When defending national champion Ohio State took a loss in the final seconds at home against Michigan State and Baylor handed Oklahoma State its first loss of the season, you knew there was going to be a new look to the latest top 25 polls. The latest coaches poll, released today, has No. 1 Clemson as a clear favorite now with 58 of a possible 64 first-place votes going to the Tigers. No. 2 Alabama picked up five first-place votes while moving up one spot in the coaches poll, and the No. 3 Iowa Hawkeyes received the last available first-place vote while remaining undefeated.
No. 4 Notre Dame, No. 5 Oklahoma, No. 6 Michigan State and No. 7 Baylor all moved up in the poll this week, as expected. Ohio State fell down to No. 8 in the latest coaches poll, down six spots from last week. No. 9 Florida fell a spot despite winning, but having to go to overtime to beat FAU rarely helps move a team up in the polls. No. 10 Oklahoma State still lands in the top 10 after losing at home to Baylor Saturday night.
No. 11 North Carolina continues to climb, although it is a slow and steady pace. The Tar Heels moved up one spot this week after an overtime win at Virginia Tech. No. 12 Stanford moved up three spots as they closed out Pac-12 regular season play with a win against rival Cal. Stanford takes on Notre Dame this week. Stanford tied in the poll for the No. 12 spot with Michigan. Both remain ahead of No. 14 Florida State. No. 15 Navy moved up four spots this week, taking advantage of another loss to No. 16 TCU (down five spots). No. 17 Northwestern, No. 18 Oregon, No. 19 Ole Miss all had nice bumps in the poll this week as well.
Here is a look at the latest coaches poll, with first-place votes noted where applicable;
1. Clemson (58)
2. Alabama (5)
3. Iowa (1)
4. Notre Dame
5. Oklahoma
6. Michigan State
7. Baylor
8. Ohio State
9. Florida
10. Oklahoma State
11. North Carolina
12. (t) Stanford
12. (t) Michigan
14. Florida State
15. Navy
16. TCU
17. Northwestern
18. Oregon
19. Ole Miss
20. Houston
21. Mississippi State
22. UCLA
23. Temple
24. Utah