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Well, that was fast!
The Georgia Bulldogs were ranked #6 in my initial SwampSwamiSports.com College Football Top 25 rankings last weekend. A 51-13 thrashing of formerly unbeaten Kentucky powered the Dawgs into the top spot in my second poll through games ending October 7, 2023.
Though most SEC fans were not surprised to see Georgia win this game in Athens, it was the way the Bulldogs manhandled Kentucky which opened eyes. Georgia’s young quarterback, Carson Beck, continued to improve in Saturday’s win. He connected on 28 of 35 pass attempts for a whopping 389 yards with four touchdown passes.
The Georgia defense also is showing weekly improvement, too. Allowing just 13 points per game in 2023, the Dawgs defense is #10 nationally after last week’s play.
This spells trouble for the final six opponents on the Bulldogs’ schedule in 2023. After a trip to Nashville this weekend to play 2-5 Vanderbilt, Georgia still must play 4-2 Florida (in Jacksonville), is home for 5-1 Missouri and 5-1 Ole Miss in consecutive weeks and then goes to 4-1 Tennessee and 3-3 Georgia Tech to close the season.
The two-time defending national champions must continue to play at a high level to have a chance to extend their winning streak (now up to 23 games) and win a third straight title. Georgia’s last loss came on December 5, 2021 as Alabama won the 2021 SEC championship game. Even though Georgia dropped to 12-1 with that loss, the Dawgs won the national semifinals and championship games during the College Football Playoffs. In 2022, Georgia ran the table going 15-0 in capturing back-to-back national championships. They are now 6-0 in 2023 after crushing of formerly unbeaten Kentucky last Saturday night.
We believe, Georgia! You jumped from #6 to #1 with the impressive win.
Last week’s top team, the University of Texas, lost a tough game against Oklahoma in the annual Red River Shootout in Dallas. Both teams came into the game unbeaten. The surprising Sooners (whose early season schedule was rather weak) scored with just 15 seconds remaining in the game to beat Texas 34-30.
Oklahoma’s win catapulted them from our #12 team last week all the way into the #2 spot in this week’s rankings. Wins over formerly unbeaten teams will do that for you in the SwampSwamiSports.com Top 25 rankings!
OU still must navigate a tough remaining schedule. The Sooners face road tests at 5-1 Kansas, 3-2 Oklahoma State, and 4-1 BYU during their final six regular season contests in 2023. A rematch against Texas is possible in the Big 12 Championship game if the Longhorns should win their remaining conference games, too.
Speaking of Texas, the Horns dropped from #1 last week all the way down to #15 in this week’s rankings. I place the remaining 14 unbeaten teams ahead of them. Texas is still rated as my top team with just one loss in 2023.
The SEC West remains the most intriguing division to watch in college football.
Alabama’s 26-20 at Texas A&M kept the 5-1 Crimson Tide atop the SEC West. The Tide is now 3-0 in conference games.
Right on their heels in the divisional race are 3-1 LSU, 2-1 Ole Miss, and 2-1 Texas A&M. The Tide controls their own destiny after dispatching both Ole Miss and Texas A&M. However, the high scoring LSU 49ers (oops, I mean “Tigers”) will arrive in Tuscaloosa Saturday, November 4. If LSU wins its remaining conference games, the Tigers could still win the SEC West IF Ole Miss should lose a second SEC contest before the regular season ends.
Six teams have dropped out of the rankings this week.
Maryland, Fresno State, Miami (FL), Washington State, Marshall, and Notre Dame were vanquished due to losses over the weekend.
They have been replaced by six newcomers – each with a 5-1 record. Welcome to Wyoming (#17), Oregon State (19), Kansas (20), Iowa (23), Jacksonville State of Alabama (24), and Ohio U. (25) as new members of my elite group.
Through last weekend’s games, there are only 14 unbeaten FBS teams. Another 30 teams have one loss. As a reminder, all 5-1 teams are ranked higher in my survey than a squad sporting a 4-1 record after last weekend.
At this point in the season, five wins is better than four!
Here are the SwampSwamiSports.com College Football Top 25 rankings for the week ending October 7, 2023:
