The way that Georgia handled Notre Dame got itself a first-place vote in the Coaches Poll, but things remained steadily split between No. 1 Clemson and No. 2 Alabama in the new AP Top 25 college football rankings released on Sunday. Week 4 gave us several ranked-against-ranked matchups, and by the end of the carnage in UCLA's comeback win against Washington State, eight ranked teams had suffered losses -- five to unranked teams. All of this provided the room for some changes in the rankings, and one team that benefited in a big way was Wisconsin.
Wisconsin moved from No. 13 up into the top 10 at No. 8 after its 35-14 win against Michigan on Saturday. The AP voters had been reluctant with the Badgers based on the strength of their opponents in two blowout wins, but carrying the same level of execution against a team like the Wolverines is worthy of an adjustment in the rankings.
On the other side of the Badgers' success is a fall for Michigan from No. 11 to No. 20. The Wolverines leave this impactful Week 4 still in search of an identity on offense, holding a respectable 3-1 record but quickly getting jumped by other conference title hopefuls in the Big Ten. The fact that the Wolverines are now closer to Michigan State than Penn State in the rankings shows the change in expectations for this year's team, which has looked less and less like a College Football Playoff contender with each week.
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With a top-10 matchup headlining the evening and two top-20 matchups setting the stage, Week 4 was one of the first great shake-up weekends for the college football rankings. The new Coaches Poll was released on Sunday, and while it has the familiar faces up near the top, there is plenty of movement following the weekend action.
No. 3 Georgia received a first-place vote for the first time this season after its win against Notre Dame, which fell just three spots to No. 10 after the loss in Athens, Georgia. Oklahoma, LSU and Ohio State all held their positions at 4-5-6, but Auburn and Wisconsin are both moving up in the top 10 at No. 7 and No. 9, respectively. Florida held its spot between them at No. 8.
Two of the biggest drops of the week came from Michigan, which took a tumble 10 spots to No. 20 following its loss to the Badgers, and UCF, which nearly fell out of the rankings after its loss at Pitt on Saturday. The Knights fell seven spots and are hanging on in the eyes of the coaches at No. 23.
One of the biggest moves up in the Coaches Poll was Cal, which is now up seven spots to No. 16 after its win at Ole Miss. This week also sees 4-0 Wake Forest ranked in the top 25 of the Coaches Poll for the first time since 2008. The Demon Deacons check in at No. 24, one spot ahead of USC, which is back in the top 25 after defeating Utah on Friday night.
