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Michigan football started the 2021 season unranked and managed to not only sneak into the rankings, but it was moving on up after three convincing wins to open the season.
But how would the coaches across college football view a 20-13 win over Rutgers, especially considering how inept the offense was in the second half?
In the latest AFCA Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports, the Wolverines were destined to move up considering Texas A&M, Clemson, Iowa State, and Wisconsin all lost on Saturday. Given that the maize and blue were No. 19 last week, would it be a mere move to 16 or would any of the other teams remain ahead? Or would Michigan be punished for not gaining style points, even though Iowa has yet to have a style points win and is No. 5 in the country?
Turns out, a little better than that, as Michigan football moved up to No. 14 in the latest AFCA Coaches Poll. Upcoming opponent Wisconsin dropped out of the poll completely.
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Full rankings
| Rank | Team | Record | PTS | 1st | Prev | Chg | Hi/Lo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama | 4-0 | 1624 | 64 | 1 | — | 1/1 |
| 2 | Georgia | 4-0 | 1558 | 1 | 2 | — | 2/5 |
| 3 | Oregon | 4-0 | 1467 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 3/12 |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 4-0 | 1395 | 0 | 3 | -1 | 3/4 |
| 5 | Iowa | 4-0 | 1319 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 5/18 |
| 6 | Penn State | 4-0 | 1286 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 6/20 |
| 7 | Notre Dame | 4-0 | 1187 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 7/10 |
| 8 | Cincinnati | 3-0 | 1185 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 8/10 |
| 9 | Florida | 3-1 | 1101 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 9/11 |
| 10 | Ohio State | 3-1 | 1030 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 3/12 |
| 11 | Arkansas | 4-0 | 1016 | 0 | 18 | 7 | 11/NR |
| 12 | Mississippi | 3-0 | 916 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 12/25 |
| 13 | Texas A&M | 3-1 | 744 | 0 | 5 | -8 | 5/13 |
| 14 | Michigan | 4-0 | 674 | 0 | 19 | 5 | 14/NR |
| 15 | Brigham Young | 4-0 | 670 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 15/NR |
| 16 | Michigan State | 4-0 | 583 | 0 | 21 | 5 | 16/NR |
| 16 | Coastal Carolina | 4-0 | 583 | 0 | 17 | 1 | 16/24 |
| 18 | Oklahoma State | 4-0 | 459 | 0 | 22 | 4 | 18/23 |
| 19 | Clemson | 2-2 | 389 | 0 | 7 | -12 | 2/19 |
| 20 | UCLA | 3-1 | 312 | 0 | 24 | 4 | 13/NR |
| 21 | Fresno State | 4-1 | 251 | 0 | 25 | 4 | 21/NR |
| 22 | Auburn | 3-1 | 244 | 0 | 23 | 1 | 20/NR |
| 23 | Kentucky | 4-0 | 179 | 0 | NR | 4 | 23/NR |
| 24 | Baylor | 4-0 | 134 | 0 | NR | 18 | 24/NR |
| 25 | Wake Forest | 4-0 | 119 | 0 | NR | 14 | 25/NR |
Schools dropped out
Others receiving votes
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