Lane Kiffin: Ole Miss has ‘a lot to fix’ before Oklahoma
Lane Kiffin said Ole Miss needs to improve before what he calls the big test at Oklahoma State in Week 9.
- The loss of four top 10 teams this past weekend will cause a major shake-up in the U.S. LBM coaches survey.
- Indiana, Texas A&M and Georgia Tech are all expected to move up in the rankings after important wins.
- Miami, Mississippi, Texas Tech and LSU are among the top teams with losses.
Get ready for a revamp of the U.S. LBM Coaches Poll.
Four teams that were in the top 10 last week lost last weekend, starting with Miami’s ugly loss to turnover-heavy Louisville on Friday night. This opens up a spot behind undisputed No. 1 Ohio State after yet another Big Ten loss.
Joining the Hurricanes will be Mississippi, which lost to Georgia. Texas Tech lost to Arizona State in the final stages. And LSU lost to Vanderbilt for the first time since 1990.
This will reshuffle the top five and add at least two new teams to the top 10. One of the obvious newcomers is Georgia Tech, which is off to its best start to the season in decades.
Here’s what the top 10 will look like in the coaches poll when the new top 25 is announced later Sunday.
1. Ohio State (6-0)
The Buckeyes defeated Wisconsin 34-0, suffering back-to-back shutout losses at home to the Badgers for the first time since 1968. Ohio State boasts one of the best defenses in the nation, and their offense isn’t too bad either. The more comfortable quarterback Julian Sane gets, the better things will get.
2. Indiana (7-0)
The Hoosiers would move up a spot and replace Miami. Indiana avoided the disappointment after the game against Oregon State by defeating Michigan State 38-13 behind 332 passing yards and four touchdowns from Fernando Mendoza.
3. Texas A&M (7-0)
A&M led Arkansas 21-6 in the second quarter, but allowed two touchdowns before intermission and couldn’t pull away from the Razorbacks until a knee kick with nine seconds left. While not impressive, the 45-42 win puts A&M ahead of many one-loss teams in the SEC and likely earns its highest ranking since 1995.
Ty Simpson scored two more touchdowns and the Crimson Tide extended their winning streak to six games with a 37-20 victory over Tennessee. Alabama deserves to be the highest-rated one-loss team in the country thanks to wins over Volante and Georgia.
5. Georgia (6-1)
The Bulldogs trailed 35-26 after the third quarter against Mississippi State, but dominated in the fourth quarter and won 43-35. The Stockton Gunners were great and the running game was lively, but the biggest takeaway from the win was Georgia’s elite play over the final 15 minutes.
6. Oregon State (6-1)
Oregon State took the frustration out of their loss to Rutgers and bounced back from their loss to Indiana, winning 42-3 in the first half before losing 56-10. The Ducks will remain in Big Ten and playoff contention until the end.
7. Miami (5-1)
Carson Beck’s four interceptions made the difference in Louisville’s 24-21 victory. That’s been part of Beck’s story since last season, when he battled turnovers as a starter at Georgia. While this may be a one-off for the most talented team in the ACC, this loss shows that Miami won’t be able to easily upset the better teams in the conference.
8. Georgia Tech (7-0)
The Yellow Jackets defeated Duke 27-18 to start 7-0 overall for the first time since 1966 and 4-0 in the ACC for the first time in 27 years and advance to the top 10. Tech scored the first touchdown on a long fumble return, but couldn’t put the Blue Devils away until two long scoring drives in the fourth quarter.
9. Mississippi State (6-1)
A loss to Georgia would drop Ole Miss in the rankings, but they don’t need to worry too much about the loss. But a loss to Oklahoma next week in Norman could be hugely damaging for the Rebels and could be a potential problem when the playoff selection committee begins comparing playoff candidates in early December.
10. Brigham Young (7-0)
This is a jump of four spots for the Cougars, who won 24-21 in the crusade against Utah. That’s enough to move BYU past Oklahoma, which has one loss, and Notre Dame, which has two losses, after the Fighting Irish beat Southern California.
