HollyWood’s NCAA Top 25 – Week 3

Image: Josh Boland/MLive.com

Just three weeks in, the Hollywood Top 25 has already been flipped on its head. A few upsets and a few big games, here’s how the Top 25 looks entering week 3.

1. Georgia(-)
2. Ohio State(-)
3. Texas(-)
4. Ole Miss(+2)
5. Alabama(-1)
6. Penn State(+1)
7. Tennessee(+3)
8. Miami(+1)
9. Missouri(+3)
10. Oklahoma(+1)
11. USC(+6)
12. Arizona(+3)
13. Notre Dame(-8)
14. Oklahoma State(+2)
15. Oregon(-2)
16. Michigan(-8)
17. Lousiville(+3)
18. Utah(+3)
19. Kansas State(+4)
20. Clemson(+4)
21. Iowa State(NR)
22. LSU(+3)
23. Nebraska(NR)
24. Washington(NR)
25. Illinois(NR)

NR=Not Previously Ranked

First Team Out: Texas A&M

Teams Dropping Out: Iowa, Kansas, NC State, Auburn

We had a few key games and a few upset, so this week’s board was moving. For starters, A week after I hyped up their A&M win, Notre Dame showed up unprepared. So unprepared, they lost to a school that had never beaten a Top 5 team in program history.

Video Courtesy: NBC Sports

Don’t let that be a knock on NIU, though; they played exceptionally well and seized the opportunities Notre Dame Gave them late in the game.

As for Notre Dame, the loss highlights Irish fans’ frustrations with Marcus Freeman just a week after everyone, including myself, sang his praises. The fact is, Notre Dame was not prepared for this game. They overlooked NIU; that’s a recipe for disaster. The Fighting Irish can’t lose again if they hope to make the 12-team playoff.

Down Goes the Defending Champions

Michigan vs. Texas was one of my most anticipated matchups this week. However, it was noticeable early on who the better team was.

Video Courtesy: CFB On Fox

As you can see, Texas jumped in front early and never looked back. The offense was stellar behind Quinn Ewers, and the defense was ready for nearly everything the Wolverines threw at them. This game was not particularly close at any point; it was total Texas Longhorn domination. Michigan’s performance has me skeptical for the rest of their season. For now, they’ll remain inside the Top 25.

Other Upsets

We had a few more upsets this week. Illinois took down Kansas in a very close game, bumping them into my Top 25. Illinois’s defense was the key, as they intercepted the highly touted Jalon Daniels three times. With that said, The Fighting Illini have impressed me so far this season.

Iowa fell to rival Iowa State in a game that looked all Hawkeyes early on.

Video Courtesy: ESPN College Football

I thought this was over by halftime, but Iowa State came out of the locker room swinging. They quickly turned a relatively easy game for Iowa into a dogfight that the Hawkeyes couldn’t handle. Iowa State shredded the Hawkeye secondary multiple times, leading to their second win over Iowa since 2015.

Colorada Vs. Nebraska

This was another game I had my eye on, and like the Michigan game, this was not relatively close. The Nebraska defense started early, and they hit Shedeur Sanders a ton. The last time these teams played, Cornhusker DT Ty Robinson was ejected for targeting. He said after the game, “I knew this year they were gonna know who I was, all 60 minutes.” Robinson and the rest of the Cornhusker defensive line were far too big a challenge for Deion’s Buffaloes. Now that Nebraska has a viable quarterback, this team could make a surprise run this season.

What does Week 3 bring?

Lots of great matchups are coming this week. ASU kicks things off Thursday night as they try to go 3-0 to start the season and possibly sneak into the Top 25. Boston College and Missouri meet this week while Alabama travels to Wisconsin. Oregon plays Oregon State; Texas A&M battles Florida, and the list continues. There’s plenty of good college football action coming up this weekend.

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Mason Wood is a Writer, Football Director, and Editor in Chief for Back Sports Page. Based out of Gilbert, Arizona, Mason mainly works on football and motorsports content while working on other sports, such as Basketball and WWE. He was a co-host of BSP motorsports podcast Coming to the Line. He currently does BSP’s NFL Power Rankings every Wednesday at 3 p.m. EST and NCAA Top 25 every Thursday at 3 p.m. EST. You can check out more articles by Mason Wood here!