College Football Rankings: Oregon Tops Week 9 Polls, Auburn Rises

Appalachian State became the overwhelming No. 1 in The Sports Network FCS Top 25 this week, earning 136 of the possible 156 first-place votes (up from 111 votes last week). The Mountaineers’ stranglehold on the top spot is the result of their win over Western Carolina this weekend -- improving their record to 8-0 -- and last week’s No. 2, Delaware, getting upset at William & Mary.

Delaware (7-1) dropped to No. 6, while W&M jumped up to No. 3, receiving two first-place votes.

The best part of the college football polls every week is the discussion they bring. With that in mind, a rundown of the winners and losers from this week’s rankings.

Auburn is the big winner in the Week 9 polls, moving up to third in both major polls after a win over LSU, and making clear that they are the SEC’s leading candidate to make the BCS Championship Game. With Alabama and the SEC East champion potentially left on the schedule, it’s looking like a foregone conclusion that an undefeated Auburn would be the top-ranked team in the BCS standings.

The biggest risers in the Week 9 USA Today poll are, of course, teams that took care of business against ranked foes. And it’s no surprise that Missouri makes the largest leap after taking down Oklahoma, vaulting eight spots from 16th to eighth.

On the flip side of the coin, Oklahoma takes a tumble after losing its first game of the season, dropping to 11th from third. LSU falls, too, after a loss to Auburn gave the Tigers their first blemish, but going from sixth to 13th isn’t as steep a decline.

The college football polls are now more or less complete this week, as the Week 9 AP Poll was just released. To no one’s surprise, Oregon remains on top.

The Ducks keep the top spot for the second straight week, garnering 44 first place votes. Boise State, Auburn, TCU and Michigan State finish out the top five, and the Broncos, Tigers, and Horned Frogs all received two or more first place rankings.

How bad is the Big East?

Well, no teams from the conference make the cut in the top 25 of the USA Today coaches poll for Week 9. Just two teams (West Virginia and Syracuse) received votes, and one of those teams hasn’t scored more than 20 points against a BCS conference opponent. (It’s Syracuse.)

The ACC has been a bad conference this season, which is not new. But that it has as many ranked teams as the Pac-10 is amusing and deceptive.

Those teams that claim spots for the ACC in the USA Today coaches poll for Week 9 all have blemishes — Virginia Tech lost to James Madison; Florida State was obliterated by Oklahoma; Miami’s got two losses — but the idea that any of these teams has really proven itself against non-ACC teams doesn’t hold water.

If any conference can claim the Rodney Dangerfield “No respect!” routine this season, it’s the Big 12.

The USA Today coaches poll for Week 9 helps make their case: five teams are ranked, but none in the top seven, and undefeated Missouri slots in behind one-loss Alabama despite upsetting the top-ranked team in last week’s BCS rankings.

The Pac-10 may be the best conference in college football this season. It certainly seems to have the best team at this moment, and there are enough teams ranked in the USA Today coaches poll for Week 9 and waiting to re-enter it for its depth to be an asset.

Just three Pac-10 teams show up in the poll, but all three are in the top 16. And Oregon’s dominant performance this week against UCLA tends to lend credence to the theory that the best team in all the land plays in the Pac-10.

The Big Ten has been much-maligned in recent years. But there’s a case to be made that it’s the top conference in college football this season, and having five teams ranked USA Today coaches poll for Week 9 helps with that.

Michigan State is the only undefeated team left for the conference, but the Spartans move up to fifth, putting them well within range of a BCS National Championship Game appearance should the teams ahead of them slip. Wisconsin, Ohio State, and Iowa make up a strong middle class for the conference, and Michigan keeps sneaking into the back end of polls because of a potent Denard Robinson-led offense.

The SEC has been the top conference in college football this season, and it still has the most teams ranked in the USA Today coaches poll for Week 9. But where the SEC teams slot in points to how deceptive the conference’s depth is this year.

Six SEC teams appear in the poll, but after three appeared in the top seven last week, just two appear in the top ten this week. Additionally, six ranked teams only gives the SEC the national lead in that category by one over the Big Ten and Big 12, both of which have five teams in the poll. And the SEC’s lopsided strength continues: five SEC West teams are ranked, but the only SEC East school in the top 25 is South Carolina.

Once again, the USA Today coaches poll has Oregon atop the first of the college football polls to be released this week.

Oregon holds the top spot for the second straight week, receiving 50 of 59 first place votes. Boise State, Auburn, TCU and Michigan State round out the top five, and the Broncos, Tigers, and Horned Frogs all received at least one first place vote.