College Football Rankings 2017: Projected Week 7 AP Top 25 Poll
By Zach Bigalke
October opened with a few major upsets. How will the results impact the AP Top 25 when it is released on Sunday? Click ahead for our weekly projections.
A couple of teams tumbled out of the AP Top 25 this week. No. 21 Florida and No. 23 West Virginia both fell to conference rivals in Week 6, and they opened the door for a couple new teams to move up into the poll this week. Meanwhile, other teams higher up the AP Top 25 suffered upset losses that will cause them to fall down the rankings.
What will the AP Top 25 look like when it is released for Week 7 on Sunday afternoon? Keep reading for our poll projections after prime-time action on Saturday evening.
After opening the season 2-0, a tough loss to Notre Dame on the road effectively knocked Michigan State off everyone’s radar. But the Spartans have a solid team that gets the job done with stout defense and workmanlike offense. Mark Dantonio‘s team came up with one of the biggest upsets of the week as they toppled No. 7 Michigan in Ann Arbor on Saturday night. The win will bump the Spartans up into the bottom of the AP Top 25 this week.
The Spartans defense picked off three John O’Korn passes and also forced two fumbles to win the turnover battle. Brian Lewerke was uninspiring at quarterback, going 11-of-22 for 94 yards and a touchdown. But he did not turn over the ball, even as he added 61 yards and a touchdown on the ground to lead the Spartans in rushing.
Now that they are back among the ranked teams in the AP Top 25, Michigan State will be on high alert moving forward. They should be able to get through October unscathed, with road trips to Minnesota and Northwestern sandwiched around a home game against Indiana. Back-to-back games against Penn State and Ohio State to start November will decide whether the Spartans are legitimate Big Ten contenders this year.