AP says bye, bye, Bevo; Coaches hammer Gators

At the top of the AP mountain, Clemson has quickly shoved its way into a crowded room. Oregon running back De'Anthony Thomas - is there anyone faster on the field this year than this kid? - had another highlight weekend, and despite losing Braxton Miller (again), Ohio State rolled.

And, although Alabama looks like it is the clear-cut favorite still, getting 57 first-place votes, the Ducks look like they might be playing the best football in the country at this point.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS TOP 25

What the voters got right: Credit the pollsters, they seem more than willing to let go of preseason preconceived notions and adjust their polls accordingly.  Miami made a nice pair of boots out of the Florida Gators and exploded up to No. 15. (I'm not sure I believe in Miami quite that much, but good on them for getting Al Golden a signature win.) Michigan held serve at home against Notre Dame and was rewarded.

We were all rewarded by USC's 10-7 home choke-job against defensive stalwart Washington State, which dropped Lane Kiffin's Trojans out of the poll.  Dang it. And, voters said see ya, Mack Brown and Texas, which dropped from its No. 15 ranking to right out the door after allowing 550 (!) yards on the ground and 40 points to BYU.

What the voters missed: Not much, really. This week was about cleaning up some early misses, which, as we discussed above, it feels like voters did a pretty solid job of this week. The only thing is that Oregon deserves more first-place votes at this point. But, if you believe in not penalizing winners, then there isn't much to build a case on against the Tide.

Johnny Manziel should sear his name into their hide before they leave: How about this one... Three schools from the Lonestar State are ranked; none of them are Texas. After that performance against the Cougars, it's not steer-crazy to think Texas might not get ranked again this year.

THE USA TODAY COACHES POLL

As for the coaches, South Carolina, Notre Dame and Florida all took tumbles, with Will Muschamp's peers (or their SIDs, anyways) really showing their disapproval for his team's terrible offensive showing.

The interesting team to watch in this group, for me, is Baylor. Unranked a week ago, Art Briles' Bears enter this poll at No. 22 after scoring 69 and 70 points to start the year. Granted, that was against Wofford and Buffalo, but still, Baylor had 56 points at halftime against the Bulls. Yikes.

What the coaches got right: Like the AP, the coaches were none too impressed with neither Texas nor USC, and both were excused from the lists of teams that matter. Big question here is how many smiles broke as voters erased Lane Kiffin from the Top 25. (I'd bet the majority.) I'm a little surprised at how far both the Irish and Florida fell, but it's hard to argue against it.

What the coaches missed: Actually, maybe the coaches know something the rest of us don't in regard to giving the Big 12 some credit. It's minor and buried down in the "others" category, but both Texas Tech and Kansas State received votes here, where neither did in the AP. That puts seven Big 12 teams in the top 42, which isn't flashy by any stretch, but in a perceived down year, isn't bad either. It bears watching.

Go ahead and book that flight: Oregon. Seriously, it might take a West Coast All-Star team to compete with the Ducks this year. I know Stanford is in the mix in the polls, but Oregon looks every bit the part already.