Each week, the Sports' editorial team selects its Top 25 FBS college football teams for the Student Media Poll.
The SMP is a nationwide poll featuring 25 student journalists from schools nationwide.
The Post sports editorial team breaks down its ballot each week. Here is a breakdown of the top five, those dropped from the Top 25, and those added.
Top 5
1. Ohio State (7-0)
The best defense in the country stood tall against a typically formidable foe in Wisconsin, which is having a down year. The Buckeye defense shut out the Badgers while picking up three sacks and an interception by defensive captain Sonny Styles.
Standout receivers have become commonplace at Ohio State, and this year, eyes have been on quarterback Julian Sayin and star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith. On Saturday, the Badgers limited Smith and he did not find the endzone for the first time since the opener against Texas. Thankfully for the Buckeyes, they have another star, junior Carnell Tate, who picked up the slack with two receiving touchdowns in the first half of their 34-0 win.
2. Indiana (7-0)
Last week, Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti signed an eight-year extension with the program, and his first game after a big payday did not disappoint the home crowd. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza has been lights out all year and a four-touchdown performance in a 38-13 win against Michigan State kept him near the top of the Heisman race as we cross the halfway mark of the season.
3. Texas A&M (7-0)
High-scoring shootouts can open the door for upsets across the FBS and the Aggies found themselves right in the middle of one on Saturday night in Arkansas. The leader of the SEC walked out standing tall due to a strong start to the second half on offense, and then they held the lead due to good clock management and a strong running game in a close 45-42 road win.
4. Alabama (6-1)
Where did this team come from? People all over the country have been calling for SEC bias from the AP Poll all season, especially when Alabama continued to rise after starting this year with a poor loss to a now under .500 Florida State team.
Those people have had to swallow their words, though, as the Crimson Tide has won six in a row, and they still look to have a strong leg in the race for another SEC title. This past weekend, they passed another test, putting down Tennessee in Tuscaloosa in dominating fashion. The balanced run and pass attack, plus a pick-six to end the first half, helped bring home the 37-20 victory.
5. Oregon (6-1)
That didn’t take long. The Ducks are back in the top five. After a crushing loss at home to Indiana just a week ago, Dan Lanning’s group traveled to play Rutgers and took out some pain from the loss on one of college football's oldest teams, who didn’t seem up for the challenge. Quarterback Dante Moore bounced back with four touchdowns to lead the way in this 56-10 blowout by Oregon.
Who I Added: 21 Cincinnati, 22 Louisville, 24 Arizona State, 25 Texas
I so badly wanted to find a spot for Cincinnati last week, but I had faith it would find its way here soon enough, and that time has come. The Bearcats have sneakily been one of the best Big 12 teams all year, and now are ready to compete with the big dogs. The Bearcats have won six in a row, and quarterback Brendan Sorsby has been a big reason why. He led the way again last week with four touchdowns during their 49-17 dismantling of Oklahoma State.
Upsets make college football great. Louisville and Arizona State both know that song and dance well this year, as they have been on both sides of it. The Cardinals, who earlier in the year lost as favorites at home against Virginia, came off the bye and beat a Miami team that looked unstoppable. For the Sun Devils, they have little wiggle room left, but a huge upset of formerly unbeaten Texas Tech does a lot for their Big 12 title hopes.
After a hectic week, the benefactor due to an overtime victory is none other than the Longhorns. They struggled their way through this win, being outgained by over 200 yards, but at the end of the day, for Arch Manning and head coach Steve Sarkisian, they won and are now right back in the thick of the SEC title fight.
The Rest of the Top 25
6. Georgia (6-1)
7. Georgia Tech (7-0)
8. Miami (FL) (5-1)
9. Oklahoma (6-1)
10. BYU (7-0)
11. Ole Miss (6-1)
12. Notre Dame (5-2)
13. Texas Tech (6-1)
14. Missouri (5-1)
15. Vanderbilt (5-1)
16. USF (6-1)
17. LSU (5-2)
18. Virginia (6-1)
19. Michigan (5-2)
20. Tulane (6-1)
21. Cincinnati (6-1)
22. Louisville (5-1)
23. Utah (5-2)
24. Arizona State (5-2)
25. Texas (5-2)
Who I Dropped: Tennessee, USC, Washington and Nebraska
Three teams with tough losses fall out for me. The Volunteers, Trojans and Huskies are all very talented teams, but road environments got the best of them this week. As previously mentioned, Tennessee lost at Alabama due to a poor first half. USC lost by 10 at Notre Dame, but this game was much closer than that. The USC offense failed to execute well in the fourth quarter.
Washington lost in the Big House against Michigan. A low-scoring defensive battle is just what the Wolverines needed, but unfortunately for the Huskies and quarterback Demond Williams Jr., he struggled and threw three interceptions in the 24-7 loss.
Nebraska looked so good coming into a Friday night game against Minnesota. The Golden Gophers were having none of it from quarterback Dylan Raiola and the Cornhuskers, though, sacking him nine times and running away with a 24-6 upset win.
