Alabama, Clemson swap spots in rankings
The Super 16 pollsters selected a new No. 1 this week for the first time during the regular season: Alabama. By virtue of Clemson’s close victory over unranked North Carolina, the Crimson Tide jumped the Tigers after easily dispatching Ole Miss. Alabama received 22 first-place votes to Clemson’s 12.
Ohio State, picking up five first-place votes, moved into the No. 3 slot after overwhelming Nebraska in Lincoln. Unbeatens Georgia, LSU, Oklahoma, Auburn, Wisconsin and Florida followed, with one-loss Notre Dame at No. 10. Washington re-entered the poll at No. 15 after California lost to Arizona State.
The SEC led all conferences with five teams, followed by the Big Ten with four. The Big 12 and Pac-12 had two each. The ACC, Independents and Mountain West had one each.
GAMES THIS WEEK:
No. 1 Alabama is idle
No. 2 Clemson is idle
Michigan State at No. 3 Ohio State
No. 4 Georgia at Tennessee
Utah State at No. 5 LSU
No. 6 Oklahoma at Kansas
No. 7 Auburn at No.9 Florida
Kent State at No. 8 Wisconsin
Bowling Green at No. 10 Notre Dame
No. 11 Texas at West Virginia
Purdue at No. 12 Penn State
California at No. 13 Oregon
No. 14 Iowa at Michigan
No. 15 Washington at Stanford
No. 16 Boise State at UNLV
FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll, Week 5: games played through September 28
| TEAM | POINTS | FIRST-PLACE VOTES | LAST WEEK’S RANK | |
| 1. | Alabama (5-0) | 696 | 22 | 2 |
| 2. | Clemson (5-0) | 630 | 12 | 1 |
| 3. | Ohio State (5-0) | 608 | 5 | 5 |
| 4. | Georgia (4-0) | 606 | 1 | 3 |
| 5. | LSU (4-0) | 604 | 4 | 4 |
| 6. | Oklahoma (4-0) | 544 | 1 | 6 |
| 7. | Auburn (5-0) | 485 | 1 | 7 |
| 8. | Wisconsin (4-0) | 398 | 8 | |
| 9. | Florida (5-0) | 319 | 9 | |
| 10. | Notre Dame (3-1) | 308 | 11 | |
| 11. | Texas (3-1) | 276 | 10 | |
| 12. | Penn State (4-0) | 254 | 13 | |
| 13. | Oregon (3-1) | 206 | 12 | |
| 14. | Iowa (4-0) | 113 | 14 | |
| 15. | Washington (4-1) | 70 | N/A | |
| 16. | Boise State (4-0) | 59 | 16 |
OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Utah (32), Michigan (10), Texas A&M (7), UCF (5), Arizona State (5), Oklahoma State (3), Iowa State (3), Memphis (3), Baylor (3), Michigan State (2), California (2), Wake Forest (2), SMU (2), Minnesota (1).
ABOUT THE FWAA-NFF SUPER 16 POLL: The FWAA-NFF Super 16 Poll was established at the conclusion of the 2013 season by long-time partners, the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and the National Football Foundation (NFF). Voters rank the top 16 teams in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, and the results will be released every Monday of the 2019 season; the individual votes of all members will also be made public. The first regular season poll will be released on Tuesday, Sept. 3 (to account for Labor Day games), and the final poll will be released Sunday, Dec. 8. The pollsters consist of FWAA writers and College Football Hall of Famers who were selected to create a balanced-geographical perspective. The poll utilizes a program designed by Sports Systems to compile the rankings.
ABOUT THE FWAA: The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization founded in 1941, consists of more than 1,300 men and women who cover college football. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include gameday operations, major awards and its annual All-America team. For more information visit www.footballwriters.com.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION & COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME: Founded in 1947 with early leadership from General Douglas MacArthur, legendary Army coach Earl “Red” Blaik and immortal journalist Grantland Rice, The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame is a non-profit educational organization that runs programs designed to use the power of amateur football in developing scholarship, citizenship and athletic achievement in young people. Learn more at www.footballfoundation.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @NFFNetwork.
The Fifth Down 