College Football Power Rankings: Week 8 (2021)
Week 6 was tough to beat, and with so many byes and so few ranked matchups on the board, Week 7 was expected to be a bit less hectic. Purdue didn’t get the memo apparently, as they walked into Iowa City and completely shut down the second-ranked Hawkeyes, sending them tumbling down both the AP Poll and the BettingPros power rankings.
The top three teams remain the same, but there are a few big movers in the middle of the pack, and four newcomers to touch on in Week 8’s edition of the college football power rankings. Let’s see how the country’s 25 best teams stack up.
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College Football Power Rankings Week 8
* (NR) = not ranked in last week's power rankings
Big Movers
Oklahoma State Cowboys
The Cowboys are undefeated, and while beating Texas in Austin isn't as monumental of a win as it once was, it's still a huge victory for the program. Oklahoma State's calling card ever since Mike Gundy took over has been their potent offense, but this year's team has been led by a strong defense. They completely took over the game late and shut down the Longhorns offense, a key factor in the win.
Iowa Hawkeyes
The luckiest team in college football almost caught another break against the Boilermakers when TJ Sheffield fumbled off the pylon, wiping a touchdown off the board for Purdue and giving the ball back to Iowa. But nothing was working on either side of the ball for the Hawkeyes, as they mustered just seven points and allowed Purdue to convert 56% of their third downs.
Kentucky Wildcats
Georgia has been so good this year that only losing by 17 in Athens isn't really all that bad of a result. However, the Wildcats just seemed off all afternoon and while much of that was a product of playing the best defense in the country, you can't lose by three scores and not take a sizable drop in the rankings. Kentucky is still a good team, and they'll have to get up off the mat and prove it.
Texas A&M Aggies
The Aggies put the conference on notice last week when they knocked off Alabama at home, and while I'm sure many expected them to roll through Missouri, they very clearly did everything they needed to do to win the game and nothing more. This could have been a huge letdown spot for Jimbo Fisher's team, but they tallied another win and are looking more and more legitimate with each passing week.
Newcomers
Baylor Bears
The Bears are back in the top 25 for the second time this year, and after a brutal 2020 season, Baylor is 6-1. Their lone loss is looking more impressive every week - it was in Stillwater against Oklahoma State - and they've now beaten West Virginia and BYU by double-digits as well as Iowa State.
Auburn Tigers
Auburn is making its third appearance in the top 25. They're clearly one of the best 25 teams in the country, but the inconsistency and brutal SEC schedule has kept them from locking down a permanently-ranked spot. They've got Ole Miss and Texas A&M on tap next, and they finish off the year as always with a meeting against Alabama, so this may not be the last week the Tigers spend in the newcomers' category.
Pittsburgh Panthers
Heading into Saturday, Pitt had topped 40 in every game this year and 50 in each of their last two contests. The Panthers proved they could get back to the roots of the program and ramp up the defense against Virginia Tech, however, as they held the Hokies to just seven points en route to a three-touchdown victory.
Purdue Boilermakers
I could have slipped Clemson back into the 25th spot this week after they beat Syracuse by three... but they beat Syracuse by three. Purdue on the other hand went into Iowa's home stadium and beat the second-ranked team in the country by 17, holding the Hawkeyes to just seven points. The conference is tough this year, but Purdue is proving they shouldn't be overlooked.
Random Musings
Oklahoma Sooners
Nearly every week, my short blurb on the Sooners had something to do with "what's wrong with Spencer Rattler?" or "what's going on with this offense?" I was shocked each week because the Oklahoma offense has been a force to be reckoned with ever since Lincoln Riley took over, and he was set to work with his highest-ranked QB recruit ever. But it's entirely possible we've seen Rattler play his last down in Norman. This is Caleb Williams' team now.
Michigan Wolverines
Michigan State has yet to lose, and they're on a bye. Michigan has yet to lose, and they're set to host the lowly Northwestern Wildcats. We very well could be looking at a battle between undefeated Michigan vs. undefeated Michigan State in East Lansing the day before Halloween, and what a battle that'll be.
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Mike Wagenman is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him on Twitter @mjwags23.