Texas Tech No. 12 in weekly AP Poll

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Texas Tech dropped one spot in the weekly AP Poll, now ranked No. 12.

Florida climbed 13 spots, to No. 8, following the Gators’ 52-28 defeat of then-No. 4 Ole Miss. BYU, LSU and Texas Tech all slipped one ranking, to No. 10 to No. 12 respectively.

Tech remains at No. 10 in the weekly US LBM Coaches Poll released Sunday.

The AP and Coaches polls are released weekly, the first College Football Playoff rankings will be released Tuesday, Nov. 3.

AP Poll released Sept. 27: No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Georgia, No. 3 Notre Dame, No. 4 Miami (FL), No. 5 Ohio State, No. 6 Indiana, No. 7 Alabama, No, 8 Florida, No. 9 Ole Miss, No. 10 BYU, No. 11 LSU, No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 13 Utah, No. 14 Iowa, No. 15 Oregon

No. 16 Mississippi State, No. 17 Tennessee, No. 18 USC, No. 19 Oklahoma State, No. 20 Houston, No. 21 SMU, No. 22 Boise State, No. 23 UCLA, No. 24 Kentucky, No. 25 Missouri

Texas Tech defeated Sam Houston 49-14, to move to 4-0 on the season, and stretch its home winning streak to 11 games. This is the longest home winning streak since 12 games in 2007 to 2009.

According to Tech Athletics, this is the 12th time Tech football has started a season 4-0. It’s also the first time to start 4-0 in consecutive seasons since 2011-2013.

Back-to-back pick-sixes

Texas Tech linebacker Austin Romaine (15) intercepts pass over Sam Houston State’s Brett Holloway during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Lubbock, Texas. (AP Photo/Chase Seabolt)(Chase Seabolt | AP Photo/Chase Seabolt)

Texas Tech linebacker Austin Romaine returned two interceptions for touchdowns in the first 15 seconds of the second quarter against the Bearkats, which gave the Red Raiders a 21-0 lead. This was also the first time since 2013 when a college football player returned an interception for a touchdown on two consecutive plays.

“On the first one, we had the guard pull, so I was getting over and down and the (middle) linebacker was fitting Brock Golwas and he batted it straight up, and I saw the ball in the air and went up and got it,” Romaine said. “The second one, when the running back went to the field and they had four to that side, I had to push that way and I saw that slant coming across and kind of ball was right there.”

The Texas Tech defense celebrates a pick six by linebacker Austin Romaine (15) during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Sam Houston State, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Lubbock, Texas. (AP Photo/Chase Seabolt)(Chase Seabolt | AP Photo/Chase Seabolt)

First half mistakes

Later in the second, there were several frustrating moments for the Red Raiders. This includes three turnovers, and a blown coverage of a 52-yard touchdown pass. The Red Raiders came out of the locker room and ended the game on a 28-0 run.

This was the first time the Tech defense shut out its opponent in the second half since the Big 12 Championship Game against BYU.

Texas Tech linebacker Austin Romaine (15) returns an interception for a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Sam Houston State, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Lubbock, Texas. (AP Photo/Chase Seabolt)(Chase Seabolt | AP Photo/Chase Seabolt)

Texas Tech head football coach Joey McGuire says he’s proud of Saturday’s win, as long as the team continues to cut down on mistakes.

“I’m going to honor the victory, I’m excited about being 4-0, I’m proud of these guys, how they came out in the second-half. I told them and it happened again, we’ve got way too many self-inflicted wounds in the first half,” McGuire said.

“That’s why we’re playing close games, that’s why we’re allowing people to be in the game or why we’re allowing it to be a closer game than it should be.”

Tech is now 9-3 under Coach McGuire in games that kick off at 11 a.m., according to Tech Athletics. The Red Raiders have won eight straight regular season games in the early slot, stretching back to the 2023 season.

Up next

Tech is on the road next week, facing Colorado (0-1 Big 12, 2-2 overall). Kickoff is 6:30 p.m. CT at Folsom Field. You can watch the game on FOX34.

Florida rides win over Rebels to No. 8 ranking in AP Top 25; Texas, Georgia, Notre Dame top 3 again

Florida made a massive jump in The Associated Press Top 25 on Sunday and landed in the top 10 for the first time in five years while four new teams joined the rankings in a major shuffle.

The Gators’ 24-point win over then-No. 4 Mississippi under first-year coach Jon Sumrall on Saturday earned them a 13-rung promotion to No. 8, their highest ranking since 2020 and first top-10 appearance since 2021.

Texas, Georgia and Notre Dame continued to hold the top three spots, Miami was a season-high No. 4 and Ohio State moved up two spots to No. 5. Indiana, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi and BYU completed the top 10.

The Longhorns received 62 first-place votes from the media voting panel, four more than last week, after they held off Tennessee 20-17 in their first road game.

Georgia, coming off a convincing win over Oklahoma and outscoring opponents by an average of 41.5 points per game, got six first-place votes, double its number last week. Miami and Indiana each received one first-place vote.

Mississippi State moved up eight spots to No. 16, its highest ranking in four years, for beating Missouri at home. Oregon was up five spots to No. 15 after winning on the road against Southern California. Houston also moved up five spots to No. 20 after winning at Georgia Southern.

Iowa earned its highest ranking since 2021, at No. 14, for knocking off Michigan on the road on the final play of the game.

Seven ranked teams lost in Week 4 and four dropped out of the poll. Penn State took the biggest fall, going from No. 13 to unranked after losing to Wisconsin at home.

In and out

No. 19 Oklahoma State, which won at West Virginia for its third straight victory after losing 21 straight against Bowl Subdivision opponents, is ranked for the first time in two years.

No. 22 Boise State of the Pac-12 is the first Group of Six team to crack the Top 25 this season. The Broncos’ 25-point win at Western Michigan was their third straight win after a narrow loss at Oregon. They hadn’t been ranked since the 2025 preseason poll.

No. 23 UCLA is 4-0 for the first time in four years after a 51-point road win over Maryland and is ranked for the first time in three years.

No. 24 Kentucky followed its win at Texas A&M with an easy victory at South Alabama to earn its first ranking since 2023.

In addition to Penn State, Michigan, Louisville and Texas A&M fell out of the Top 25.

Poll points

— Florida’s rise was the biggest since LSU leapt 14 spots, from No. 25 to No. 11, on Sept. 4, 2018.

— The Big 12’s five ranked teams are the most since the conference had the same number ranked Oct. 26, 2025. It’s just the sixth time in the 2020s the Big 12 has had that many in the Top 25.

— Georgia is in the Top 25 for the 700th time, which is 10th-most all-time.

— Alabama made its 300th straight appearance in the Top 25, the longest active streak and nearly double that of the next team (Georgia, 153).

Conference call

SEC (10 ranked teams): No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Georgia, No. 7 Alabama, No. 8 Florida, No. 9 Mississippi, No. 11 LSU, No. 16 Mississippi State, No. 17 Tennessee, No. 24 Kentucky, No. 25 Missouri.

Big Ten (6): No. 5 Ohio State, No. 6 Indiana, No. 14 Iowa, No. 15 Oregon, No. 18 USC, No. 23 UCLA).

Big 12 (5): No. 10 BYU, No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 13 Utah, No. 19 Oklahoma State, No. 20 Houston.

ACC (2): No. 4 Miami, No. 21 SMU.

Pac-12 (1): No. 22 Boise State.

Independent (1): No. 3 Notre Dame.

Ranked vs. ranked

No. 5 Ohio State at No. 14 Iowa: Buckeyes were ranked No. 3 when they last visited Kinnick Stadium, in 2017, and the 55-24 loss killed their playoff hopes.

No. 7 Alabama at No. 16 Mississippi State: Crimson Tide have won 16 straight in the series, and most of the games haven’t been close.

No. 8 Florida at No. 25 Missouri: Tigers have won last two meetings in Columbia, on a field goal with 5 seconds left in 2023 and on a 2-point conversion pass in overtime in 2021.

___

Tags: