Week 8 Upsets and Near Misses Reshape the College Football Top 25

Week 8 of the college football season followed an already chaotic Week 7 with more upsets, near misses and high-stakes finishes. According to ESPN Research, top-10 teams have lost 11 times over the past three weeks, which ties the most in any three-week stretch of an AP Poll regular season. The last time it happened was 2007.

The upsets came early and late. LaNorris Sellers led South Carolina to a come-from-behind win that damaged Tennessee's College Football Playoff hopes. Texas Tech lost 34-27 at Cincinnati, and USC managed only seven points at Wisconsin coming out of a bye week. BYU, which had climbed to No. 2 in the AP Poll after beating Notre Dame, lost in double overtime at UCF only a week later.

Other contenders survived by thin margins. Indiana beat Michigan 13-6 in overtime, Alabama used fourth-quarter touchdowns to get past Texas A&M, and Boise State needed a late surge against Washington State. Texas, with Arch Manning at quarterback, held off a strong Ole Miss comeback. Utah erased a 10-0 halftime deficit to beat Houston 21-13, and New Mexico topped North Dakota State in a meeting of Group of 6 postseason hopefuls.

Miami remained No. 1 after a 52-23 win over Pitt. Malachi Toney set a school record with 16 catches for 194 yards. The Hurricanes still showed some trouble in pass protection, allowing three sacks of Darian Mensah, and their secondary gave up 334 passing yards, most of it after the game was decided. Miami visits North Carolina next, with Notre Dame coming Nov. 7.

Ohio State and Georgia were both idle. The Buckeyes used the break to rework their offense without quarterback Julian Sayin, who is out indefinitely with an elbow injury. True freshman Luke Fahey, who beat out Tavien St. Clair for the backup job in the preseason, is expected to move around the pocket. Ohio State plays at USC on Saturday. Georgia, coming off a 27-24 home loss to Auburn on Oct. 17, is trying to get healthy and rebuild its running game before facing Florida in Atlanta and then traveling to Ole Miss.

BYU dropped to No. 4. The Cougars have been without running back LJ Martin, averaged 3.2 yards per carry at UCF, and saw quarterback Bear Bachmeier complete 16 of 32 passes. Notre Dame, also off this week, is still dealing with the aftermath of its loss to BYU, after Big 12 officials admitted a mistake in not giving the Irish one more chance to win.

Elsewhere in the top 10, UCLA beat Michigan State 28-10 behind 245 rushing yards and three takeaways, bringing its season total to 22, second most in the country. Kentucky beat Vanderbilt 34-17 for its sixth straight win and clinched only its third winning SEC record since 1977. Utah, 7-0 with the nation's longest winning streak, is now viewed as the Big 12 favorite after Texas Tech and BYU both lost.

LSU rose to 12th after outscoring Mississippi State and Auburn by a combined 69-17. Sam Leavitt passed for 385 yards and three touchdowns against Auburn. Texas moved up to 13th despite committing 14 penalties and three Manning turnovers, while Ole Miss fell to 14th after Trinidad Chambliss threw three interceptions. Houston lost its chance against Utah when Conner Weigman fumbled at the Utah 23-yard line with 2:15 left.

Texas Tech faces a difficult road after allowing a season-high 255 rushing yards and committing 12 penalties. Booster Cody Campbell said, "There is no excuse or reason to lose a game like this." The Red Raiders next play Arizona, West Virginia and Oklahoma State. Northwestern improved to 6-1 with a win over Rutgers, with Aidan Chiles accounting for 302 yards and three touchdowns, setting up a stretch against Oregon, Iowa and Ohio State.