College football rankings 2023: Projected Week 8 AP Top 25 after Notre Dame blasts USC, Washington prevails
- USC looked completely fraudulent against Notre Dame
- North Carolina made a statement in Chapel Hill against Miami
- Washington is a legit College Football Playoff contender
Projected AP Top 25 college football rankings after Week 7: No. 20-16
20. USC Trojans
If you called USC fraudulent based on some stumbles against lower-tier competition on the schedule, congratulations: You were right. Caleb Williams played the worst game of his college career as he was under duress throughout the night. The defense also showed its usual warts too, which led to a Notre Dame rout by a score of 48-20. Even if you thought the Trojans would lose, I’m not sure anyone saw that result coming.
19. LSU Tigers
The one thing that won’t be called into question with LSU is the Tigers’ ability to put points on the scoreboard. However, some had wondered just how bad the defense actually was and the hapless Auburn offense was a great litmus test. Brian Kelly’s defense held the fellow Tigers to just 18 points in the 48-18 win, proving that LSU still has the potential to cause some real chaos in the SEC West down the stretch.
18. Louisville Cardinals
What in the world, Louisville? Jeff Brohm’s team appeared to solidify their legitimacy last week when they handled Notre Dame at home to remain undefeated. Then they went on the road to play a seemingly lifeless Pitt team and got worked in their own right. It’s disheartening from the Cardinals, but this was a clear letdown spot. Still a one-loss team, I don’t see the drop in the rankings being too dramatic.
17. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Few teams have a more confusing resumé than Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish completely throttled USC on Saturday night in South Bend one week after they got the brakes beat off of them by Louisville, a team that lost to Pitt this week. It’s baffling, but it was a big win for Marcus Freeman’s team and a statement that they could finish strong as they head into a merciful bye week after a gauntlet of games.
16. Duke Blue Devils
It was reasonable to wonder if Duke would potentially fall way off with star quarterback Riley Leonard out of action due to injury. At home against NC State on Saturday, the offense indeed looked limited with Henry Belin IV filling in, but he did throw two touchdowns out of his four total completions on the day to push the Blue Devils to 5-1 with a 24-3 win. Duke’s defense under Mike Elko can keep them competitive, but playing Florida State and Louisville in the next two weeks might be tough to stomach.