Unlike the coaches, the media has decided the status quo inside the Top Five was not to their liking.
In a development that’s not completely unexpected, Baylor leapfrogged Ohio State and moved to No. 3 of the latest release of the Associated Press Top 25 poll.
The Bears had entered Week 12 seven points behind the Buckeyes. Thanks to a combination of 29-point BU win over Texas Tech -- after falling behind early -- and OSU’s 25-point win over Illinois that was a two-score game late, the Bears now own an eight-point lead on the Buckeyes.
(It’s at this point in the program where we feel compelled to remind you that the AP is not one of the two polls utilized by the BCS.)
Of course, Alabama and Florida State remain 1-2 for the second consecutive week. The Seminoles picked up two first-place votes and now have five, while the Tide claimed the remaining 55.
Thanks to Stanford’s loss, Oregon (No. 5), Auburn (No. 6), Clemson (No. 7), Missouri (No. 8) and Texas A&M (No. 9) all moved up one spot from a week ago. The Cardinal stayed inside the Top 10 at No. 10.
Despite each winning, UCF (No. 17) and Louisville (No. 21) were the only teams other than Stanford to drop more than one spot this week. Arizona State, from No. 21 to No. 19, was the only team to move up more than one spot.
Texas (No. 23), Miami (No. 24) and Georgia (No. 25 all fell out of the Top 25, replaced by USC, Ole Miss and Duke at Nos. 23-25, respectively. The Blue Devils, incidentally, are ranked for the first time since Dec. 6, 1994.