With the weekend off, there was not much concern that the Buckeyes would lose their grasp on the top spot in the polls. True to form, they didn't, but they did lose a little bit of their cushion in the latest coaches' poll.
Art Briles' Baylor Bears held on to number two spot in the rankings and was joined by TCU, LSU and Clemson, who leap-frogged Michigan State didn't play in the top five. The Horned Frogs picked up two more first place votes this week and are closing the gap on Baylor for the second spot.
North Carolina, who moved up seven spots to No. 21, was the week's biggest mover.
| Rank | Team | Points | 1st Votes | Change | Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | OHIO STATE | 1574 | 48 | BIG TEN | |
| 2 | BAYLOR | 1481 | 9 | BIG 12 | |
| 3 | TEXAS CHRISTIAN | 1441 | 4 | BIG 12 | |
| 4 | LOUISIANA STATE | 1388 | 1 | SEC | |
| 5 | CLEMSON | 1377 | 2 | +1 | ACC |
| 6 | MICHIGAN STATE | 1337 | 1 | -1 | BIG TEN |
| 7 | ALABAMA | 1223 | SEC | ||
| 8 | STANFORD | 1069 | PAC-12 | ||
| 9 | NOTRE DAME | 1068 | INDEPENDENT | ||
| 10 | OKLAHOMA STATE | 978 | BIG 12 | ||
| 11 | IOWA | 968 | BIG TEN | ||
| 12 | FLORIDA | 942 | SEC | ||
| 13 | OKLAHOMA | 819 | BIG 12 | ||
| 14 | UTAH | 770 | PAC-12 | ||
| 15 | FLORIDA STATE | 693 | ACC | ||
| 16 | MEMPHIS | 652 | AMERICAN | ||
| 17 | MICHIGAN | 587 | BIG TEN | ||
| 18 | HOUSTON | 505 | +1 | AMERICAN | |
| 19 | OLE MIS | 436 | +2 | SEC | |
| 20 | TOLEDO | 396 | MAC | ||
| 21 | NORTH CAROLINA | 215 | +7 | ACC | |
| 22 | UCLA | 199 | +3 | PAC 12 | |
| 23 | TEMPLE | 164 | -1 | AMERICAN | |
| 24 | TEXAS A&M | 148 | +2 | SEC | |
| 25 | MISSISSIPPI STATE | 104 | +2 | SEC |
