Penn State moves up to eighth in AP college football rankings
The Nittany Lions improved their chances of playing in a New Year’s Six bowl game. Michigan moved up to No. 2 after its victory against Ohio State.
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Penn State improved its chances of playing in a New Year’s Six bowl game with a 35-16 rout of Michigan State on Saturday. After losses by LSU, Clemson, and Oregon, the Nittany Lions (10-2) climbed three spots to eighth Sunday in the Associated Press college football poll.
The lineup of bowl games will be announced on Dec. 4, with Penn State still in the running for the Rose Bowl at this point. There is a chance that the Lions will be without a few players for the bowl game as some players opt out to prepare for the NFL draft.
Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford confirmed that he will play in the bowl game. Defensive tackle PJ Mustipher, safety Ji’Ayir Brown, and center Juice Scruggs declined to say whether they would opt out of the game.
Michigan moved up to No. 2 in the rankings, with Texas Christian at No. 3 and Southern California at No. 4 behind top-ranked Georgia after four top-10 teams lost on the final day of regular-season games.
The Bulldogs (12-0) are No. 1 for the eighth straight week and 11th time this season. Georgia received 58 first-place votes and Michigan received the other five.
The Wolverines (12-0) reached a season-high No. 2 after beating Ohio State, which dropped the Buckeyes three spots to No. 5.
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TCU (12-0) has its highest ranking since reaching No. 2 in the 2015 season, and USC has its best ranking this late in the season since finishing the 2016 season at No. 3.
LSU’s loss to Texas A&M dropped those Tigers five spots to No. 11. Clemson’s loss to South Carolina sent it falling three spots to No. 10. The Ducks’ fourth-quarter collapse against Oregon State cost Oregon a spot in the Pac-12 title game and five spots in the poll, where it fell to No. 15.
Alabama was No. 6, just ahead of Tennessee, which beat the Crimson Tide on a last-second field goal at home earlier this season.
No. 8 Penn State and No. 9 Washington both have their best rankings of the season. The Huskies haven’t been in the top 10 since the 2018 season, when they peaked at No. 6.
This was the eighth regular-season week since 2017 when four top-10 teams lost, including the second this season. Three of those weeks occurred in 2017.
The last time five or more top-10 teams lost in the same regular-season week was 2016.