College football rankings 2022: Projected Week 3 AP Top 25 after Alabama survives, Notre Dame & Texas A&M fall

Projected AP Top 25 college football rankings after Week 2: No. 18-17

18. Baylor Bears

Baylor went on the road to Provo and, especially after the Bears mauled BYU a season ago, had to know that they were walking into a hostile environment that would be difficult to walk away from with a win. Ultimately, they were unable to do so and, as such, have to fall down the rankings after the loss. But at the same time, there’s no reason to think less of the Bears after this game.

For one, the Cougars look the part of a legitimately good team that could be the best team outside of the Power 5 in the 2022 season. And on top of that, Baylor went up to the altitude of Utah and took BYU to the very brink. This is a team that is high-quality on both sides of the ball and Dave Aranda clearly has this program is a spot to make noise for as long as he’s in the building.

17. NC State Wolfpack

Narrowly escaping on the road against East Carolina didn’t do much to convince fans that NC State was legit this season and truly had the goods to challenge Clemson in the ACC Atlantic. Subsequently, it was pretty important for head coach Dave Doren to have the Wolfpack ready to come out and make a statement against Charleston Southern in the home opener for the 2022 season.

His team, quarterback Devin Leary in particular, answered the call. The veteran signal-caller looked much better on Saturday as he accounted for six total touchdowns on the day. Meanwhile, the defense asserted its will en route to a 55-3 victory. That needs to be the recipe against more up-to-par competition, but it was refreshing to see NC State right the ship after an early scare.