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College football rankings: With 5 teams ranked in the top 11, has the Big Ten surpassed the SEC?

By Nick Villano

Michigan Wolverines defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (97) rushes the quarterback as Wisconsin Badgers offensive lineman Logan Bruss (60) blocks during the third quarter at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Michigan Wolverines defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (97) rushes the quarterback as Wisconsin Badgers offensive lineman Logan Bruss (60) blocks during the third quarter at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports /
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Texas Longhorns
Texas Longhorns running back Bijan Robinson (5): (Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports) /

3. Big 12

The Big 12 moves up in the standings because they didn’t completely mess things up. There’s nothing impressive here unless of course, you’re talking about Bijan Robinson. He looks like he might be one of the frontrunners for the Heisman Trophy. Oklahoma State won a battle of undefeateds by beating Baylor on Saturday. It propelled them into the top 12 in the rankings. West Virginia responded to their impressive showing against Oklahoma with a nothing performance against Texas Tech. The Neal Brown era is getting shaky with his incessant need to stick with Jarret Doege. Then, there’s Oklahoma. They got past another opponent by the skin of their teeth again. Nothing comes easy for the Sooners, who allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown with 1:20 left to make it a one-score game. They still ended up winning, but it should not have been that close.

2. Big Ten

The top two divisions are so far ahead of the bottom three divisions in the standings, it’s not even funny. The Big Ten’s best teams took care of business this week. Every ranked team won, including a Michigan team who faced its first test in Wisconsin. Ohio State showed Rutgers they have a long way to go to be close to ready for the Buckeyes. Iowa and Penn State took out Indiana and Maryland, two teams who have shown resiliency this season. Now, they’ll meet on Saturday in Iowa City in a battle of top-five teams, a rarity in the Big Ten that doesn’t involve Ohio State as one of the teams. With Michigan State undefeated, the Big Ten has five teams among the top 11 in the AP Top 25.

1. SEC

The SEC went into the week with seven teams ranked in the Top 25. Four of those seven teams lost. Two were upset by teams outside the Top 25. The only ranked team in the SEC to beat an unranked team was Auburn getting past LSU. Kentucky is undefeated and now ranked No. 16 in the country. Florida dropped to No. 20 after losing to the Wildcats. It seems like the only real chance anyone has at beating Georgia or Alabama is Alabama or Georgia. The SEC still has seven teams in the Top 25, but five of them are ranked between No. 13 and No. 20. The SEC has the two clear-cut best teams, but the Big Ten may have the most depth. The tie-breaker goes to the SEC on the strength of Alabama and Georgia.

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