As voted on by 17 coaching legends
In the seven-year history of the Legends Poll, fifth-ranked Notre Dame had never been ranked in the top 5.
That streak ended this week as the Fighting Irish and Kansas State made their first ever top 5 appearances in the Legends Poll rankings. Both teams improved to 6-0 and benefited from a second straight week of upsets.
“I think Notre Dame’s offense is definitely getting better,” former Indiana coach Bill Mallory said. “But I think their defense is the thing that’s really improved. From what I’ve seen last year to this year, they’ve definitely improved on the defensive side of the ball. Their defensive front is really strong and that linebacker (Manti Teo) is really outstanding.”
Alabama continued its dominance with a commanding victory at Missouri and remained the unanimous No. 1 team. Idle Oregon maintained its spot at No. 2.
No. 3 Florida also moved up two spots this week after a win over Vanderbilt, but the Gators face another tough test next week when their former coach pays a visit to Gainesville with his South Carolina Gamecocks.
The SEC gauntlet caught up with Steve Spurrier and South Carolina, and they failed to stay unbeaten, falling 26-23 at LSU. The Gamecocks fell six spots to No. 9.
With the victory, LSU moved up four spots to No. 6, and jumped seventh-ranked Florida State as the highest ranked one-loss team.
No. 8 Oklahoma moved back into the top 10 after a resounding 63-21 victory over archrival Texas. The lopsided loss catapulted Texas out of the top 25.
No. 11 Oregon State was the biggest mover in the poll this week, jumping five spots following a 42-24 win at BYU.
West Virginia slid 11 spots all the way to No. 15 after it was embarrassed at Texas Tech, 49-14. The loss was a huge blow to quarterback Geno Smith’s Heisman hopes.
Texas Tech moved into the rankings for the first time following their surprise upset, debuting at No. 21. No. 24 Michigan and No. 25 Arizona State joined the Red Raiders as newcomers to the rankings.
Iowa State and Louisiana Tech along with Texas dropped out of the top 25 this week.
To see the individual votes by coach, visit the Legends Poll.
THE LEGENDS POLL TOP 25
| RK | TEAM | RECORD | POINTS | PV RK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
 Alabama (17) |
6-0 | 425 | 1 |
| 2 |
 Oregon |
6-0 | 408 | 2 |
| 3 |
 Florida |
6-0 | 384 | 5 |
| 4 |
 Kansas State |
6-0 | 361 | 6 |
| 5 |
 Notre Dame |
6-0 | 352 | 7 |
| 6 |
 LSU |
6-1 | 344 | 10 |
| 7 |
 Florida State |
6-1 | 307 | 8 |
| 8 |
 Oklahoma |
4-1 | 302 | 11 |
| 9 |
 South Carolina |
6-1 | 287 | 3 |
| 10 |
 USC |
5-1 | 266 | 9 |
| 11 |
 Oregon State |
5-0 | 250 | 16 |
| 12 |
 Clemson |
5-1 | 230 | 12 |
| 13 |
 Georgia |
5-1 | 218 | 14 |
| 14 |
 Mississippi State |
6-0 | 193 | 17 |
| 15 |
 West Virginia |
5-1 | 180 | 4 |
| 16 |
 Louisville |
6-0 | 170 | 18 |
| 17 |
 Texas A&M |
5-1 | 150 | 19 |
| 18 |
 Stanford |
4-2 | 144 | 13 |
| 19 |
 Rutgers |
6-0 | 117 | 21 |
| 20 |
 Cincinnati |
5-0 | 108 | 20 |
| 21 |
 Texas Tech |
5-1 | 82 | - |
| 22 |
 TCU |
5-1 | 74 | 22 |
| 23 |
 Boise State |
5-1 | 60 | 23 |
| 24 |
 Michigan |
4-2 | 53 | - |
| 25 |
 Arizona State |
5-1 | 18 |
- |
Others Receiving Votes: Louisiana Tech 13, Wisconsin 5, Ohio 4, Nebraska 4, Iowa State 4, Northwestern 4, Oklahoma State 4, UCLA 3, Iowa 1
Teams Dropped Out From Last Week's Poll: Texas, Iowa State, Louisiana Tech
* The Legends Poll voting process is exactly what the BCS is trying to create and Athlon will bring it to you as the de facto Selection Committee for fans to follow over the next two seasons, allowing you to see how the Selection Committee will operate from 2014 onward. You can see the entire Poll at www.legendschannel.com.
