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College football power rankings: Predicting the AP Top 25 after Week 4

By Connor Muldowney

TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 22: Henry Ruggs III #11 celebrates a touchdown with teammate Irv Smith Jr. #82 of the Alabama Crimson Tide during a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 22, 2018 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Crimson Tide defeated the Aggies 45-23. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, AL - SEPTEMBER 22: Henry Ruggs III #11 celebrates a touchdown with teammate Irv Smith Jr. #82 of the Alabama Crimson Tide during a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 22, 2018 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Crimson Tide defeated the Aggies 45-23. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /
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EUGENE, OR – SEPTEMBER 22: University of Oregon RB Cyrus Habibi-Likio (33) reacts after scoring. Fourth quarter touchdown to put the Ducks up 31-21 during a college football game between the Oregon Ducks and Stanford Cardinal on September 22, 2018, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon.(Photo by Brian Murphy/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
EUGENE, OR – SEPTEMBER 22: University of Oregon RB Cyrus Habibi-Likio (33) reacts after scoring. Fourth quarter touchdown to put the Ducks up 31-21 during a college football game between the Oregon Ducks and Stanford Cardinal on September 22, 2018, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon.(Photo by Brian Murphy/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Things don’t get much uglier than what Oklahoma State suffered through on Saturday night against Texas Tech in Stillwater. Mike Gundy’s team was completely outmatched and the offense looked pedestrian for the first time this season. Is Taylor Cornelius truly the answer? It’s hard to tell if this was a fluke or if the Cowboys just aren’t who we thought they were, but they’ll hold onto a spot in the AP Top 25 by a thread.

Another team to suffer a tough loss in Week 4, Oregon had what looked to be one of the best wins of the season in the bag, and then the second half happened. Oregon was up by 17 points, but the Ducks absolutely imploded, and it all started with a fumbled snap returned for a touchdown when they were ready to go up 31-7 inside the Cardinal 10-yard line. Oregon will rebound, but this was a heartbreaker.

Boise State had a bye in Week 4, but the Broncos were already ranked in the Week 3 Coaches Poll and were one of the first teams on the outside of the AP Top 25, looking in. The Broncos will sneak back in even though that Oklahoma State blowout loss in Week 3 now looks worse, but Bryan Harsin will have his team ready to roll after the bye.

A week ago, BYU was the talk of college football. The Cougars were coming off one of the biggest wins in recent memory, going to Madison and stealing a win over top-10 Wisconsin. The Cougars hosted McNeese State in Week 4 and came away with a convincing 30-3 win, but the stats don’t really jump off the sheet. The Cougars still have plenty of work to do, but a three-spot bump after the craziness from the 10-25 range seems right.

Is Duke the surprise of the ACC this season? The Blue Devils weren’t expected to make much noise when the season began, but it’s wild what good coaching can do — well that, and strong, turnover-free quarterback play. The Blue Devils had a scoring outburst against North Carolina Central in a 55-13 win. This will be enough to get the Blue Devils in the Top 25, and then some.

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