Rankings of 134 college football teams after Week 1, from Georgia to Temple

Editor’s Note: The Athletic 134 is a weekly ranking of all FBS college football teams.

Week 1 is complete and we’ve finally seen everyone in FBS. Well, not everyone (sorry to keep you waiting, Ball State).

After a weekend that saw only a few surprises but some very impressive performances, where does everyone go in this week’s edition? The Athletics 134?

Welcome back to the top spot, Georgia, for its 34-3 domination of Clemson. Welcome to the top 25, Vanderbilt! The Commodores were ranked 95th in the preseason rankings, but after an overtime win against hot ACC outsider Virginia Tech, why wouldn’t Vanderbilt now move into the top 25? It was the most shocking result of the season, against a team in my preseason top 25.

The Pulse Newsletter

Free daily sports updates straight to your inbox.

Free daily sports updates straight to your inbox.

To register

Penn State, Miami and Georgia Tech also rose, while Florida State, Florida and others fell.

As a reminder: The rankings will be mixed at first. Wins against quality and competent teams are rewarded and distorted. Teams can quickly make big leaps with good wins. Teams that are up against inferior competition will not move much or even “fall”, but that is just because someone else jumped with a notable win. Don’t worry. Relax. It will take a few weeks for everything to settle down, once everyone has played at least one notable match. I try to emphasize results, and it takes time for everyone to have one.

Here is the week 2 edition of The Athletics 134.

1-10

I considered moving Notre Dame up to No. 2 this week. I did. The 23-13 win over Texas A&M was better than anything anyone in the top six outside of Georgia has done. But Notre Dame isn’t the second-best team in the country and everyone looked good against low-level competition, so it’s a small step up for the Irish for now. Don’t expect them to leave this territory anytime soon with a favorable schedule over the next month. But this Notre Dame win could look better as the season progresses, which would impact the rankings.

Penn State, welcome to the top 10. I was a preseason skeptic. I didn’t believe in Drew Allar, but Saturday’s 34-12 win over West Virginia was a complete physical domination, and we saw an offense willing to throw the ball downfield and one that planned those receivers open. It felt different than last year’s game. Maybe it was an overreaction in Week 1, but it made me think that this is not only a team that can make the College Football Playoff, but a team that can win a game or two.

Michigan and Oregon nearly fell out of the top 10 after narrow wins over Fresno State and Idaho, respectively. Both teams were deep into the fourth quarter in a one-score game. But they won, so they get some Week 1 benefit of the doubt, for now. Next up are Texas and Boise State for each, so we’ll learn soon if they’re for real.

11-25

Hello, USC. The revamped defense looked more than competent, and Miller Moss looked like a real Lincoln Riley quarterback as the Trojans defeated LSU 27-20 to climb to No. 15, while the Tigers fell to No. 16.

Clemson currently hangs in the top 25 at No. 23. This is largely based on my belief that Georgia would do that to almost anyone. Boston College’s 28-13 win over Florida State was more dominant than the final score, as the Eagles jump from No. 62 to No. 24, and Vanderbilt’s overtime win over Virginia Tech moves the Commodores up to No. 25.

26-50

Georgia Tech rises to No. 26 after a 2-0 start. The Yellow Jackets would have been in the top 25 until BC’s dominant win Monday night made Ireland’s victory over FSU less impressive. Things can change from week to week.

No. 27 NC State had to come back and hold on in the fourth quarter against Western Carolina. So did No. 29 Boise State against Georgia Southern. The Wolfpack and Broncos remain in their positions for now. North Carolina climbs 10 spots to No. 36 after beating Minnesota on a missed field goal by the Gophers, but the loss of quarterback Max Johnson for the season could be an issue.

Florida State drops from 9th to 46th after a horrendous 0-2 start. Right behind the Seminoles are the Florida Gators, two programs whose fans are in an existential crisis.

Colorado climbs a few spots to the top 50 after a 31-26 win over North Dakota State. The Buffaloes looked a lot like last year’s team, and some questionable clock management by Deion Sanders gave the Bisons a chance late in the season, but it was still a solid win against a very successful program that has had its share of FBS upsets. TCU is No. 49 after a 31-24 win over Stanford.

51-75

UNLV just missed out on a top 50 ranking after a dominant 27-7 win at Houston that was nearly a shutout. If you thought UNLV’s season last year was a fluke, the Rebels opened with a statement win, though there are still concerns about the passing game after Week 1.

Arizona State’s 48-7 win over Wyoming was perhaps the most shocking victory of the weekend, moving ASU from 89th to 53rd. A Sun Devils program that ranked 124th in scoring last year (17.8 points per game) was taking on a normally solid Wyoming defense.

South Carolina drops nine spots and out of the top 50, to No. 54 after coming back and barely holding on for a 23-19 win over Old Dominion. So does Texas Tech, which drops to No. 57 after a two-point stop in overtime to escape an Abilene Christian team that generated 615 yards of offense.

Coastal Carolina defeated Jacksonville State 55-27 in a surprisingly dominant performance to rise 30 spots to No. 64. The Chanticleers have now won seven of their last nine under head coach Tim Beck.

76-100

Is it time to believe in Jeff Choate’s Nevada? The Wolf Pack held on to SMU in Week 0 and showed it wasn’t a one-off with a 28-26 win over two-time defending Sun Belt champion Troy. Nevada jumps more than 50 spots to No. 76 after being lifeless the past two seasons.

Old Dominion and Georgia Southern rise despite their losses, as they put together solid performances with fourth-quarter leads. Why rely on preseason rankings when both played better than expected in their losses? North Texas’ solid win over South Alabama moves the Mean Green to No. 93.

Sam Houston was my preseason Conference USA team to watch, and the Bearkats made a statement with a 34-14 win over Rice to climb to No. 99. The Bearkats started last year 0-8 but have won three of their last four and now enter 2024 1-0. Hawaii was sloppy in a Week 0 win over Delaware State but nearly beat UCLA in Week 1, losing on a last-second field goal. So the Rainbow Warriors move up a couple of spots to No. 98. We’ll see who the real Hawaii is. Florida Atlantic moved up one spot into the top 100 after a narrow (but sloppy) 16-10 loss at Michigan State.

101-134

Arkansas State needed a last-second touchdown to beat Central Arkansas, so the Red Wolves drop to No. 103. New Mexico is 0-2, but buy those Bronco Mendenhall shares while you can. The Lobos blew a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter against Montana State in Week 0 and trailed Arizona by just three at halftime in Week 1. New Mexico lost both games, but the team has more heart than we’ve seen in a while. As a result, the Lobos move up six spots to No. 116. New Mexico State needed a touchdown with under two minutes left to beat Southeast Missouri State, so the Aggies drop to No. 117.

There’s a new No. 134. Kennesaw State played UTSA deep in the fourth quarter, so the Owls are coming from the bottom. There’s a different group of Owls coming. Temple gave the ball away six times in a 51-3 loss to Oklahoma. Things have been tough in Philly the last few years, and it didn’t look any better Saturday.

The Athletic 134 series is part of a collaboration with Allstate. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories prior to publication.

(Photo by Kirby Smart: Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)