAA Poll, as they are part of the deciding factor on which teams reach the College Football Playoff. The Coaches Poll, which is not part of the College Football Playoff selection committee’s formula to determine the four teams that will compete for the College Football Playoff National Championship, is voted on by 65 FBS head coaches.
Longtime college football writers who vote in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll include Ben Jones, Bill Landis, Brett McMurphy, Brian Howell, Rece Davis, Rob Long, Robert Gagliardi, Steve Layman, Steve Virgen, Tom Murphy, and Tony Parks.
The Associated Press began its college football poll on Oct. 19, 1936, and it is now the longest-running poll of those that award national titles at the end of the season. The preseason poll was started in 1950. A panel of 62 sports writers and broadcasters from around the country votes on the poll weekly.
