Just when it looked as if conditions were right for another quiet week at and near the top of The Associated Press Top 25 college football poll, three top-10 teams lost Saturday.
North Carolina State knocked off No. 8 Georgia Tech 48-36 for the Yellow Jackets' first loss, leaving the Bowl Subdivision with four unbeaten teams after Navy also went down.
No. 9 Vanderbilt made a gallant comeback attempt but came up just short in a 34-31 loss at No. 20 Texas, and No. 10 Miami lost 26-20 in overtime at SMU. The losses dealt big blows to Vandy and Miami's College Football Playoff hopes.
No. 1 Ohio State should hold down the top spot Sunday for the 10th straight week after pulling away from Penn State in the second half in a 38-14 win. No. 2 Indiana should stand pat following a 55-10 win at Maryland.
No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 4 Alabama and No. 6 Oregon were idle.
No. 5 Georgia battled all afternoon with Florida, trailing by three points in the middle of the fourth quarter before winning 24-20. The margin could have been greater, but the Bulldogs took a knee twice on the Florida 1-yard line to end the game.
Look for them to move up
— No. 13 Texas Tech, which beat Kansas State 43-20 on the road, probably will move up a spot or two because of the losses by Vanderbilt and Miami.
— No. 15 Virginia made the trip across three time zones and won 31-21 at California. That trip is never easy and may merit giving the Cavaliers a one- or two-rung bump.
— No. 18 Oklahoma will get a promotion after taking down No. 14 Tennessee 33-27 on the road.
— No. 20 Texas’ 34-31 victory over Vanderbilt extended its win streak to four games. The Longhorns were up 10-0 early, scoring a touchdown on their first play from scrimmage and converting Vandy quarterback Diego Pavia’s fumble into a field goal. Pavia ran and threw for two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to cut a 34-10 deficit to three points.
— No. 24 Utah's 45-14 win over Cincinnati marked the return of quarterback Devon Dampier from injury. He piled up 291 yards of total offense in a game in which the Utes took control early and put away in the third quarter.
Look for them to drop
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— No. 8 Georgia Tech had won eight to start a season for the first time since the 1966 team began 9-0, but the Wolfpack unleashed Duke Scott against the Yellow Jackets and he ran for a career-best 196 yards in place of injured ACC rushing leader Hollywood Smothers.
— No. 9 Vanderbilt has two losses and will stay in the Top 25. About the best the Commodores can hope is that things break right for them and their regular-season finale at No. 14 Tennessee is a playoff play-in game.
— No. 10 Miami lost to a then-unranked Louisville two weeks ago and now to an unranked SMU. The Hurricanes' only chance of getting to the CFP is to somehow reach the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game and win it — a real long shot.
— No. 17 Cincinnati had its seven-game win streak end on a night Brendan Sorsby was just 11-of-33 passing against Utah.
— No. 22 Houston will have a one-week stay in the Top 25 after losing 45-35 at home to a West Virginia team that came in with two wins. The Mountaineers converted four Houston turnovers into 17 points and overcame eight penalties.
Wild card
— It'll be interesting to see how voters view No. 12 Notre Dame's 25-10 win at Boston College. The Irish led just 12-10 late in the third quarter against an opponent that had lost seven straight and whose only win was against Fordham of the Championship Subdivision.
— No. 21 Michigan's 21-16 victory at home against a two-win Purdue earned the Wolverines no style points.
On the bubble
— North Texas' 31-17 win over previously unbeaten Navy will position the Mean Green for their first ranking since 1959. UNT has received votes in four polls while getting out to an 8-1 start.
— Voters likely will give a serious look at San Diego State, which is 7-1 following its 24-7 win over Wyoming. Iowa (6-2) and Washington (6-2) also could move into the Top 25. Both were idle but received votes last week.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
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