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On a Saturday that ended in streaks and saw few upheavals and where many of the best teams in the country were held, it was more points of style than defeats.
As the powers of Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and the Ohio State continued their impressive early-season recovery, Clemson survived a 28-26 road-trip warning. Texas A & M at Kyle Field.
Notre Dame avoided a post-Michigan hiccup by barely beating Ball State, 24-16, and Stanford announced his return to the Pac-12 picture with a cardinal cardinal beat from USC in Palo Alto, California.
So, how did all these actions affect our rankings?
The Bleacher Report's expert panel – Matt Hayes, David Kenyon, Adam Kramer, Kerry Miller, Brad Shepard and Ian Wharton – voted on the action. A first place vote is worth 25 points, followed by 24 points for the second, 23 for the third, and so on.
Here is our survey of week 3:
- 1. Alabama (last week: 1)
- 2. Georgia (T-3)
- 3. Clemson (2)
- 4. Ohio State (T-3)
- 5. Oklahoma (5)
- 6. Auburn (6)
- 7. Wisconsin (7)
- 8. Washington (9)
- 9. Stanford (11)
- 10. West Virginia (10)
- 11. Our Lady (8)
- 12. LSU (12)
- 13. State of Mississippi (15)
- 14. Penn State (13)
- 15. TCU (14)
- 16. Virginia Tech (18)
- 17. UCF (17)
- 18. Oregon (21)
- 19. Boise State (20)
- 20. Michigan (22)
- 21. Texas A & M (NR)
- 22. Miami (25)
- 23. Boston College (NR)
- 24. Utah (NR)
- 25. Houston (NR)
Other Vote Recipients: Utah, Duke, Colorado, Iowa, Michigan State, Arizona State, Oklahoma State
Who's hot: Stanford Cardinal
Tony Avelar / Associated Press
David Shaw and his sturdy Stanford Cardinal team are back in full force Pac-12. This was shown Saturday night when a young USC team visited and left the city watching a gang of frustrated rookies in a 17-3 loss.
A week after eliminating the state of San Diego to open the season, the cardinal played another dominant game, handling the Trojans in all regions. Bryce Love forgot his night against the Aztecs with 136 rushing yards and K.J. Costello added 183 in the air.
Perhaps the most impressive was the defense, which dates back several years when the Derek Mason-led units were among the best in the country, smothering some of these strong USC and Oregon teams.
While the Trojans made a last minute effort, Malik Antoine intercepted JT Daniels to cap off a frustrating evening for the talented signal caller. He put the perfect punctuation on the contest for Stanford. Antoine added another choice for good measure.
"I'll say it in the most respectful way possible: all we hear are all the great athletes in the USC, we have great athletes," Shaw said in an interview with Bruce Feldman. "It was a good game, and our guys are playing well, we can play a lot better."
They were just as athletic and physical.
Stanford stool @TabouretStanford
Another point of view to show how much of RUTHLESS Bryce Love's rigid arm is actually
https://t.co/3yeSvtmZSE
It remains to be seen whether the Shaw team can be a national force, especially because its former football brand is an anomaly. They have a fierce defense, run the ball between the tackles and play exceptional special teams.
It will be interesting to observe the clash of style between Stanford and Oregon on September 22nd, and Washington will be profiled later. But the cardinal should be firmly engaged in the conversation as one of the most impressive teams at the start of the season with Saturday's rigorous treatment by USC.
Who is not: SEC East "pretenders"
Streeter Lecka / Getty Images
The hopes of a team were quickly historic. The other team did the wrong kind of story.
It was a bad day to be a ranked team in the East of the SEC who was not named Georgia.
All the talk about South Carolina being a fashionable pick on the visiting Bulldogs has exploded.
Nothing was exaggerated about the annihilation of Gamecocks by Georgia (41-17). But that did not change the fact that the "Cocks" were timed in every facet of the game in what was supposed to be a brand match.
The Gamecocks allowed three Georgia halves to score, made 30 first tries and a pedestrian performance by quarterback Jake Bentley, who launched two interceptions, including a first choice that gave the Bulldogs a boost.
Will MuschampThe team team also finished with 54 yards rushing. All this amounted to a rout at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Meanwhile, Kentucky has erased 31 years of misery and the last years of very tight losses by visiting the Swamp and upsetting the AP 25 in Florida with a daring performance and a final score of 27-16. This proved that the Gators ranking was premature after the first week, and there is still a long way to go to rebuild.
At this point, it looks like the SEC game for Georgia is going well, unless someone ends up in that division. The Wildcats may be legitimate, but Florida did not look good Saturday night.
Neither the Gamecocks nor the Gators should be in this week's polls.
Fun fact: Kansas beat Central Michigan, 31-7, to take a series of nine consecutive years
Ed Zurga / Getty Images
Perhaps it's a little poetic that the last time the Kansas Jayhawks football team won a road match, the country's # 1 song was "I feel (tonight will be a good night)" Black Eyed Peas.
They did not play at night, but Saturday was a great day to be a Jayhawk.
What is sad is that their last win on the road dates back to September 12, 2009. This is a series of futiles consisting of 46 consecutive home defeats. What is good for the Jayhawks is that this tendency to incapacity is over.
They join the Kentucky Wildcats for pulling out the biggest gorilla on Saturday.
This victory took place so long ago (against the UTEP) that the famous Mark Mangino was the head coach of Kansas, scrambling his last season at Lawrence.
The Jayhawks used an opportunistic defense to force six turnovers from Chippewas, and they celebrated it appropriately afterwards.
Fun Fact No. 2: The Buckeyes Add to Historic Excellence
Joe Robbins / Getty Images
With yet another unhinged 52-3 win against an outclassed Rutgers team, Ohio State added to its impressive start to the season.
He also made his debut in an elite company, joining his rival Michigan as the only university football team in history with 900 or more wins, according to ESPN Stats & Info. There have been many brilliant players and legendary coaches at the head of the Buckeyes, and they hope this season will be special too.
After a busy season full of titles, Ohio State has proven that the suspension Urban Meyer has not affected his game in the field. Dwayne Haskins is a Heisman Trophy candidate early in the season, there are waves of talented midfielders and the defense is as strong as in the nation.
The Scarlet Knights had no answer for OSU. They should not lower their heads too low; 899 other teams felt the same after playing the Buckeyes.
Keep an eye on: a pair of AAC sleepers
Jason Behnken / Associated Press
Until now, most of the Group of Five's conversations have centered on Central Florida and the state of Boise, and rightly so. Both teams have strong lists and should be in the running for a big bowl all year round.
But two other teams at the American Athletic Conference quietly settled at the start of the season after winning wins against Power Five opponents on Saturday.
South Florida has abandoned the Quinton Flowers era with former Alabama and Arizona State quarterback Blake Barnett, and it looks like his third school is charming. He had 202 passing yards, 91 yards and four touchdowns in a 49-38 win over Georgia Tech.
Another member of AAC Houston dominated Arizona 45-18, smothering quarterback Khalil Tate early to drop head coach Kevin Sumlin to 0-2. With a new offensive coordinator, Kendal Briles, and defenders led by Ed Oliver, the Cougars can also make noise.
Both teams deserve to be watched. Both could represent these "other" conferences in large bowls.
What to watch for
Jim Cowsert / Associated Press
LSU at Auburn (3:30 pm ET)
This match could be all for the SEC West Georgia-South Carolina was meant to be (and was not) for the East. This side of the conference is by far the deepest, and the two groups of tigers look like suitors.
Between these two teams, the State of Mississippi and perhaps even Texas A & M, Alabama will still struggle to regain the SEC title in 2018. These two defenses play a leading role and the two teams are are feasted.
The Jordan-Hare stadium will swing, and if LSU wins, the stability of Ed Orgeron's program seems much stronger.
Ohio State at TCU (8pm)
Haskins is one of two candidates, along with Kyler Murray, the Oklahoma signal caller, for the first of the season.
The first-year starting quarterback of the Ohio State is efficient, has a big arm and shows some remarkable numbers. But the Buckeyes will go to the AT & T Stadium on Saturday for a prime-time showdown with the TCU.
If the Buckeyes can put pressure on the Horned Frogs quarterback, Shawn Robinson, the game could be long. These are the types of matches at which TCU coach Gary Patterson normally prepares his players. It will be interesting to see if it stays the same.
This should be a non-fun treat for all of us.
USC in Texas (20h)
This game in Austin is the first favorite of the Overrated Bowl, but that does not reduce the intrigue of the return of the Trojans in the series after the victory of 27-24 last year in double overtime.
The Longhorns suffered a loss of the season against Maryland with a 28-21 win over Tulsa on Saturday, and the Trojans showed their youngsters a loss on Stanford. Now both teams have to get back on track to meet expectations.
No team really had to win a conference, but two young, talented teams need a spark. These are only great powers, but it should still be a fun game.
Unless otherwise indicated, courtesy statistics of Sports reference and CFBStats.com and recruit courtesy data from 247Sports. Odds provided by OddsShark.
Brad Shepard covers college football for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @ Brad_Shepard.
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