How Week 13 college football games impacted the AP Top 25 football poll

RALEIGH

Week 13 of the college football season was relatively uneventful, results wise, with most of the ranked teams picking up wins in their scheduled games. Plenty of questions remain, however, about conference championship berths and potential playoff teams.

Twenty-one programs in the AP Top 25 were in action this week, with Indiana (11-0), Ole Miss (10-1), Texas Tech (10-1) and Virginia (9-2) on byes.

Four ranked teams lost, two of which were part of ranked-on-ranked matchups, and another came against a formerly-ranked team. Most of the rankings in the top 15 stayed the same.

With the losses, however, two spots opened at the bottom of the poll. This allowed the ACC add a pair of ranked teams. The ACC has five programs in the top 25.

Panthers stun Yellow Jackets

Georgia Tech (9-2) had a win-and-get-in scenario for the ACC Championship game, but a 42-28 senior day loss to Pittsburgh (8-3) threw a wrench into its title game hopes.

Pitt took a 28-0 lead in the second quarter thanks to freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel’s strong passing. The Yellow Jackets responded with a pair of scores to cut the Panthers’ lead to 14 points ahead of halftime.

Georgia Tech had an opportunity to cut its deficit to one score, but Brylan Lovelace intercepted Haynes King’s red zone pass and returned the ball for a 100-yard pick six.

The Yellow Jackets scored another two touchdowns, but a 55-yard rushing score from Ja’Kyrian Turner sealed the Panthers’ win. In the past 20 years, ACC teams are 0-341 when trailing by 28 points.

After the loss, the Yellow Jackets dropped eight spots in the rankings to No. 23, and allowed Pitt to re-enter the poll at No. 24. The Yellow Jackets can still make the conference championship, but they no longer control their own destiny, and need losses from other teams to earn a spot. Georgia Tech, Pitt, Virginia, Miami, SMU and Duke all remain contenders for the title game.

Notre Dame squashes Syracuse

Syracuse’s season looked promising with quarterback Steve Angeli in the backfield. Things have since gone sideways since his injury earlier this year. The Orange’s loss at No. 9 Notre Dame (9-2) perfectly, albeit unfortunately, represented the team’s collapse.

The Orange (3-8) fell to the Irish, 70-7, in South Bend after all-out dominance from the Irish, despite recording just 67 passing yards. Notre Dame took a 21-0 lead in the first 5:10 of the game without an offensive possession.

Syracuse quarterback Joseph Filardi threw three interceptions in the loss, including two pick sixes during the Irish’s hot start. Notre Dame scored a punt return touchdown, as well, in its early barrage.

Meanwhile, Notre Dame ran through the Syracuse defense. It put up 329 rushing yards, led by Jeremiyah Love’s 171 yards and three touchdowns. Three other players ran for a score. Syracuse recorded 29 tackles in the loss, and no one finished with more than four.

Notre Dame’s defense kept Syracuse off balance and did not allow the Orange to find the end zone until Filardi rushed for six yards on the final drive of the game.

Notre Dame remained at No. 9 due after a lack of upsets in the top half of the poll.

Sooners continue climb

Oklahoma (9-2) defeated Missouri (7-4), 17-6, in Norman during one of this week’s two ranked-on-ranked matchups. The Tigers took a 3-0 lead in the first quarter, before the Sooners responded with a pair of touchdowns in the second.

OU led Mizzou, 14-6, at halftime and added a field goal in the third quarter to end its scoring. Despite the low offensive production, the Sooners’ defense held up against the Tigers, who finished 11 of its 13 drives without points.

Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer threw for 173 yards and two touchdowns, with Isaiah Sategna hauling in three passes for 109 yards.

On the opposite side, Beau Pribula threw for 231 yards and two interceptions. Ahmad Hardy, the nation’s leading rusher, was held to 57 yards on 17 carries.

The Sooners’ win, their third in a row, keeps them in contention for the College Football Playoff. Like Notre Dame, Oklahoma stayed at No. 8, while Missouri, previously No. 23, dropped out.

Utes rally for Big 12 win

A late Utah surge, after trailing by 12 midway through the fourth, lifted the team past Kansas State, 51-47. The Utes’ defense struggled against the Wildcats for much of the evening, but it made the big play.

Tao Johnson intercepted Kansas State’s two-point conversion attempt, after KSU went up 47-35, and scored on the return. Johnson’s play put the Utes within 10 points, instead of down 14.

Utah scored two touchdowns in the final seven minutes, while forcing a punt and intercepting another Kansas State pass, to pull off the comeback. Devon Dampier threw for 259 yards and two touchdowns, while running for 94 yards and another two scores. Running back Byrd Ficklin found the end zone three times.

Utah dropped one spot to No. 14, swapping places with Miami (9-2).

JMU tops Cougars

James Madison picked up a 24-20 win over Washington State at home to pick up its 10th win of the season and remain unbeaten at home. The Dukes scored a touchdown in three quarters and made a field goal in the first.

A 14-point second quarter allowed the Cougars to go up by one touchdown. JMU’s defense held WSU to a punt, turnover on downs and field goal in the second half.

Wayne Knight led the JMU offense, running for 126 yards on 15 carries. He scored a 58-yard touchdown rush to take a fourth-quarter lead and win the game.

Neither team’s offense was particularly impressive. The defenses made the statements. JMU, for example, turned the ball over on downs in the third quarter after possessing the ball for eight minutes and 17 seconds. On Wazzu’s final scoring drive, it burned nearly eight minutes of clock and only came away with three points. With the time of possession playing a major factor in the game, it needed more productivity.

The Dukes rose to No. 20 from No. 24 in the latest update.

Other notable results

Ohio State (11-0) used a 28-point second half to defeat Rutgers (5-6), 42-9. The Buckeyes led from wire-to-wire, despite missing two starters on offense, and scored four consecutive touchdowns in the second half to pull away. The win should keep Ohio State on top of the rankings and give it plenty of confidence going into Ann Arbor next week. It will be the first time since 1973 that Ohio State is undefeated and ranked No. 1 when playing at Michigan.

Oregon (10-1) knocked Southern California (8-3) out of playoff contention with a 42-27 win in Eugene. The Trojans took an early lead and tied the game again at 14 points. The Ducks, however, scored four first-half touchdowns and took a 28-14 lead at halftime. While offense stole the show, Oregon’s defense held when it mattered. The Ducks, who scored on six drives, allowed USC to score on four and stopped the two-point conversion. USC dropped to No. 19 and Oregon rose from No. 7 to No. 5.

Despite being winless in the SEC, Arkansas gave Texas (8-3) all it had. The Longhorns won 52-37 after needing a big third quarter to pull away from the Razorbacks (2-9). Texas led by four points at halftime, before scoring 21 in the third and holding Arkansas to three. That gave the Longhorns a large enough cushion when the Razorbacks tried to mount a comeback. Arch Manning led Texas with six touchdowns — four passing, one rushing and one receiving.

Houston (8-3) fell to TCU (7-4), 17-14, and dropped from the poll. The Cougars allowed the Horned Frogs to score twice in the first quarter and tied the game in the third. Houston missed two field goals in the fourth quarter, while TCU made the game-winning kick with 11 1/2 minutes to play.

No. 3 Texas A&M (11-0), No. 5 Georgia (10-1), and No. 10 Alabama (9-2) all won their matchups. They outscored their opponents, 139-3. The Aggies and Crimson Tide, however, played FCS-level Samford (1-11) and Eastern Illinois (3-9), respectively. The Bulldogs defeated Charlotte (1-10), which is last in the American.

Several teams made cases to be ranked after the other losses. Arizona State (8-3) defeated Colorado, 42-17, and was No. 26 in the voting. SMU (8-3) throttled previously-ranked Louisville (7-4), 38-6, to remain tied for first place in the ACC. The Mustangs slid in at No. 25 after receiving votes last week.

Arizona (8-3), South Florida (8-3), Washington (8-3) all picked up decisive conference wins, as well, and received votes but did not crack the top 25.

Week 14 AP Top 25 poll

This story was originally published November 23, 2025 at 11:11 AM.