While The Associated Press Top 25 had a new No. 3 team, the two polls that figure in the Bowl Championship Series formula agreed Sunday: Ohio State trailed only the top two teams through games of Nov. 16.
No. 1 Alabama retained its stranglehold in the Interactive College Football Poll. Florida State remained No. 2. Both schools held their ground in the USA Today coaches poll as well as the AP Top 25.
Baylor moved into third in the AP rankings, but the Harris Poll agreed with coaches in placing the Buckeyes in that slot.
| The Top 25 teams in the Harris Interactive College Football Poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Nov. 17, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote and previous ranking: | |||
| Rk. Team | Record | Pts | Pvs |
| 1. Alabama (100) | 10-0 | 2,620 | 1 |
| 2. Florida State (5) | 10-0 | 2,517 | 2 |
| 3. Ohio State | 10-0 | 2,375 | 3 |
| 4. Baylor | 9-0 | 2,343 | 4 |
| 5. Oregon | 9-1 | 2,102 | 6 |
| 6. Clemson | 9-1 | 2,019 | 7 |
| 7. Auburn | 10-1 | 1,967 | 9 |
| 8. Missouri | 9-1 | 1,919 | 8 |
| 9. Oklahoma State | 9-1 | 1,660 | 11 |
| 10. Texas A&M | 8-2 | 1,626 | 10 |
| 11. Stanford | 8-2 | 1,584 | 5 |
| 12. South Carolina | 8-2 | 1,459 | 12 |
| 13. Michigan State | 9-1 | 1,269 | 15 |
| 14. Fresno State | 9-0 | 1,126 | 13 |
| 15. UCLA | 8-2 | 1,110 | 16 |
| 16. Louisville | 9-1 | 1,010 | 14 |
| 17. LSU | 7-3 | 880 | 17 |
| 18. Northern Illinois | 10-0 | 864 | 18 |
| 19. Wisconsin | 8-2 | 794 | 21 |
| 20. Central Florida | 8-1 | 793 | 19 |
| 21. Oklahoma | 8-2 | 746 | 20 |
| 22. Arizona State | 8-2 | 570 | 22 |
| 23. USC | 8-3 | 202 | NR |
| 24. Duke | 8-2 | 187 | NR |
| 25. Minnesota | 8-2 | 183 | NR |
| Other teams receiving votes: Mississippi 110, Georgia 37, Cincinnati 14, Texas 14, Miami (Fla.) 8, Nebraska 6, East Carolina 3, Notre Dame 3, Michigan 2, Ball State 1, Louisiana-Lafayette 1, Texas Tech 1 | |||
Contributing: Associated Press