Tomorrow's Top 25 Today: Texas returns to No. 1 as chaos leads to major shakeup in college football rankings

Some of the most memorable weeks in college football are the ones that fans don't quite predict. While Week 6's scoreboard didn't feature a major Clash of the Titans that generated hype all week, Saturday itself provided more thrills, surprises and iconic images than ever before in any week of the 2024 season.

The college football rankings need to be examined after Week 6 because so many parts of last week's AP Top 25 poll look very different after historic Saturday. Five teams in the top 12 of the AP Rankings lost, the first time since 2021 – but even in 2021, three of those losses came to other top 12 teams, meaning there was guaranteed to be carnage in the rankings. That was different.

Seven teams from the top 12 of last week's rankings were on the road on Saturday, and five of them (as of this initial publication) lost. And while it's easy to marvel at the totality of the day's upsets, none were more notable than unranked Vanderbilt beating No. 1 Alabama a week after the Crimson Tide moved into that spot with a win over Georgia.

It wasn't the biggest upset by points of the season (that would still be Notre Dame's loss to Northern Illinois), but given each program's history and pedigree, the result will reverberate for decades. The images of the goalposts being carried across Broadway in downtown Nashville, the dynamic play of Diego Pavia and the fact that Vanderbilt hit a home run in the win by knocking an Alabama defense off the ball make the point The Commodores' victory made it one of the best results of the season so far.

But then there was more!

No. 4 Tennessee lost a low-scoring battle at unranked Arkansas, No. 10 Michigan fell to unranked Washington and No. 11 USC stumbled at unranked Minnesota. The entire day was filled with top teams losing spots to unranked opponents, and that doesn't even take into account that No. 9 Missouri was defeated by No. 25 Texas A&M earlier in the day.

This excitement-fueled chaos keeps fans falling in love with the sport, but it will leave AP voters with headaches navigating the carnage for their updated ballots.

Here's what we predict the new AP Top 25 will look like on Sunday:

1. Texas (Last week – 2): The Longhorns were sidelined in Week 6 and will return to action next Saturday with the Red River showdown against Oklahoma.

2. Ohio State (3): Alabama's loss will result in Ohio State receiving more first-place votes, especially after another dominant defensive performance in a 35-7 win over Iowa. But with the Buckeyes holding a significant lead over Texas last week, it's hard to imagine Ohio State can make up enough ground to jump all the way to No. 1.

3.Oregon (6): The Ducks took care of business on Friday night against Michigan State, taking an early lead and defending it until the end of the game with a 31-10 win.

4. Georgia (5): It's possible that the Bulldogs' standing will be affected by Alabama's surprise loss, but we agree we don't expect much movement after an 18-point win over Auburn.

5. Penn State (7): While the offense lacked some of the explosiveness that characterized the first few weeks of Penn State's 2024 season, a 27-11 win over UCLA won't trigger any major shifts in the rankings.

6.Miami (8): The Hurricanes are currently in action at Cal.

7. Alabama (1): Finding a location that makes sense for Alabama is extremely difficult. The Crimson Tide will still be rewarded for a win against Georgia, but Saturday's loss will result in a larger ranking penalty than the one the Bulldogs experienced after the loss a week ago. Our prediction is that Kalen DeBoer's group will be among the highest individual loss teams in the rankings, but not the highest individual loss team.

8. Ole Miss (12): A quick start in Columbia fueled a solid comeback win for the Rebels against South Carolina. Voters won't be rushing to move Ole Miss high in the rankings based on the result, but they will be pleased with two rushing touchdowns from 325-pound nose tackle JJ Pegues.

9. LSU (13): The Tigers were out in Week 6 and will be back in action next week at home against Ole Miss.

10. Notre Dame (14): The Fighting Irish were out in Week 6 and will be back in action next week against Stanford.

11. Texas A&M (25): We'll see a big jump in the rankings for a Texas A&M team that has now won five straight games and became the first SEC team to go 3-0 in conference play. While a popular topic this week will be the debate over Texas A&M's cap heading into the SEC and College Football Playoffs, Sunday's AP poll cap is likely one spot behind Notre Dame.

12. Clemson (15): The Tigers' defense made things difficult for new Florida State quarterback Brock Glenn, and Clemson's offense showed off its physicality in a hard-fought 29-13 win in Tallahassee.

13. Tennessee (4): Obviously the road win against Oklahoma is the bottom line for the Vols, but we expect Tennessee to finish a few spots ahead of the Sooners. Tennessee could finish as high as 10th or 11th, but if the high-octane offense once again falls short of expectations, we think there could be a bigger penalty from voters.

14. Iowa State (16): It took a few possessions for Iowa State to wake up, but the Cyclones showed their quality with a blistering finish, outscoring Baylor 40-14 over the final three quarters of the game.

15. BYU (17): The Cougars were out in Week 6 and will be back in action next Saturday at home against Arizona.

16.Utah (18): The Utes were sidelined in Week 6 and will be back in action next Friday at Arizona State.

17.Oklahoma (19): The Sooners were sidelined in Week 6 and will be back in action next Saturday against Texas.

18. Kansas State (20): The Wildcats were sidelined in Week 6 and will be back in action next Saturday night at Colorado.

19. Boise State (21): The Ashton Jeanty highlight continues as Boise State's offense continues to score against virtually everyone on the schedule. For many running backs, rushing for 1,000 yards in a season is a career highlight. Jeanty reached that mark after rushing for just 186 yards and three touchdowns against Utah State in just five games.

20. Indiana (23): For the second straight year, Indiana had a close game in the second half, only to step on the gas and pull away from a Big Ten opponent. Last week at home it was Maryland (final score 42-28). This week Northwestern was on the road (41-24 final score). Indiana is now 6-0 for just the second time ever, matching the start of the program's Rose Bowl season in 1967.

21. Illinois (24): The Fighting Illini were out in Week 6 and will be back in action next Saturday against Purdue.

22. Pitt (NR): Pat Narduzzi's team finished 27th in voting points last week and is poised to move into the top 25 after defeating North Carolina 5-0 for the first time since 1991.

23. Nebraska (NR): Back-to-back wins over Purdue and Rutgers have put the Cornhuskers on the cusp of bowl eligibility. Any shake-ups in the rankings could trigger a return to the top 25.

24. SMU (NR): The Mustangs were lower in the voting points rankings last week, but after the win over Louisville, voters will certainly take another look at SMU's profile. This profile includes a 5-1 record with three power conference wins, one against a road ranked team and the only loss against a team ranked in the top 20 by voters.

25. Missouri (9): There's a strong argument that Missouri will drop out of the rankings altogether, considering the team's 4-1 profile includes just two power conference wins, both by margins of six points or less. But if Texas A&M advances, then Missouri, like SMU, suddenly stands out as a one-loss team, with its only loss coming to a top-20 opponent.

Expected exit: No. 10 Michigan, No. 11 USC, No. 22 Louisville, No. 25 UNLV