Some of the best teams in the country faced upset scares in Week 12 but only further solidified their standing in the college football rankings with their ability to endure the late-season pressure and avoid taking a costly loss. In the CBS Sports 134, our voters were keyed in on close games for Oregon and Texas as both teams ventured to hostile road environments. But as both the Ducks and the Longhorns emerged victorious, there is only more confidence in their position as top-five squads in our FBS-wide ranking of all 134 teams.
As it is, the entire top five remained unchanged coming out of Week 12 with Oregon at the top, Ohio State just ahead of Texas and Indiana at No. 4, one spot ahead of Penn State. The rest of the top 10 did see some notable shuffling with BYU losing to Kansas and Tennessee falling on the road at Georgia, resulting in some opportunities for teams inside the top 15.
The Bulldogs — currently +310 to win the SEC, according to FanDuel Sportsbook — were among those teams that saw a bump up coming out of the weekend, rising four spots to No. 9. Alabama (No. 7) and Ole Miss (No. 8) each moved up as well, though the Crimson Tide did so in the wake of beating FCS Mercer and the Rebels were off. BYU’s fall after losing to Kansas was among the most notable week-to-week adjustments within the top 20, as the Cougars’ first loss of the season resulted in a tumble from No. 6 down to No. 14. LSU also dropped from outside the top 30, from No. 25 to No. 32, after the Tigers’ loss to rival Florida.
Most of the adjustments this week — as is the case most years during this portion of the season — are teams moving down as it’s hard to greatly affect your season-long resume with a single result, but we have collected some of those adjustments both up and down throughout the top 60 in the Mover’s Report under the top 25 table below.
College football experts from CBS Sports and 247Sports contribute ballots each week, which are averaged together for our rankings. You can see the top 25 below and 26-134 on our rankings page.
| 1 | Oregon | 11-0 | 1 |
| 2 | Ohio State | 9-1 | 2 |
| 3 | Texas | 9-1 | 3 |
| 4 | Indiana | 10-0 | 4 |
| 5 | Penn State | 9-1 | 5 |
| 6 | Notre Dame | 9-1 | 8 |
| 7 | Alabama | 8-2 | 9 |
| 8 | Ole Miss | 8-2 | 11 |
| 9 | Georgia | 8-2 | 13 |
| 10 | Miami | 9-1 | 12 |
| 11 | SMU | 9-1 | 10 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 8-2 | 7 |
| 13 | Boise State | 9-1 | 14 |
| 14 | BYU | 9-1 | 6 |
| 15 | Army | 9-0 | 15 |
| 16 | Texas A&M | 8-2 | 16 |
| 17 | Colorado | 8-2 | 17 |
| 18 | Clemson | 8-2 | 19 |
| 19 | South Carolina | 7-3 | 22 |
| 20 | Tulane | 9-2 | 24 |
| 21 | Iowa State | 8-2 | 21 |
| 22 | Arizona State | 8-2 | 30 |
| 23 | UNLV | 8-2 | 29 |
| 24 | Illinois | 7-3 | 32 |
| 25 | Kansas State | 7-3 | 20 |
Biggest movers
- No. 44 North Carolina (+9): In outlasting Wake Forest on Saturday, North Carolina won its third straight game and continued building what has been an upward trajectory since the team’s four-game losing streak earlier this season. At 3-4 with bad losses and blown leads, the CBS Sports 134 voters had the Tar Heels buried on their ballots, but with each win has come some improvement. Now at 6-4, they’ve cracked the top 50.
- No. 51 Rutgers (+9): Another team that looked down and out just a few weeks ago, Rutgers has flipped the script with back-to-back wins that have propelled the Scarlet Knights up 17 spots in the rankings over the last two weeks. Both wins, first against Minnesota and then on Saturday at Maryland, have come with Rutgers as the underdog. What’s been revealed is a team that’s getting healthy at the right time for a strong finish to the season.
- No. 22 Arizona State (+8): Even the most optimistic expectations for Arizona State in 2024 have been exceeded as the Sun Devils now sit at 8-2 firmly in the midst of the Big 12 title race. In taking down Kanas State on the road, Arizona State sent a message to the rest of the league that it has the form to be able to not only make the Big 12 title game but win it and compete for a spot in the College Football Playoff.
- No. 24 Illinois (+8): After a few weeks outside the top 30, we see Illinois return after a dominant 38-16 win against Michigan State. Back-to-back losses to Oregon and Minnesota heading into an off week gave the impression that Illinois had lost its momentum from a strong start to the year, but the 22-point win out of the bye reversed many of those concerns.
- No. 31 Louisville (-8): While the stakes of the season may not have been impacted all that much — besides jockeying for bowl game preference — dropping a game at Stanford is still a bad loss for this Cardinals team. Louisville had shown their caliber with their competitiveness against the best teams on their schedule, and losing at Stanford does not meet that standard.
- No. 27 Washington State (-9): Losing at New Mexico was bound to create a rankings adjustment, but Washington State’s gaudy win count and key head-to-head wins helped create a high floor for the Cougars’ landing spot. Now at 8-2, Washington State will endure more scrutiny than they did as a one-loss team, leaving little margin for error if the team is going to stay in the top 30 through the end of the year.
- No. 38 Louisiana (-10): The Ragin’ Cajuns were on the verge of breaking into the top 25 as the Sun Belt title hopefuls kept stacking wins. And while the current 8-2 record is still impressive, Saturday’s somewhat surprising loss to South Alabama has led to a swift knock down in the rankings.
- No. 55 Cincinnati (-10): When this team was 5-2 with only close losses to Pitt and Texas Tech, the CBS Sports 134 voters had started to move them into consideration for some of the top spots on their ballots. But after three straight losses, there has been a dramatic change in opinion, including an 18-spot fall over the last two weeks with losses to West Virginia and Iowa State.
Check out the rest of the CBS Sports 134: Teams ranked 26-134