Coaches Poll top 25: Alabama, Clemson go back to leading 10
USATSI The top 10 of the current U.S.A. Today Coaches Survey looked largely the same following Week 11, but two huge names did return to the fold. Alabama and Clemson was available in at No. 8 and No. 9, respectively, after bounce-back wins over Ole Miss and Louisville. Though the Crimson Tide were eliminated from SEC National championship contention by method of LSU’s win over Arkansas, the Tigers protected their spot in the ACC Championship Game next month vs. North Carolina.
The arrival of Alabama and Clemson also means teams required to fall from the leading 10. The Rebels dropped five spots from No. 9 to No. 14 after falling just short versus the Tide, and Oregon dropped seven areas from No. 6 to No. 13 following a 37-34 house loss to Washington, which climbed up from No. 23 to No. 15– still two spots behind the Ducks.
The most significant climber of the week, nevertheless, was Florida State, which entered the poll at No. 20, up 11 areas from where it ended up in the balloting last week. The Seminoles crushed Syracuse 38-3 and have actually now won three directly by a combined score of 124-22.
The top five teams remain the same at the top of the survey, with Georgia receiving 61 of 63 first-place votes following a 45-19 win over Mississippi State. Texas, Liberty, Illinois and Kentucky all fell out of the survey following losses.
Check out the complete top 25 as voted on by the 63 FBS coaches who comprise the Coaches Survey. First-place votes are in parenthesis.
Coaches Survey top 25
1. Georgia (61 )
2. Ohio State (1 )
3. Michigan (1 )
4. TCU
5. Tennessee
6. USC
7. LSU
8. Alabama
9. Clemson
10. Utah
11. North Carolina
12. Penn State
13. Oregon
14. Ole Miss
15. Washington
16. UCLA
17. Kansas State
18. UCF
19. Notre Dame
20. Florida State
21. Cincinnati
22. Tulane
23. Coastal Carolina
24. Oklahoma State
25. NC State
Others getting votes: Texas 76; Oregon State 62; Illinois 48; Texas-San Antonio 40; Troy 32; Minnesota 30; Duke 24; Liberty 9; Pittsburgh 8; Kentucky 8; Florida 8; Boise State 5; Air Force 5; Wake Forest 3; South Alabama 2; Toledo 1.
Dropped out: No. 18 Texas; No. 19 Liberty; No. 20 Illinois; No. 24 Kentucky.