Ohio State Falls To No. 7 In AP and Coaches Polls

After 10 years, Ohio State finally lost to its archrival in The Game, falling to Michigan 42-37 in Ann Arbor on Nov. 27 and seeing its Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff hopes dashed in the final week of the regular season.

The Buckeyes dropped to No. 7 in the AP and Coaches poll after Ryan Day suffered his first conference loss as the program’s head coach. Ohio State dropped four spots from their No. 2 and No. 3 overall rankings the team earned following its dominant win over Michigan State the week before.

Ohio State’s five-spot drop was its second-largest in the AP Poll this season, with the greatest being the six ranks the team fell after losing to Oregon on Sept. 11. However, the Buckeyes experienced their most significant move in the Coaches poll since Week 6 after a blowout victory over Rutgers that caused Ohio State to move up three spots.

Michigan is ahead of Ohio State for the first time since the week of the team’s 2018 matchup. The Wolverines entered that game at No. 4, while the Buckeyes claimed the 10th spot before then-quarterback Dwayne Haskins led his team to a 62-39 win in The Game.

In the polls, Cincinnati, Oklahoma State, and Notre Dame also all moved up ahead of Ohio State. The Bearcats look poised to be the first Group of Five team to make the College Football Playoff with a win against No. 16 Houston the American Conference Championship. In contrast, Oklahoma State could make its first appearance in the CFP with a win over No. 9 Baylor in the Big 12 title game. The Fighting Irish are on the outside looking in with no conference championship and will need teams in front of them to lose if they want to compete for a national title.

COACHES POLL TOP 25

RANK TEAM RECORD PTS 1ST VOTES PREV CHANGE
1 GEORGIA 12–0 1550 62 1
2 ALABAMA 11–1 1440 2
3 MICHIGAN 11–1 1408 6 +3
4 CINCINNATI 12–0 1399 4
5 OKLAHOMA STATE 11–1 1285 7 +2
6 NOTRE DAME 11–1 1250 5 -1
7 OHIO STATE 10–2 1133 3 -4
8 MISSISSIPPI 10–2 1097 8
9 BAYLOR 10–2 1046 10 +1
10 OREGON 10–2 932 11 +1
11 OKLAHOMA 10–2 851 9 -2
12 IOWA 10–2 845 12
13 MICHIGAN STATE 10–2 840 13
14 BRIGHAM YOUNG 10–2 741 15 +1
15 PITTSBURGH 10–2 640 17 +2
16 HOUSTON 11–1 607 16
17 UTAH 9–3 596 19 +2
18 WAKE FOREST 10–2 531 21 +3
19 SAN DIEGO STATE 11–1 396 22 +3
20 NC STATE 9–3 334 24 +4
21 UL LAFAYETTE 11–1 268 23 +2
22 KENTUCKY 9–3 226 25 +3
23 TEXAS A&M 8–4 202 14 -9
24 CLEMSON 9–3 170 NR +3
25 ARKANSAS 8–4 128 NR +1

AP TOP 25 POLL

RANK TEAM RECORD PTS PREV CONFERENCE
1 GEORGIA 12–0 1,550 (62) 1 SEC
2 MICHIGAN 11–1 1,449 6 Big Ten
3 CINCINNATI 12–0 1,422 4 American Athletic
4 ALABAMA 11–1 1,388 3 SEC
5 OKLAHOMA STATE 11–1 1,291 7 Big 12
6 NOTRE DAME 11–1 1,264 5 IA Independents
7 OHIO STATE 10–2 1,147 2 Big Ten
8 OLE MISS 10–2 1,105 8 SEC
9 BAYLOR 10–2 1,066 9 Big 12
10 OREGON 10–2 932 11 Pac-12
11 MICHIGAN STATE 10–2 877 12 Big Ten
12 BRIGHAM YOUNG 10–2 839 13 IA Independents
13 OKLAHOMA 10–2 837 10 Big 12
14 UTAH 9–3 667 16 Pac-12
15 IOWA 10–2 662 17 Big Ten
16 HOUSTON 11–1 603 19 American Athletic
17 PITTSBURGH 10–2 589 20 ACC
18 WAKE FOREST 10–2 485 21 ACC
19 SAN DIEGO STATE 11–1 416 22 Mountain West
20 LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE 11–1 317 23 Sun Belt
21 NORTH CAROLINA STATE 9–3 310 24 ACC
22 CLEMSON 9–3 269 ACC
23 ARKANSAS 8–4 214 25 SEC
24 TEXAS A&M 8–4 117 14 SEC
25 KENTUCKY 9–3 82 SEC