UK & Ireland College Football Media Top 25 Rankings: Week 3

By Simon Carroll

If the AP or CFP committe can’t get it right, then perhaps we can!

Since the start of the 2022 season, some of the UK & Ireland’s most talented writers, content creators and students of the college game have combined to deliver their own weekly set of college football rankings. The UK & Ireland CFB Media Top 25 is announced every Monday evening, and after plenty of drama this weekend, we can now bring you our rankings from Week 3:

2024 - Week 3

Graphic: Owain Jones (Twitter - @Owain_Jones_)
  1. GEORGIA BULLDOGS (1-0, =)
  2. TEXAS LONGHORNS (1-0, =)
  3. OHIO STATE BUCKEYES (1-0, =)
  4. ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE (1-0, =)
  5. TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS (1-0, ↑4)
  6. OLE MISS REBELS (1-0, =)
  7. MIAMI HURRICANES (1-0, ↓2)
  8. OREGON DUCKS (1-0, ↑3)
  9. PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (1-0, ↓2)
  10. MISSOURI TIGERS (1-0, =)
  11. USC TROJANS (1-0, ↓3)
  12. UTAH UTES (1-0, =)
  13. KANSAS STATE WILDCATS (1-0, ↑2)
  14. OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS (1-0, ↓1)
  15. OKLAHOMA SOONERS (1-0, ↓1)
  16. UNLV REBELS (1-0, ↑8)
  17. NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH (1-0, ↑4)
  18. MICHIGAN WOLVERINES (1-0, ↑1)
  19. NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS (2-0, ↑3)
  20. LSU TIGERS (1-0, ↓1)
  21. IOWA STATE HAWKEYES (0-1, ↓1)
  22. LOUISVILLE CARDINALS (1-0, ↓4)
  23. ILLINOIS FIGHTING ILLINI (1-0, NE)
  24. NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES (1-0, ↓1)
  25. CLEMSON TIGERS (1-0, =)

*NE – New Entrant. Team dropping out: Arizona

TAKEAWAYS

Huge GO5 Statement From UK & Irish Voters

Whilst we should be used to the disrespect aimed towards the Group of Five from our American equivalents, it feels like Sunday was a nadir when it came to blatant voting favouritism. UNLV, a school that has knocked off two Power-Four programs – both on the road – were once again omitted from the AP’s top 25 after Week 3, despite Barry Odom’s team yet to put a foot wrong this campaign.

Now, there will be those out there who will think this is classic Simon with his GO5 inferiority complex – after all, Northern Illinois remain ranked. It’s a fair point, but it also feels like the AP are compelled to put the Huskies in, and have decided that’s the only bone they’re throwing to the smaller conferences. I don’t know about you, but I think the Rebels’ schedule that included a trip to a ranked Kansas so far seems a lot more difficult than Utah’s, who haven’t left the state so far and chalked up wins against Southern Utah, Baylor, and Utah State.

You will be pleased to know that the UK & Ireland media panel have righted this wrong, not only ranking UNLV but pushing them as high as 15. This is a program is on the rise, and the ‘Pac-6’ or whatever it is right now would do well to start phoning an number with a 702 area code…

Tight At The Top - VERY Tight

Oh it was a tricky one at the summit of the rankings this week. Georgia – invincible Georgia, or so we thought – won a clunker at Kentucky to stay undefeated, but with Texas once again shining against a smaller foe, how would the committee react?

Well, the ‘Dawgs clung on to top spot – just. In fact, just two points separated UGA and the Longhorns, a clear indication of how closely matched these two programs are considered to be. Georgia always seem to struggle in Lexington, but also still seem to win regardless. It appears they haven’t been punished for their off-day, but their new SEC rivals were given the respect the depth of their roster deserves.

Quinn Ewers & Arch Manning aside, the gap does not widen as quick as you’d imagine as we go down the rankings. Alabama were impressive in the frozen north and Tennessee remained rampant behind the arm of freshman QB Nico Iamaleava. Those big performances eradicated any daylight between themselves, Ohio State and Ole Miss, who enjoyed a bye week. The playoff expanding to 12 has made things more exciting for sure, and perhaps allows a slip-up or two. But the competition at the top of the pecking order remains as hot as ever. 

Big Variances On The Chasing Pack

Whilst acknowledging that there have been a handful of big-time games each week, we are really still waiting to see the kind of matchups that separate the men from the boys. As such, there were a host of 3-0 teams pushing for recognition in this week’s rankings, a common pattern we’ve seen from the last three years of voting.

This season, the panel determined that Illinois and Nebraska were worthy of a spot in the top 25. The Fighting Illini are new entrants after knocking off Kansas in Week 2 and backing that up by flexing on Central Michigan last weekend. Nebraska meanwhile, may be back with Dylan Raiola under center, and showed no warts in a cupcake win over Northern Iowa. Interestingly, Brett Bielema and Matt Rhule do battle in Lincoln this coming weekend. Buckle up.

Outside of these two, the committee struggled to agree on any particular team crashing the party, with a collection of votes handed out to the likes of Wazzu, Syracuse, Memphis, Pitt, BYU and North Carolina, all of whom remain undefeated. Spare a thought however for Toledo, a comparatively tiny program who engineered a stunning victory over the SEC’s Mississippi State and received just two votes (one from yours truly). It seems that Northern Illinois is enough #MACtion for the panel – for now.

Players Of The Week:

Offense: Tucker Gleason, QB, Toledo

Defense: Kevin Swint, LB, Georgia State

Mock Draft

SIMON CARROLL

Lead Writer, Head Of Content

PREVIOUSLY THE FOUNDER OF NFL DRAFT UK, SIMON HAS BEEN COVERING COLLEGE FOOTBALL AND THE NFL DRAFT SINCE 2009. BASED IN MANCHESTER, SIMON IS ALSO CO-CREATOR & WEEKLY GUEST OF THE COLLAPSING POCKET PODCAST.

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