It finally happened. One of the top teams in the country went down in a major upset this past weekend and shook up the polls at least a little bit. The Georgia Bulldogs inexplicably tripped up against South Carolina and now are forced to run the table and hope a playoff spot still awaits. The good thing is they still have big games remaining to get back into contention, especially if they do win the SEC East.

This Week’s Biggest Winner: Joe Burrow, QB, LSU

Making his second appearance this year, Burrow absolutely torched Florida going 21 of 24 for 293 yards, 3 touchdowns, and no picks. He has to be the Heisman favorite right now.

This Week’s Biggest Loser: Virginia Cavaliers

It’s too easy to go with the Dawgs here. Instead, UVA was coming off a bye and just fumbled away a road win against a mediocre at best Miami team. They can still take their division and be a quality win for the Irish but it won’t be as easy with their top defender lost for the season. They also have Duke and and Louisville coming up which could offer another upset if Virginia’s offense takes another week off.

18 Stripes Top 20 Poll

RANK TEAM RECORD LAST WEEK
1 Alabama 6-0 47-28 Win vs. Texas A&M
2 LSU 6-0 42-28 Win vs. Florida
3 Clemson (+1) 6-0 45-14 Win vs. Florida State
4 Ohio State (+1) 6-0 BYE
5 Oklahoma (+2) 6-0 34-27 Win vs. Texas
6 Wisconsin (+2) 6-0 38-0 Win vs. Michigan State
7 Penn State (+4) 6-0 17-12 Win vs. Iowa
8 Notre Dame (+1) 5-1 30-27 Win vs. USC
9 Florida (-3) 6-1 42-28 Loss vs. LSU
10 Georgia (-7) 5-1 20-17 Loss vs. South Carolina
11 Auburn (+1) 5-1 BYE
12 Oregon (+1) 5-1 45-3 Win vs. Colorado
13 Boise State (+1) 6-0 59-37 Win vs. Hawaii
14 Texas (-4) 4-2 34-27 Loss vs. Oklahoma
15 Michigan 5-1 42-35 Win vs. Illinois
16 Utah 5-1 52-7 Win vs. Oregon State
17 Baylor (+3) 6-0 33-30 Win vs. Texas Tech
18 Arizona State (+1) 5-1 38-34 Win vs. Washington State
19 SMU (-2) 6-0 BYE
20 Minnesota (NR) 6-0 34-7 Win vs. Nebraska

OUT: Virginia

IN: Minnesota

I’m trying to dish out some hot takes but I’m still not giving our readers a poll that is all that different from the AP rankings. Sorry about that.

Does anyone think right now the playoff committee would have LSU as the No. 1 seed?

There needs to be some arguing about the place of Georgia. Should they be above Notre Dame, a team they beat at home? How many comparisons can we make to Notre Dame’s situation in 1993 when they held serve at home against Florida State? It’s the age-old debate between a bad loss, a good win, and what means more.

I keep looking at Oregon and thinking if they win out do the Ducks even crack the Top 7 in the final playoff poll? That question may not matter after this week.

Please welcome P.J. Fleck into the Top 20! He’s been grinding away up there in Minneapolis and finally is getting back some of that spotlight.

That said, I feel like the bottom 4 teams in our poll are seriously weak overall as a group just as much as the top 5 look enormously strong. Would anyone surprised if Baylor, ASU, SMU, and Minnesota finished the season with a combined 12 or 13 more losses?

Week 8 Games to Watch

Oregon (-3) at Washington – How important is this game for both teams? A win here by Oregon essentially clinches the Pac-12 North. The only team that could likely catch them is California and Oregon holds the win tie-breaker in the event they stumble a few times down the stretch. Washington needs to win to prevent really falling out of the national picture, probably for good this year. A local 12:30 PM kickoff brings some weirdness and a home win. Huskies 27-24.

Temple (+7.5) at SMU – There is still a lot of things to be sorted out in the AAC this season. Both of these programs are unbeaten in league play thus far, and the Ponies have been climbing the national rankings slowly. I think we’re going to see a lot more Sonny Dykes talk across the nation very soon. Mustangs 34-23.

Baylor (+3.5) at Oklahoma State – We haven’t seen Baylor really step into the spotlight yet. This week won’t really be that time yet, either. Both of these teams are pretty good according to the advanced stats, though. Baylor even with the weak schedule is getting a lot of love by those same statistics. Bears 47-40.

Arizona State (+14) at Utah – This seems like way too many points to give Arizona State. I know Vegas is betting the Utes chew up and spit out ASU’s young but talented quarterback on the road and everything. Take the points. Utes 23-17.

Michigan (+9) at Penn State – Are you already feeling the pressure of trying to beat Michigan the week after this? Should UM drop this game their morale could drop significantly but at the same time I feel like it puts a ton of pressure on the Irish to TCOB in Ann Arbor in a game that should be won. If UM wins this game, it kind of recasts the season for them. It would be unwise to pick the Wolverines in a big road game with their recent track record, although I do think this will be a dog fight until the end. Nittany Lions 20-16.