ESPN shakes up SP+ Top 25 Power Rankings after Week 9 college football slate

ESPN shook up its Top 25 SP+ power rankings following the Week 9 college football slate of games. Safe to say, there was a lot of movement based on the results we got over the weekend! In case you need a reminder, here is how ESPN’s SP+ works: “What is SP+? In a single sentence, it’s a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency that I originally created at Football Outsiders in 2008. SP+ is intended to be predictive and forward-facing. It is not a résumé ranking, so it does not automatically give credit for big wins or particularly brave scheduling — no good predictive system does.” $19.99 gets you a FULL year of On3 | Rivals national coverage So without further ado, let’s dive into ESPN’s latest SP+ rankings, courtesy of Bill Connelly, following Week 8 of the season. We’ll start at No. 25 and work our way up the list. 25. SMU (6-2) – 12.8 (-4)24. South Carolina (5-3) – 12.8 (+4)23. Northwestern (6-2) – 12.8 (-3)22. Louisville (5-3) – 14.4 (+4)21. Arizona (6-2) – 14.6 (-7)20. USC (7-2) – 14.6 (-1)19. Iowa (6-2) – 14.6 (+4)18. Nebraska (5-3) – 15.3 (-3)17. Missouri (6-2) – 15.5 (+1)16. Wake Forest (7-1) – 15.5 (+9)15. UCLA (8-0) – 16.7 (+2)14. BYU (7-1) – 16.8 (-1)13. Ole Miss (6-2) – 17.1 (+3)12. Oregon (5-3) – 17.2 11. Tennessee (6-2) – 17.6 10. Texas Tech (7-1) – 18.8 (-1) The Red Raiders bounced back with a win over Arizona led by QB Thomas Castellanos, making his first start for Texas Tech. He didn’t light it up as a passer, but he ran really well and perhaps the team can find a new gear. Even with the win, they moved down a spot in the ESPN SP+ rankings (you’ll see why next). Next up is WVU, Oklahoma State, Baylor and TCU. Could this team finish 11-1 and face Utah for the Big 12 crown? 9. Utah (8-0) – 19.9 (+1) Utah just keeps on winning under Morgan Scalley and are tops in the Big 12, per the ESPN SP+, and in the top 10 of those aforementioned rankings. The dominated Cincinnati from the get-go and move onto their next opponent: BYU. Ready for the Holy War? The Utes are at home so it’ll be a sea of red for that top 10 matchup in college football. They also have a ranked Arizona team coming up, so the Utes could very well move up big time the next two weeks and all but lock up a CFP spot. 8. Alabama (6-2) – 20.6 (-1) This could be it for Alabama, as they moved down a spot in the ESPN SP+ rankings this week. Granted, it was off a bye so it was out of their control, but it could be indicative of where things are going. That’s if they lose to LSU this weekend of course. The AP Poll has them higher than the Tigers. A win in Baton Rouge will go a long way in the SEC as well as the CFP. But a loss could spell the end of their national title hopes. 7. Texas (6-2) – 22.1 (+1) Texas rolled over Mississippi State over the weekend and Arch Manning played really well. That’s good to move up a spot in the ESPN SP+ rankings ahead of the final stretch of the season. However, it only gets more difficult for the Longhorns as they go to Missouri and LSU the next two weeks. If they get by there unscathed, it’s fair to expect them to go 10-2 this year and get into the CFP at a minimum. 6. Indiana (8-1) – 22.3 The Hoosiers avoided another disastrous loss over the weekend. Granted, Minnesota gave them a fight but Indiana punched back with a 60-yard field goal, to equal the Gophers on the field and on the scoreboard. Grant Wilson’s touchdown pass to Charlie Becker in overtime was the difference, but Indiana is currently living on the edge. THey’ll stay in the top 10 of the ESPN SP+ rankings this week as they go into a bye for some much needed rest before hosting USC. 5. Miami (8-0) – 24.2 The Hurricanes stood pat this week per the ESPN SP+ rankings. Miami edged North Carolina 38-35 in Chapel Hill, but they’ve already moved onto Notre Dame in South Bend. While Mario Cristobal’s team has had the edge lately, there’s no doubt this is the toughest game of the year for last year’s CFP runner-up. Miami can afford a loss and still make a run in the ACC and CFP, so perhaps the pressure lies on the Irish. 4. LSU (6-2) – 24.7 It’s time to remember what LSU can do this year! They are still a top five team in the ESPN SP+ rankings this week after a dominant win over Auburn this past weekend, 38-17. The big challenge this week is welcoming Alabama to Baton Rouge. At 6-2, LSU could run the table against a gauntlet of November, play for the SEC crown and get a high seed in the College Football Playoff. They have to take it one game at a time, but it seems like more people are jumping back onto the Tiger bandwagon. 3. Notre Dame (7-1) – 25.4 Notre Dame ultimately took care of business against Navy and now is set up for a top-four matchup, per the AP Poll anyway, with Miami. It’s a rematch of the game last year that essentially determined both of their CFP fates. Could it do the same this year? Well, if Notre Dame doesn’t win and finishes 10-2 by the end of the month, they’ll be lacking a high quality win for the committee. A win? Their resume will be strong and the Irish could end up being No. 2 or 1 in the ESPN+ rankings. 2. Ohio State (6-2) – 26.3 (-1) Ohio State dropped a spot in the ESPN SP+ rankings this week following a loss to USC on the road. Granted, it was away from Columbus, so we can cut them a little slack. The biggest factor was having Luke Fahey as the starting QB in place of an injured Julian Sayin. He didn’t struggle the whole time, but the Buckeye offense was inconsistent throughout the evening and the defense got mostly gashed by the Trojan offense, giving Lincoln Riley a signature win. 1. Georgia (7-1) (+1) Georgia takes the top spot in the ESPN SP+ rankings this week. They moved up following Ohio State’s loss and the Bulldogs earned a dominant win over Florida of course. Defense and the run game ruled the day for Georgia. Now, they’ll turn their attention towards Ole Miss in a ranked, SEC matchup to begin November. Georgia might even be able to kick Ole Miss out of playoff contention with a win.