Tom Fornelli's College Football Power Ratings: Week 9
by: Tom Fornelli cbssports.com
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Georgia
I've caught some heat from Georgia fans lately over my criticism of Gunner Stockton, but I'm only telling you what I've seen. He's been bad the last two games, even in this week's blowout win over Florida. It doesn't mean he won't get his act together down the stretch, but if Georgia wants to win a national title, it needs Stockton to perform better than he has against Auburn and Florida. You aren't winning three playoff games with performances like those from your QB unless your defense goes on a generational run. Last Week: 1 | Title Odds: +350
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Miami (Fla.)
So if you're a Miami fan, you're definitely getting a bit nervous about your defense right now. Miami didn't allow more than 20 points in any of its first five games this season, but has now allowed 35 to Florida State, 23 to a Pitt team with a backup QB and 35 to North Carolina. No offense to those three teams, but any offense the Hurricanes face in a playoff game will probably be better than those three. It's great that the offense continues to ball out, but you'd like to have the confidence in your defense to carry you in case that offense has an off day. Last Week: 2 | Title Odds: +620
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Notre Dame
Notre Dame did not escape the Navy game unscathed. Linebacker Drayk Bowen, the team's leading tackler, has already been ruled out of this week's game against Miami. Defensive linemen Francis Brewu and Jason Onye are questionable for the game, too. The timing is pretty awful, seeing how the Irish essentially have a two-game season, and they already lost the first leg. They might need that offense to have a good night against that struggling Miami defense. Last Week: 4 | Title Odds: +550
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Alabama
The greatest feeling in the world for a college football fan these days is to know your team has a bye week, because it means that your team won't be the one having a bad day this week. I hope Alabama enjoyed their time off as it prepares to hit the road to face LSU in one of four games between teams in this week's power ratings. There wasn't much change this week, but odds are we'll see some next week! Last Week: 5 | Title Odds: +1100
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Ohio State
I'm not an anthropologist, but I have enjoyed studying the behavior of Ohio State fans since Saturday's loss to USC. They are in an extremely unfamiliar position, and they're acting like they have no idea how to deal with it. In truth, Saturday night's game wasn't great. You had a true freshman making his first start; he didn't play all that well, and you lost. However, the way Buckeyes fans have responded, there isn't a person in the entire city of Columbus who should still have their job right now. Fire the coaches, fire the players, fire the mayor! Everybody has got to go! Last Week: 3 | Title Odds: +1000
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LSU
Trust tree? I'm kind of shocked that LSU was on a bye last week and Lane Kiffin didn't find a way to get his name out there in some kind of stupid news story. It makes me wonder if Kiffin has truly turned a corner now that he's in Baton Rouge. Perhaps he's looking at his team, the environment of the 2026 season, and towards this week's game against Alabama and understands what's possible. Or maybe he's saving it for something really big this week? Last Week: 6 | Title Odds: +810
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Ole Miss
I was impressed by what I saw from Ole Miss against Auburn. They were in a bit of a dogfight in the first half, but the Rebels did not let a sluggish start linger into the second half. They scored on every possession they had after halftime except when they were bleeding out the clock to end it in the fourth quarter. It was businesslike, and it's the kind of thing you want to see from a team with a huge game looming. Last Week: 8 | Title Odds: +1800
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Indiana
I know the Indiana injury report is empty, but you know, golly gee, I just don't believe this team isn't a little dinged up! It certainly seemed like Josh Hoover was hurting before he took that final hit and didn't return to the game in the second half! Seriously, this is a team that really needs the bye this week. They have played nine straight games to open the year without a week off, and you could tell it was taking a toll on them the last few weeks. Last Week: 7 | Title Odds: +1000
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Texas
Listen, Mississippi State is an awful football team without Kamario Taylor, so there wasn't a whole lot to take away from Texas' 31-3 win over the Bulldogs. That being said, it was nice to see the Longhorns just dominate an opponent from start to finish for once. They hadn't done so since the 30-6 win over UTSA in September. The fans needed a nice, relaxing Saturday and got one. Last Week: 9 | Title Odds: +1050
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Utah
Kudos to the Utes. They were coming off an important win over Houston, and were in the perfect sandwich spot on the road against Cincinnati with BYU looming this weekend. Plenty of teams would've had a letdown and found themselves in trouble, but not the Utes. It was 42-6 at halftime! Morgan Scalley may be a first-time head coach, but you can't tell by the way this team is prepared every week. I don't know that he's going to win any coach of the year awards, but he deserves to be considered. Last Week: 10 | Title Odds: +3000
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Oregon
I would like to thank Oregon for its 34-26 win over Northwestern. I cannot tell you how much crap I've been taking the last few weeks, keeping Oregon in the top 12 of my power ratings for months now, and I've even mentioned how tempted I was just to ignore the data and punt them out of here to save myself the grief. Then they had that performance against Northwestern and gave us all a glimpse of how good this team can be when it actually plays to its potential. It's crazy how much better the offense looked in its first game with a new playcaller. It turns out that sometimes it really is as simple as "get the ball to your incredibly talented players." Last Week: 11 | Title Odds: +35000
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Tennessee
The Vols had the week off to recover from their loss to South Carolina and get ready for a massive game against Kentucky this week. Seriously, all offseason college football fans talked about how incredible Week 10 was going to be. Just imagine if, in early August, someone told you that the Week 10 game between Kentucky and Tennessee would be a battle of top-16 teams while only one team in the Ohio State/Oregon game would be ranked. Last Week: 12 | Title Odds: +6400
Dropped out: For the first time all season -- nobody
Rank Team Record Conference Points Change
1 Miami logoMIAMI 8-0 ACC 1,740 (62) –
2 Georgia logoGEORGIA 7-1 SEC 1,648 (7) ▲ 1
3 Utah logoUTAH 8-0 Big 12 1,540 (1) ▲ 3
4 Notre Dame logoNOTRE DAME 7-1 FBS Independents 1,476 ▲ 1
5 UCLA logoUCLA 8-0 Big Ten 1,473 ▲ 2
6 Indiana logoINDIANA 8-1 Big Ten 1,446 ▼ 2
7 BYU logoBYU 7-1 Big 12 1,358 ▲ 1
8 Kentucky logoKENTUCKY 7-1 SEC 1,253 ▲ 1
9 Alabama logoALABAMA 6-2 SEC 1,107 ▲ 1
10 Texas logoTEXAS 6-2 SEC 1,057 ▲ 1
11 Ohio State logoOHIO STATE 6-2 Big Ten 1,049 ▼ 9
12 Ole Miss logoOLE MISS 6-2 SEC 953 –
13 Texas Tech logoTEXAS TECH 7-1 Big 12 931 –
14 Wake Forest logoWAKE FOREST 7-1 ACC 898 –
15 LSU logoLSU 6-2 SEC 814 –
16 Tennessee logoTENNESSEE 6-2 SEC 719 –
17 Houston logoHOUSTON 6-2 Big 12 590 ▲ 1
18 USC logoUSC 7-2 Big Ten 539 ▲ 13
19 Missouri logoMISSOURI 6-2 SEC 475 ▲ 4
20 Boise State logoBOISE STATE 7-1 Mountain West 451 –
21 Iowa logoIOWA 6-2 Big Ten 401 ▲ 5
22 New Mexico logoNEW MEXICO 7-1 Mountain West 179 ▲ 5
23 South Carolina logoSOUTH CAROLINA 5-3 SEC 163 ▲ 7
24 Arizona logoARIZONA 6-2 Big 12 154 ▼ 2
25 Florida logoFLORIDA 5-3 SEC 94 ▼ 8
USA Today Coaches Poll — Released November 01
Rank Team Record Conference Points Change
1 Miami logoMIAMI 8-0 ACC 1818 (68) –
2 Georgia logoGEORGIA 7-1 SEC 1719 (4) ▲ 1
3 Indiana logoINDIANA 8-1 Big Ten 1597 ▲ 1
4 Utah logoUTAH 8-0 Big 12 1590 ▲ 1
5 UCLA logoUCLA 8-0 Big Ten 1501 ▲ 2
6 Notre Dame logoNOTRE DAME 7-1 FBS Independents 1498 –
7 Kentucky logoKENTUCKY 7-1 SEC 1344 (1) ▲ 1
8 BYU logoBYU 7-1 Big 12 1278 ▲ 1
9 Alabama logoALABAMA 6-2 SEC 1131 ▲ 1
10 Ohio State logoOHIO STATE 6-2 Big Ten 1101 ▼ 8
11 Texas logoTEXAS 6-2 SEC 1057 –
12 Ole Miss logoOLE MISS 6-2 SEC 1034 –
13 Texas Tech logoTEXAS TECH 7-1 Big 12 962 ▲ 1
14 Wake Forest logoWAKE FOREST 7-1 ACC 897 ▲ 1
15 LSU logoLSU 6-2 SEC 886 ▼ 2
16 Tennessee logoTENNESSEE 6-2 SEC 761 ▲ 1
17 USC logoUSC 7-2 Big Ten 570 ▲ 8
18 Houston logoHOUSTON 6-2 Big 12 556 ▲ 1
19 Missouri logoMISSOURI 6-2 SEC 488 ▲ 4
20 Iowa logoIOWA 6-2 Big Ten 448 ▲ 4
21 Boise State logoBOISE STATE 7-1 Mountain West 445 ▲ 1
22 Arizona logoARIZONA 6-2 Big 12 174 ▼ 1
23 Northwestern logoNORTHWESTERN 6-2 Big Ten 150 ▼ 5
24 SMU logoSMU 6-2 ACC 146 ▼ 8
25 New Mexico logoNEW MEXICO 7-1 Mountain West 119 ▲ 4
5 Things from USC Game
elevenwarriors.com
ON FAHEY
It's not lost on me that Luke Fahey had a tall task on his hands to begin with and that reality became exponentially more problematic as his supporting cast of teammates and coaches largely played worse than he did.
Fahey completed 21-of-38 throws (55%) for 260 yards and one touchdown and was the victim of at least four drops. He typically kept his eyes downfield and wasn't afraid to take some intermediate and deeps shots. He had a nice 9-yard run on 3rd-and-8 and showed a rather fluid ability to move around in the pocket when the protection broke down and was willing to turn upfield and get what he could with his legs. Generally speaking, the dude competed his ass off. He wasn't scared. He was a just overmatched at this early stage of his career.
As expected, his inexperience manifested itself in numerous ways. His touch in the red zone was rough, he often threw off his back foot when it wasn't necessary which contributed to incompletions, he overthrew a wide open Devin McCuin for a sure touchdown, and when it was paramount he at least give his guys a chance to make a play, he threw a 2-point conversion to nobody and did the same on a couple other throws into the end zone.
As noted, OSU should've never gone for two in that situation but if you do, you have to give one of your guys a chance to make a play or get a PI. Later in the game, his non-competitive throws into the end zone were a little less meaningful since the game was realistically over but it's the same coaching point - you can't just fling it through the back of the end zone.
If the offensive line, notably Phil Daniels, Ian Moore and Gabe Van Sickle can do a bit more to give Fahey more clean pockets, I see no reason why he won't make some quick strides especially given his reputation as a football fiend.
I'm not sure I see a ceiling this year of being much more than a game manager - that's not at all meant to be a slight given his lack of experience - but even if he achieves that, if the defense gives up 30 points to a couple of the next four opponents, there will be no CFP nod anyway.
YELLOW SUBMARINE
It's hard to win on the road with a true freshman quarterback making his first start on the road against a talented roster when you constantly torpedo your chances with penalties.
Ohio State racked up 11 penalties last night - its most since 2022 and I believe tied for the most under Day. This wasn't really a new trend as the Buckeyes came in ranked 73rd nationally in penalties per game (6.7) and had committed at least seven in all five B1G games.
A Beau Atkinson personal foul further aggravated a 44-yard punt return allowed by Ohio State's typically-atrocious special teams giving USC possession at the OSU 31. The Trojans needed just four plays to cash in on the miscues, scoring a touchdown to take a 14-3 lead late in the first quarter.
An illegal substitution penalty on the offense turned a 3rd-and-4 into 3rd-and-9, which failed, forcing OSU to settle for a a field goal to trail 14-6 early in the second quarter.
A Carson Hinzman hold turned an already-bad 2nd-and-15 situation into an impossible 2nd-and-25 leading to a punt.
The noted Nate Roberts false start on 2nd-and-Goal from inside the USC 1 was a crushing blow, backing OSU up and forcing another field goal to make it 17-9 Trojans.
A Simeon Caldwell defensive holding call gave USC 10 free yards which aided a scoring drive giving USC a 20-9 lead with one second left in the first half.
A Myles Lockhart hold on a punt return forced OSU to start its second possession of the 2nd half from it's own 9. Two plays later, right guard Gabe Van Sickle was flagged for holding. Two plays after that, Ohio State lost five yards for having five men in the backfield. (Four plays after that, Fahey hit West with a short toss and West had the ball taken from him for a turnover. Four plays after that, USC scored a TD to make it 27-9 with 6:11 left in the third quarter effectively ending the game. Well done, everyone.)
Oh a delay of game penalty on a punt try contributed to giving USC excellent field position at their own 40 and a Austin Siereveld false start turned a 2nd-and-3 into a 2nd-and-8.
Just abysmal coaching, accountability and execution all around. Not sure how else to say it.
IMPERFECT BUT USEFUL
I need to slip in a sorta-positive here so let's talk about Bo Jackson and Isaiah West.
With USC's defense unafraid of what Fahey was bringing to the table and playing from ahead all night, Jackson and West showed some of what OSU will need going forward if it has designs on winning four straight to make the CFP field.
West lost a fumble on a weird play after a catch and Jackson dropped a wheel route pass that would've gone for about 20 yards but they also ran for a combined 186 yards on 5.5 per carry with another 38 yards through the air.
I thought West had some really physical runs and Jackson also ran hard. They fought to fall forward on every single touch from my viewpoint.
With no Ja'Kobi Jackson until at least The Game and Legend Bey still far more hype than substance, Day/Smith need Bo and West to produce. With those two giving great effort last night - again, not to excuse their few critical errors mostly through the air - Ohio State ran for over 200 yards (204) for just the third time this season.
Even with Bo's drop, I like him as a receiver and hope Day/Smith leverage that more to help Fahey with easy throws especially as defenses likely continue bringing heavy pressure in an effort to rattle him and expose Ohio State's very poor pass blocking, communication and cohesion seen across Tyler Bowen's offensive line and Keenan Bailey's tight end room.
OH NO, OSU'S IN THE RED ZONE
Coming into last night's contest, Ohio State ranked a pedestrian 42nd in the country in red zone touchdown rate, finding the end zone in 22 of 33 trips (67%).
The Buckeyes looked lost inside the 20 last night, registering one touchdown, two field goals and a turnover on downs against a USC squad ranked 97th nationally in red zone touchdown rate allowed.
OSU's first trip, set up with 1st-and-10 at the USC 17 while trailing 14-3, saw a 3rd-and-4 snap result in an illegal formation flag and the ensuing 3rd-and-9 screen pass attempt to Bo blown up by left tackle Ian Moore's poor blocking. Connor Hawkins then kicked a field goal cutting the USC lead to 14-6.
The second trip, this time set up with 1st-and-10 at the USC 12 while trailing 17-6, was the abomination already partly discussed. Fahey's sneak on third down from about the 3-yard line was initially called a touchdown but a review marked him inside the USC 1 however it was still 1st-and-Goal for Ohio State. Instead of going right back to the sneak - Fahey did a great job of quickly advancing through a gap on his first try - Day/Smith opted to give Bo a carry off left tackle for no gain. Again, no idea why you don't sneak there or if you're going to run it, give West a tote and maybe give him a lead blocker. Whatever. Nate Roberts then committed a false start to change the whole dynamic of the possession, essentially forcing pass plays for Fahey in tight quarters and he promptly fired two incompletions forcing another Hawkins field goal. USC 17, OSU 9.
The third red zone possession saw OSU again with 1st-and-10 at the USC 12, this time down 27-12 and desperate for a touchdown. The Buckeyes would indeed find the end zone via a short toss from Fahey to Jeremiah Smith (ah, mentioned his name over 2,100 words into this) to cut the lead to 27-18. Props to Jeremiah for becoming the B1G's all-time leader in touchdown grabs.
And hey, good job breaking the plane to be sure but OSU had to run five plays from the USC 12 and took a precious two minutes off the clock as part of the larger "up tempo" drive that took nearly six minutes.
The final red zone visit came with OSU down 30-18, rendering it meaningless as it related to the game's outcome but it was still a chance for Fahey to gain experience. After, you guessed it, having 1st-and-10 at the USC 12, Fahey fired four straight incompletions with two in the direction of Roberts and at least two where no Buckeye had a legit chance to even make a play on the ball.
THE DEFENSE RESTS
What the heck was that from Matt Patricia's defense last night? I did not have Lincoln Riley schooling Patricia on my bingo card. To be fair, it obviously wasn't that simple as the players on the field failed to execute at every critical turn but it doesn't take a film analyst to see some of the shortcomings weren't solely on the players.
Also, we already knew Jay Timmons was a great player but it could be argued he's at least equally important to OSU's defense as Julian Sayin was to OSU's offense.
Things got off to a telling start as USC's Trent Mosley (impressive cat) took a short pass and raced 69 yards through the defense giving the Trojans a 7-0 lead 39 seconds into a game where the game plan was to lean on defense and let Fahey settle into his first start.
Another killer came on USC's fourth possession, already leading 14-6, but facing a 3rd-and-18. USC came to the line likely just looking to chew up a couple yards and punt but Patricia's defense wasn't even lined up when King Miller took a handoff up the gut and knifed 21 yards for a first down. Why Patricia/Day didn't call a timeout there is beyond me. The defense did hold USC to a field goal on the drive but the 17-6 hole early in the second quarter felt a lot larger than 11 points and obviously put even more pressure on Fahey to execute while playing from behind.
After an OSU field goal cut the deficit to 17-9 late in the second quarter, Patricia's defense let the Trojans march 56 yards in 1:45 of game time to kick a field goal with one second left in the half and take a 20-9 lead into the locker room. Caldwell's noted hold gave USC 10 free yards to start the drive, Mosley caught a pass for 12 yards on 3rd-and-4 and the defense allowed a 15-yard Zacharyus Williams catch to the OSU 32 on 2nd-and-10.
One of the more embarrassing snaps of the night, on an evening full of them, came on USC's second possession of the second half. West had just turned the ball over with Ohio State still trailing 20-9 meaning the defense really needed a stop. Instead, on the first play from scrimmage after a false start to begin the possession, USC freshman tight end Mark Bowman hauled in a 17-yard pass and proceeded to leap over safety Jaylen McClain before breaking a few more tackles on the way to 53 additional yards in what became a 70-yard dagger to the OSU 3. Miller scored two plays later pushing USC's lead to an insurmountable 27-9 with 6:11 left in the third quarter. Simply an inexcusable effort from the usually reliable McClain and the rest of the defense.
When the horn sounded, the stats said USC averaged 6.8 yards per play and converted 3-of-4 3rd-and-short tries while averaging 6.4 yards per third down snap. USC tallied 241 of its 338 yards (71%) on eight explosive plays - four runs for 69 yards and four passes for 172 yards and a touchdown.
