College football rankings: Tennessee surges to No. 3 spot, Notre Dame tumbles in CBS Sports 131

The college football rankings have a new look at the top after a colossal Week 7 delivered on the promise of serving as a turning point in the 2022 season. After Tennessee took down Alabama in epic fashion, the Volunteers are surging in the rankings as they check in at No. 3 in the latest update of the CBS Sports 131, our comprehensive ranking of every FBS team voted on by experts from CBS Sports and 247Sports.
Over the last several weeks we have tracked the changes within the top three, noting that the weekly shuffling of Ohio State, Alabama and Georgia in the 1, 2 and 3 spots of the rankings had produced six different top-three combinations across seven editions of the CBS Sports 131 this season. We now have a seventh different combination in eight releases — only this time the top three does not include the Crimson Tide.
Ohio State remains the No. 1 team, followed by Georgia at No. 2 and Tennessee moving up three spots to No. 3 and taking the position that was held by Alabama prior to the 52-49 result on Saturday. The Crimson Tide did not fall far after taking that defeat, their first of the season, and now check in at No. 6 behind Michigan (No. 4) and Clemson (No. 5), which each held their respective positions after win.
TCU is a team on the rise after its thrilling overtime win against Oklahoma State, moving up five spots into the top 10 and landing at No. 7. Though the top six teams remain the same in different order, the back half of the top 10 included plenty of shuffling as USC, Oklahoma State and Penn State — all top-10 teams in our rankings last week — took losses. The Trojans, Cowboys and Nittany Lions did not fall too far, a consideration that was provided to their previously undefeated profile and the strength of the team that defeated them; Penn State took the biggest slide of the group, falling down eight spots from No. 9 to No. 17.
Throughout the top 60 of the CBS Sports 131 there were not too many examples of teams making drastic moves up, but there are a handful of teams that took a tumble after losses as our voters pivot away from preseason expectations and judge based on results. Teams like Baylor and Notre Dame entered the year looking like some of the better teams in the country on paper, but now that both have fallen to 3-3, they were some of the most notable movers down in the rankings.
For more notable week-to-week adjustments in the updated CBS Sports 131 check out the Mover’s Report below the top 25 table.
College football experts from CBS Sports and 247Sports contribute ballots each week, which are averaged together for our rankings. You can see the top 25 below and 26-131 on our rankings page.
Rank Team Record Previous 1 Ohio State 6-0 1 2 Georgia 7-0 2 3 Tennessee 6-0
6 4 Michigan 7-0 4 5 Clemson 7-0 5 6 Alabama 6-1 3 7 TCU 6-0 11 8 Ole Miss 7-0 10 9 UCLA 6-0 12 10 Oklahoma State 5-1 8 11 USC 6-1 7 12 Oregon 5-1 13 13 Syracuse 6-0
19 14 Wake Forest 5-1 15 15 Kansas State 5-1 17 16 Utah 5-2 24 17 Penn State 5-1
9 18 Illinois 6-1 20 19 Texas 5-2 21 20 Cincinnati 5-1
27 21 North Carolina 6-1 25 22 Kentucky
5-2
36 23 Mississippi State 5-2 14 24 LSU 5-2
37 25 Purdue 5-2 31
Biggest movers
No. 22 Kentucky (+14): Our voters dropped the Wildcats 20 spots last week after the loss to South Carolina, which was more aggressive than the knock Kentucky took in the AP Top 25. Now we see a quick readjustment closer to their standing in those polls after a 27-17 win against Mississippi State.
Our voters dropped the Wildcats 20 spots last week after the loss to South Carolina, which was more aggressive than the knock Kentucky took in the AP Top 25. Now we see a quick readjustment closer to their standing in those polls after a 27-17 win against Mississippi State. No. 24 LSU (+13): The Tigers dropped 14 spots last week after the loss to Tennessee, but now that the Vols have gone on to beat Alabama, that result looks different to voters. This climb in the rankings also comes as a result of Jayden Daniels and LSU’s offense having a great night against Florida, restoring some confidence in the strength of a team that’s now 5-2.
The Tigers dropped 14 spots last week after the loss to Tennessee, but now that the Vols have gone on to beat Alabama, that result looks different to voters. This climb in the rankings also comes as a result of Jayden Daniels and LSU’s offense having a great night against Florida, restoring some confidence in the strength of a team that’s now 5-2. No. 45 BYU (-13): This is now a 26-spot drop for the Cougars over the last two weeks after a narrow loss to Notre Dame in Las Vegas was followed by a 17-point defeat at home against Arkansas. Making matters worse in terms of the rankings was the Fighting Irish falling to 3-3 with a loss against Stanford.
This is now a 26-spot drop for the Cougars over the last two weeks after a narrow loss to Notre Dame in Las Vegas was followed by a 17-point defeat at home against Arkansas. Making matters worse in terms of the rankings was the Fighting Irish falling to 3-3 with a loss against Stanford. No. 30 NC State (-14): The absence of Devin Leary loomed large as NC State’s offense struggled to get it done in the red zone at Syracuse. Leary being ruled out for the year may have impacted how our voters stack the Wolfpack up against other two-loss teams on their ballot.
The absence of Devin Leary loomed large as NC State’s offense struggled to get it done in the red zone at Syracuse. Leary being ruled out for the year may have impacted how our voters stack the Wolfpack up against other two-loss teams on their ballot. No. 52 Notre Dame (-24): One week after a 14-spot surge back into the top 30, the Fighting Irish tumbled outside the top 50 following an upset loss to Stanford at home. Notre Dame will have a chance to get right with a favorable matchup against UNLV coming on Saturday, but that win won’t be enough to reclaim a spot near the top 25.
One week after a 14-spot surge back into the top 30, the Fighting Irish tumbled outside the top 50 following an upset loss to Stanford at home. Notre Dame will have a chance to get right with a favorable matchup against UNLV coming on Saturday, but that win won’t be enough to reclaim a spot near the top 25. No. 47 Baylor (-25): This is some swift action by our voters after Blake Shapen got knocked out of the game and the Bears came up on the short end of a wild 43-40 game against West Virginia on Thursday night. The Bears may have been a bit overrated at No. 22, where they stood last week, but a 25-spot drop for a three-point road loss in conference play suggests this team, now at 3-3, has lost the support of our voters.
Check out the rest of the CBS Sports 131: Teams ranked 26-131