College Football Rankings: Kirk Herbstreit updates top-five with new No. 1 team after Week 8

We’ve entered the second half of the college football season with the results coming out of Week 8 on Saturday. So, with that, Kirk Herbstreit has provided the latest update to his top-five ranking.

On the latest episode of ‘Nonstop’ on Monday, Herbstreit released his new top-five, as did his co-host in Joey Galloway. It included another flip of his top-two teams, and two new additions to it altogether at fourth and fifth.

Here was that new-top five coming out of Week 8 for Herbstreit this morning:

1. Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio State returned to the top-spot this week for Herbstreit after a 34-0 shutout win at Wisconsin, moving them to 7-0 (4-0), winning by an average margin of 30.6 points behind the nation’s top defense paired with an offense that continues to improve, going into their second bye in Columbus. He has gone back and forth the past two weeks between the Buckeyes and Hoosiers, but went with O-H this time around for the type of consistency they’ve shown game in and game out this fall.

“I flipped Ohio State to one,” said Herbstreit. “I just think, what put Ohio State at one is just how they, like I just said – it’s so easy to go to Wisconsin and just, 20-13, get out of there alive. And they just don’t ever do it. So, I think the consistency.”

2. Indiana Hoosiers

That, though, is not to discredit IU, who also reached 7-0 (4-0), by an average margin of victory of 32.3 points, on Saturday with a 38-13 win over Michigan State. Herbstreit just has this as an either, or pick, with him going with the Buckeyes this week over the Hoosiers.

“I have Indiana – it’s 1a, 1b, for me, with Indiana and Ohio State,” said Herbstreit.

3. Texas A&M Aggies

Moving up a spot this week for Herbstreit to third was Texas A&M, also still among the undefeateds at 7-0 (4-0). That’s with the Aggies winning 45-42 on the road at Arkansas on Saturday.

They haven’t won in as dominant of fashion as some of these other teams, but rather have won multiple different kinds of games whether it be blowouts and shootouts or close games and grind it out victories. A&M will now try to continue to do just that in two more road games in conference the next three weeks, both of which are currently coming against Top-20 opponents at LSU in Death Valley and at Missouri in CoMo.

4. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Galloway, as well as his son’s, thought Herbstreit was trying to pull a fast one by sneaking in Georgia Tech in fourth. However, he means it with the Yellow Jackets winning 27-18 at Duke, likely their most difficult remaining conference game, to move to 7-0 (4-0), winning by an average margin of over two scores, as well out of the ACC.

“I love Georgia Tech. I love Brent Key. I love Haynes King. I love that team, man,” Herbstreit said. “When I sent it to Jake, and I put GT? Jake responded back, and he responded back and said I need your top-five. I hit him with Ohio State, Indiana, Texas A&M, GT, Alabama. He hits me right back with, did you mean UGA, or you mean Georgia, right? I said no. No. I meant Georgia Tech. They’re at seven, by the way, in the AP. It’s not like they’re 23.”

5. Alabama Crimson Tide

Herbstreit is aware that Alabama is a one-loss team. That said, the Crimson Tide have won six straight now, including four consecutive against Top-20 opponents in the SEC, with the latest being a 37-20 win over No. 11 Tennessee in Tuscaloosa, to earn a spot here in his top-five, as ‘Bama is playing like one of the best teams in the country – as they were expected to be despite the start.

“Everyone else is going to say, ‘They have a loss! How do you do it?!'” Herbstreit exclaimed.