The twisting roller coaster of Week 1 stopped Monday night, not before the unranked Duke Blue Devils beat down the No. 25 Clemson Tigers (formerly No. 9), 28-7. The weekend was full of underdog victories and the Associated Press had to rethink everything.
The votes are in, and the SEC faired well in the AP Top 25, with five teams sitting amongst the best. Unfortunately for head coach Billy Napier, the Florida Gators failed to make the cut after the brutal loss in Salt Lake City, Utah, to the No. 12 Utes.
The Gators will continue to be on the outside looking in until they start some decent victories. There are plenty of opportunities to do so because four of their future opponents — Tennessee, Georgia, Florida State and Louisana State — were voted into the AP Top 25.
Here’s a video showcasing how AP voted.
POLL ALERT: Colorado, Duke jump into AP Top 25 after huge upsets, Florida State up to No. 4, Tennessee and Notre Dame into the top 10; Georgia, Michigan still 1-2.
Full poll: https://t.co/7dTTUiT9QR pic.twitter.com/FMNuSBE79u
— AP Top 25 (@AP_Top25) September 5, 2023
The No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs sits comfortably on its throne after a coasting victory over visiting UT-Martin, 48-7. It doesn’t look like the dawgs will be slayed anytime soon either. Georgia’s next opponent is the South Carolina Gamecocks, who took a beating by neighborhood rival No. 17 North Carolina Tarheels.
The No. 14 LSU Tigers fell nine spots after the equivalent of tripping down a flight of stairs in the second half of its rematch with the No. 4 Florida State Seminoles Sunday night.
The fall from grace was ugly, and the mental mistakes like botched handoffs only made it more brutal. Tigers head coach Brian Kelly and his squad have plenty of talent on the field. The run game can be dangerous, especially when quarterback Jayden Daniels can find open space after a QB Draw or a broken pass play.
The loss was still enough for the voters to knock them down five spots on the list.
The Seminoles, sorry to break it to you, are built like a National Championship team, and the Associated Press agrees.
The receiving core might be the best in the country, and they’re catching throws from quarterback Jordan Travis, who is leading the offense down the field with confidence and could get potential votes for a Hesiman if things continue to go their way.
The No. 9 Volunteers pushed into the top 10 after a decisive victory over unranked Virginia, 49-13. The Vols will resume the course when Austin Peay State University pays a visit to Knoxville.
The Gators will try to even up their overall record before conference play begins against the McNeese State Cowboys, who travel to Gainesville on Saturday, Sept. 9. Kickoff time is slated for 7:30 p.m. EDT inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
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