Despite coming away with a victory in week 1, Penn State will be heading into its home opener in Week 2 sitting just outside the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. The Nittany Lions are just on the outside looking in on this week’s poll as the team with the second-most votes among others receiving votes this week.
Tennessee is the only team sitting in front of Penn State and the No. 25 spot in the others receiving votes category after Week 1. BYU jumped into the No. 25 spot this week following its victory at South Florida. BYU moved up four spots in the coaches poll from the preseason poll.
Florida also skyrocketing up into the coaches poll helped block Penn State’s path to the top 25. Florida held on to defeat Utah in its season opener, and the coaches poll voters rewarded them by moving them all the way up to No. 19 in this week’s coaches poll. In a perplexing move, the coaches poll also keeps Utah four spots ahead of Florida at No. 15.
Alabama remains the top team in the coaches poll with 57 first-place votes. No. 2 Georgia moved up one spot and swapped places with No. 3 Ohio State after the Bulldogs demolished Oregon (down to No. 24) and the Buckeyes turned in a strong second half to top Notre Dame (down four spots to No. 9).
After Ohio State, the only other Big Ten teams in this week’s coaches poll are No. 5 Michigan, No. 11 Michigan State, and No. 18 Wisconsin.
A look at the full Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports:
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Change |
| 1 | Alabama | 1-0 | 1,615 (57) | – |
| 2 | Georgia | 1-0 | 1,542 (6) | +1 |
| 3 | Ohio State | 1-0 | 1,520 (2) | -1 |
| 4 | Clemson | 1-0 | 1,380 | – |
| 5 | Michigan | 1-0 | 1,333 | +1 |
| 6 | Texas A&M | 1-0 | 1,268 | +1 |
| 7 | Oklahoma | 1-0 | 1,160 | +2 |
| 8 | Baylor | 1-0 | 1,103 | +2 |
| 9 | Notre Dame | 0-1 | 1,077 | -4 |
| 10 | Oklahoma State | 1-0 | 938 | +1 |
| 11 | Michigan State | 1-0 | 860 | +3 |
| 12 | USC | 1-0 | 849 | +3 |
| 13 | NC State | 1-0 | 642 | – |
| 14 | Pittsburgh | 1-0 | 624 | +2 |
| 15 | Utah | 0-1 | 605 | -7 |
| 16 | Miami (Fl) | 1-0 | 591 | +1 |
| 17 | Arkansas | 1-0 | 554 | +6 |
| 18 | Wisconsin | 1-0 | 495 | +2 |
| 19 | Florida | 1-0 | 469 | +18 |
| 20 | Kentucky | 1-0 | 421 | +1 |
| 21 | Wake Forest | 1-0 | 353 | -2 |
| 22 | Texas | 1-0 | 351 | -4 |
| 23 | Ole Miss | 1-0 | 292 | +1 |
| 24 | Oregon | 0-1 | 206 | -12 |
| 25 | BYU | 1-0 | 170 | +4 |
Schools Dropped Out
No. 22 Cincinnati; No. 25 Houston
Others Receiving Votes
Tennessee 143; Penn State 138; Houston 137; Cincinnati 61; Iowa 44; Mississippi State 34; Florida State 33; Central Florida 23; Fresno State 21; Air Force 18; Auburn 15; Texas Christian 7; UCLA 6; South Carolina 6; Utah State 5; Minnesota 5; Syracuse 4; Oregon State 3; UL Lafayette 1; Texas Tech 1; Northwestern 1; North Carolina 1
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