College Football Rankings 2017: Projected Top 25 after Week 1

ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 02: Bo Scarbrough #9, head coach Nick Saban, and Jalen Hurts #2 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrate with the Chick-fil-A Kick-Off Game trophy after defeating the Florida State Seminoles 24-7 in their game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images) /

7 of 26

LANDOVER, MD – SEPTEMBER 03: West Virginia Mountaineers safety Jovanni Stewart (9) heads towards Virginia Tech Hokies quarterback Josh Jackson (17) during a college football game between the West Virginia Mountaineers and the Virginia Tech Hokies on September 3, 2017, at Fedex Field, in Landover, MD. Virginia Tech defeated West Virginia 31-24. (Photo by Tony Quinn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

20. Virginia Tech Hokies

Ranking coming into Week 1: No. 21

The game of the weekend clearly was West Virginia-Virginia Tech. It was fantastic.

Sure, UCLA’s absurd 34-point comeback was massive. Tennessee and Georgia Tech playing some free football late on Monday night was fun. Louisville and Purdue played a fun one in Indianapolis, too. But, the clear-cut best matchup of the weekend was the Mountaineers and the Hokies.

The Hokies survived FedEx Field in the nation’s capital with a 31-24 victory over WVU on Sunday night during the chaos that was taking place in Pasadena and it was in large part to the solid play of freshman quarterback Josh Jackson. (No, not the one that played for Kansas this past season and got drafted by the NBA’s Phoenix Suns.)

This game had everything: good punting, big plays and a fun finish. Oh, and Dana Holgorsen going absolutely bananas on the sideline throughout the game. In the end though, Jackson’s cool demeanor down the stretch under center for the Hokies made the difference.

If Jackson makes the plays throughout the year that he was making on Sunday night, don’t rule out the Hokies in the ACC this season under Justin Fuente. The talk of the town is Clemson, Louisville and Florida State before Deondre Francois’ injury, but the Hokies are always in the contention for the conference title.

Home/College Football Rankings