The new USA TODAY coaches poll is out, and the voters rewarded LSU and Boise State for beating tough competition in opening weekend.
Oklahoma retained the No. 1 spot and Alabama held steady at No. 2. But the Tigers closed the gap thanks to their impressive showing against then-No. 3 Oregon. LSU moved up to third and received seven first-place votes after getting two in the preseason poll.
The Ducks slid all the way back to No. 13 after the loss.
Oklahoma claimed 43 of the 59 top votes this week with the Crimson Tide picking up the remaining nine.
Boise State, a winner against then-No. 22 Georgia in Atlanta, leapfrogged from seventh to fifth in the rankings. The Broncos hopped over No. 6 Stanford and finished just one point behind No. 4 Florida State. Georgia was knocked out of the Top 25.
Notre Dame, which lost at home to South Florida, was the week’s other dropout. No. 23 Arizona State and No. 24 West Virginia climbed into the rankings after topping the list of others receiving votes in preseason balloting.
TCU, which lost a 50-48 thriller at Baylor, held on to the No. 25 ranking. Despite the win against the Horned Frogs, the Bears didn’t crack the top 25 but lead the group of teams knocking on the door this week.
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