Georgia Bulldogs move up to No. 4 in football rankings

The Georgia Bulldogs moved up another notch in the AP Poll on Sunday, coming in at No. 4 following their decisive 45-14 win over Vanderbilt coupled with an upset loss Saturday by former No. 3 Oklahoma.

Penn State also benefited from the Sooners’ loss, moving to No. 3 and equaling its highest ranking on the Associated Press Top 25 poll since 2008.

The Nittany Lions were last ranked third nationally in November 2008 when Joe Paterno was the head coach.

Alabama and Clemson once again are in the top two spots. The top-ranked Crimson Tide received 43 first-place votes, while Clemson got 18.

Penn State was No. 4 when it rolled to a 31-7 victory over Northwestern on Saturday. The ability to move up a spot was created by Oklahoma losing to Iowa State. The Sooners dropped to 12th.

Georgia, 6-0 and in first place in the SEC East, takes on Missouri on Saturday at Sanford Stadium in Athens. The Nittany Lions have a bye this week and next play on Oct. 21 when they host Michigan.

Washington also advanced one to No. 5.

TCU is ranked sixth after moving up two spots. Wisconsin also jumped two places and sits at No. 7, while Washington State moved up three spots to No. 8.

Washington and Washington State are ranked in the Top 10 at the same time for the first time since Oct. 26, 1997 — the season that Ryan Leaf led Washington State to the Rose Bowl.

Ohio State and Auburn round out the Top 10. Miami jumped two spots to No. 11.

USC, a team that plummeted one week earlier due to its first loss, sits at No. 13. Oklahoma State is 14th and Virginia Tech is 15th.

Notre Dame jumped five spots to No. 16 after its fourth straight win. Michigan is 17th, dropping 10 spots due to a loss to Michigan State.

South Florida (18th), San Diego State and North Carolina State round out the Top 20.

Michigan State (21st) is one of four teams that moved into the rankings. It is the Spartans’ first ranking since September 2016.

Stanford, which was in the poll earlier this season, is No. 23 after defeating Utah. Texas Tech (No. 24) is ranked for the first time since November 2013, and Navy (25th) is in for the initial time this season.

Central Florida moved up three spots to No. 22.

Dropping out of the rankings are Louisville (No. 17 last week), Utah (20), Florida (21) and West Virginia (23).

The Big Ten has five teams in the rankings, one more than the ACC, Big 12 and Pac-12. The SEC has just three teams in the poll, the same as the American Athletic Conference, though the SEC teams are all in the top 10.