College football rankings: Florida Gators tick up in AP Top 25 during off week with Georgia ahead

Football

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Image Credit: Hannah White, UAA

It was hardly a surprise when the Florida Gators were left off preseason lists, and at this point, there’s no telling where it may wind up in the college football rankings at season’s end. With a couple of embarrassing defeats sandwiched between bookend victories over top 10 teams, Florida appears to be capable of beating and losing to any team in the nation.

The Gators were off this week preparing for a showdown with No. 3 Georgia, which will take place somewhere other than Jacksonville, Florida, for the first time in more than three decades. While they were at home, the college football landscape continued to shift significantly with those two top 10 teams Florida beat meeting; Texas defeated Ole Miss to end its losing streak at two games.

Interestingly, the Gators are ranked far behind both the Longhorns and Rebels, as detailed below each set of top 25 rankings.

While idle, Florida moved up three spots to No. 17 in the AP Top 25 after placing No. 20 last week. The Gators continue to be undervoted by the sports information directors who participate in the Coaches Poll, elevating four spots to No. 20 in those rankings.

Entering Week 8, Florida is one of nine SEC teams in the AP Top 25, with four of those teams on the schedule, including two still to play.

AP Top 25, Oct. 18 (updating now)

1. Miami (FL) (40)
2. BYU (20)
3. Ohio State (9)
4. Notre Dame
5. Georgia
6. Indiana
7. Ole Miss [W 52-28]
8. Texas Tech
9. UCLA
10. Utah
11. Tennessee
12. Kentucky
13. Alabama
14. Houston
15. Iowa
16. USC
17. Wake Forest
18. LSU
19. Texas [W 27-24]
20. Florida
21. Boise State
22. Missouri [L 17-41]
23. SMU
24. Northwestern
25. Arizona

Coaches Poll, Oct. 25

1. Miami (FL) (67)
2. Ohio State (6)
3. Georgia
4. Indiana
5. Utah
6. Notre Dame
7. UCLA (1)
8. Kentucky
9. BYU
10. Alabama
11. Texas [W 27-24]
12. Ole Miss [W 52-28]
13. LSU
14. Texas Tech
15. Wake Forest
16. SMU
17. Tennessee
18. Northwestern
19. Houston
20. Florida
21. Arizona
22. Boise State
23. Missouri [L 17-41]
24. Iowa
25. USC

The Gators are, respectively, nine and eight spots below Texas and Ole Miss, which they defeated, and three spots below Tennessee, which also lost to South Carolina and has one fewer ranked win.