We were welcomed to November in a crazy way. It’s only the first weekend of this month and we already have upsets and crazy finishes left and right. Even a Hail Mary was involved. If you think your favorite Power 4 team is safe, think again. #10 Texas A&M, #11 Iowa State, and #12 Clemson all suffered losses as Top 12 teams while conference title hopefuls Kansas State and Pitt suffered road losses. Now that the first CFP rankings come out on Tuesday, it’s literally up for grabs. It’s possible that the 12-team playoff spots could feature two teams from the state of Indiana (Notre Dame and Indiana). Also, Boise State could contend for the Top 4 spots while watching the Top 11 teams cannibalize themselves in the last five weeks.

12) NOTRE DAME

BYE WEEK

11) SMU

Hello there, Ponies. SMU appears in my Power Rankings and have every reason for it. They went from surviving against my alma mater Nevada to showing the ACC and the college football world that they belong. I was wrong about them expecting to get clobbered in their new conference. They’re clobbering them while going through a few adjustments on their roster, including quarterback. They’re still undefeated in the ACC alongside Miami and could wind up colliding with them in the conference title game. Did I mention SMU is 1-0 over Miami in their past meeting? Check the logs if you don’t believe me.

10) BOISE STATE

San Diego State was no match for Ashton Jeanty, Maddux Madsen, and Boise State that’s poised for a Mountain West title run and a college football playoff spot. Next up is UNR. Unless my Wolfpack has something up their sleeve, the Ashton Jeanty show continues (sigh)…

9) BYU

BYE WEEK

8) PENN STATE

Penn State thought they had the Buckeyes with an instant 10-0 lead, including a Pick-6 made by Zion Tracy. However, Penn State suffered due to penalties, turnovers, and lack of execution, especially in the second half. They also didn’t score an offensive touchdown and had a goal line opportunity only to be stopped in their tracks. Penn State’s run game (outside of Drew Allar and Tyler Warren) failed again when they have two good running backs. They continue to fail against big time competition in the brightest lights whether it’s in daylight or under the stadium lights at night.

7) TEXAS

BYE WEEK

6) TENNESSEE

It looked like Tennessee was on upset alert like a few other top ranked teams this past weekend, but they came through and took down the Wildcats in the second half. Defense continues to be the reason the Vols are hanging around in the Top 10 rankings. They’re the only college football team left to not allow 20 points in 2024 (including last season’s bowl game). This is by far their best defense they’ve had in decades and could be the reason they make the 12-team playoffs.

5) MIAMI

Miami survived against Duke after a back-and-forth first half battle. Cam Ward put the team on his back again and reeled alongside Miami’s elite receiver Xavier Restrepo to come back from an 11-point deficit to run away with little resistance. Defense wasn’t perfect, but they made impactful plays and forced four turnovers to hold on and win. Miami’s defense continues to be an issue but count on Cam Ward to rally the team while playing hero ball.

4) INDIANA

Coach Cignetti’s team now won by a margin of 14 points in nine straight games for the first time in program history, which is insane. What’s more insane is starting the season 9-0 for the first time since 1945 when they finished the season 9-0-1 in the Western conference. Their first nine games were simple, but their last three games will be the toughest down the stretch. Let’s see how they fair in their first test against Michigan.

3) GEORGIA

Georgia was far from perfect coming out of a bye week. They also lost Trevor Etienne during game against his old team in Florida. Carson Beck didn’t play well, but he still made some plays to bring Georgia back. Defense played well despite getting blindsided by Florida QB DJ Lagway’s big play touchdown to start the upset alert siren. Once Lagway went down, Georgia came back. The Bulldogs have a tough stretch in the next two weeks (Ole Miss and Tennessee).

2) OHIO STATE

Ohio State had an ugly start real fast, real quick. After allowing 10 points, including a Pick-6, they recovered instantly and took the lead during the game to hold on for the win. Defense gets the credit for their goal line stand in the latter stage of the game and a very impactful endzone interception made by Davison Igbinosun before half. Also, they didn’t allow an offensive touchdown if people were unaware. Ohio State’s offense was choppy, but Jim Knowles’ defense was great and will continue being a threat this season.

1) OREGON

Oregon shuts down yet another Big Ten opponent by double digits. This is their fifth one in the last six games and it’s looking promising for a Big Ten championship and a playoff spot. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet. In two weeks, they travel to Wisconsin before hosting Washington in a regular season finale.

HONORABLE MENTION

DIEGO PAVIA, THE TIGER TAMER

It’s nothing special, but I wanted to quickly mention that Pavia’s 2-0 against Auburn and Hugh Freeze in his football career. His first win was at Auburn as a New Mexico State quarterback. Sooner or later, they’ll put a statue of him in front of Vanderbilt.

EASTERN MICHIGAN’S HAIL MARY

The game went back and forth, but it looked like Eastern Michigan was going to take over the MAC conference. Instead, their backs were against the wall on the final play. Fortunately, the Hail Mary went through, but they on the two-point conversion. Good effort by the Eagles though.

MOST DISAPPOINTED

CARSON BECK

I can’t begin to understand what’s going on with Georgia, but I don’t know what’s going on with Beck. It could be his new pass catchers this season or players getting beat up on offense. It all seems odd, even in the first game against Clemson. Before SEC play, he threw seven touchdowns to zero interceptions. After SEC play so far, he threw for 10 touchdowns to 11 interceptions in four of his five games. Allegedly, my cousin hinted something at me this past season about Kirby Smart and Georgia, but it’s best not to mention it at this time…

CLEMSON

Losing to Georgia was one thing, but getting steamrolled at home by Louisville is different. They have a good defense, but the fact that Clemson couldn’t find much response against either side is baffling. Not a good look for Dabo Swinney and company. We may have a completely new ACC title contenders that’s not Florida State or Clemson for the second time in four seasons.