Greg McElroy reveals new Top 25 college football rankings with major change after USF upset of Florida

ESPN analyst Greg McElroy continued to make broad, sweeping changes to his personal weekly Top 25 rankings following another wild Week 2 slate. That included returning his alma mater, Alabama, into the Top 20 just one week after completely dropping them from his rankings following the Crimson Tide’s disappointing season-opening loss at Florida State.

As opposed to the AP and USA Today Coaches polls, McElroy builds his weekly Top 25 rankings from scratch each week, thus explaining the wholesale changes week-to-week. And outside of his No. 1 – the nation’s consensus No. 1 team and defending College Football Playoff national champion Ohio State – every other team in his Top 25 is in a different spot than it was a week ago.

McElroy gave special consideration and elevated teams that registered impressive and convincing Week 2 wins, including bumping up Oregon, Oklahoma and Illinois, while penalizing winning teams that struggled or failed to put the hammer down against lesser competition, such as LSU, Georgia and Clemson.

Check out Greg McElroy’s overhauled weekly Top 25 rankings after Week 2:

1. Ohio State

The reigning national champion Buckeyes certainly look the part in their quest to be the first back-to-back champion since Georgia in 2021-22, especially after dispatching preseason No. 1 Texas in the season-opener. Redshirt freshman QB Julian Sayin has five passing touchdowns in his first two starts, including a near-perfect 18-of-19 effort Saturday in a 70-0 rout of overmatched Grambling.

McElroy: “They continue to have the No. 1 strength of record. Their win against Texas, I think, is the best win in college football (this season) and going on an absolutely demolishing their Week 2 opponent only reinforces their No. 1 status.”

2. Oregon (+3)

Despite replacing its QB1 for the third consecutive season, the Ducks’ high-powered offense hasn’t missed a beat with redshirt sophomore Dante Moore at quarterback. The former UCLA transfer and five-star recruit put on a clinic Saturday in leading Oregon to a 69-3 rout of the Big 12’s Oklahoma State, as the Ducks have outscored its competition 128-16 through two weeks.

McElroy: “They had the most impressive win of Week 2, just a complete record-setting blowout of a team in the Power Four. … The quarterback (Moore) was a question mark coming into the season, and I think he’s a legitimate strength.”

3. LSU (-1)

A week after impressing with a 17-10 season-opening road win at Clemson, LSU’s 23-7 victory over in-state Louisiana Tech on Saturday was a bit of a disappointment for McElroy, and he dropped them a spot because of it. Of course, the real test comes in Saturday’s SEC opener against Florida, which is reeling after losing to its own in-state rival, South Florida, on a last-second field goal.

McElroy: “I’ve now dropped them down one spot (because of) an uninspired offensive performance a little bit against a lesser opponent in Louisiana Tech. … The other thing that affects LSU evaluation is Clemson didn’t really look that good Week 2 against the Troy Trojans.”

4. Miami (+2)

The Hurricanes continue to look like the class of the ACC two weeks into the regular season, especially after outdueling last season’s national runner-up Notre Dame, 27-24, in the Week 1. Former Georgia transfer QB Carson Beck is back to his 2023 gunslinging ways and looks every part the player that many had NFL Draft experts projecting him to go No. 1 overall before the 2024 season.

McElroy: “They were the only team in the Top 6 last week that just went out and took care of business. … They have USF this week too, by the way, which could only strengthen what they have on their schedule because USF has gone out and done a really nice job.”

5. Oklahoma (+9)

The Sooners entered the 2025 season as a bit of a mystery given its offseason coaching and roster overhaul, especially when it comes to the offense. But Oklahoma’s Washington State imports — QB John Mateer and OC Ben Arbuckle — have more than impressed, especially in Saturday’s 24-13 win over No. 15 Michigan in which Mateer combined for 344 total yards and 3 touchdowns.

McElroy: “A dominant, resume-defining victory and the only first ranked matchup of the entire season. … Very few teams with a better win, very few teams that can beat you in as many ways as Oklahoma can beat you through the first two weeks of the season.”

6. Penn State (-3)

Here’s where McElroy started to penalize Top 10 teams for less-than-impressive performances in Week 2 wins over inferior teams, including the Nittany Lions’ 34-0 rout of Florida International on Saturday. Despite McElroy’s critique, Penn State still has arguably college football’s most talented roster chalk-full of future NFL talent.

McElroy: “Their strength of schedule is embarrassing. … There’s still more in the tank for Penn State and I think they’re kind of playing with their food a little bit. But I want to see a four-quarter performance from Penn State.”

7. Georgia (-3)

After a strong showing in the opener against Marshall, the Bulldogs offense looked out of sorts despite putting up 421 yards in a 28-6 home win against FCS-level Austin Peay. First-year starting quarterback Gunner Stockton failed to find the end zone as only four of Georgia’s 11 offensive series resulted in points, while six others ended in a turnover or a punt.

McElroy: “They’re at Tennessee this week, so we’ll learn all we need to know about the Georgia Bulldogs. But I have questions about their pass protection. I have questions about their passing game. I have questions about their offensive creativity.”

8. Texas (-1)

Superstar quarterback Arch Manning appeared to answer a lot of critics from his Week 1 outing vs. Ohio State with five combined touchdowns in Saturday’s 38-7 rout of San Jose State. Still, McElroy wants to the Longhorns establish some consistency on both sides of the ball before it opens SEC play against Florida at the end of September.

McElroy: “I thought it was a strong bounce back performance from Arch Manning. I thought he played much better from Week 1 to Week 2. I still think the ceiling is really high for this unit. I really like what they have on the defensive side.”

9. Florida State (-1)

After skyrocketing up everyone’s Top 25 rankings after manhandling a Top 10-ranked Alabama in the season-opener, McElroy dinged the Seminoles despite a 77-3 blowout against FCS-level East Texas A&M. FSU’s next real test doesn’t come until it hosts Miami in early October, but in the meantime, McElroy is a believer in the ‘Noles.

McElroy: “Very few teams were as dominant as they were last week. … Just watch them. Watch how they execute, watch the level of efficiency. … Florida State is on a mission this year and I’ve loved what I’ve seen so far.”

10. Illinois (+9)

McElroy closes out his personal Top 10 with the fast-rising Fighting Illini after walking into Durham and leaving with a 45-19 dismantling of host Duke, which won nine games in 2024. Illinois senior QB Luke Altmyer certainly looks the part with a Big Ten-leading six passing touchdowns and 513 passing yards through the first two weeks of the season.

McElroy: “I thought they had one of the better wins of the week last week. … I especially like when teams go on the road and handle their business. … That to me displays a killer instinct that’s hard to find from time to time.”

11. Utah (-2)
12. Notre Dame (-2)
13. South Florida (NR)
14. Tennessee (-1)
15. Ole Miss (+7)
16. Auburn (+5)
17. Vanderbilt (NR)
18. South Carolina (-7)
19. USC (-2)
20. Alabama (NR)
21. Iowa State (-5)
22. Clemson (-10)
23. Missouri (NR)
24. Mississippi State (NR)
25. TCU (-1)