College Football AP Poll, Week 2: Winners and losers

Winner: Michigan Wolverines (No. 11 up to No. 8)

The first week had a couple of highly-anticipated games against ranked teams and the 3:30 p.m. slot was occupied by Michigan vs. Florida. The Wolverines entered the game with some question marks at important positions, especially on defense, but the Gators had it even worse.

In fact, Florida had suspended 10 guys from the first game for multiple off-field incidents. While that likely wasn’t the reason for the Wolverines’ convincing win, it did contribute to Florida’s lack of depth.

Michigan was forced to replace about 10 starters on the defensive side of the ball and that was a major concern heading into this one, but it was the offense, not the defense, that struggled. Michigan’s defensive front allowed just 192 total yards, including 11 rushing, and dominated the line of scrimmage.

Wilton Speight had some turnover issues again, throwing two pick-sixes in the first half. The Gators actually led the Wolverines 17-13 at the half, but Michigan scored 20 straight in the second to clinch a 33-17 victory. Michigan is now a top-10 team.