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Kirk Herbstreit releases updated Top 5 following Week 8
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There’s been some serious reshuffling in Kirk Herbstreit’s rankings after another major upset in college football.
Herbie was on the scene in West Lafayette as Purdue downed No. 2 Ohio State 49-20, giving the Buckeyes their first loss of the season. It’s now the second straight week in which the second-ranked team has gone down, after Georgia suffered a loss to LSU a week ago.
Needless to say, Herbstreit’s rankings took a bit of a hit. But that’s why the popular ESPN analyst provides new updates every week.
Following the conclusion of Week 8, Herbstreit provided his most recent top five list, which includes a new B1G team. Here’s a look at the rankings:
- Alabama
- Clemson
- LSU
- Notre Dame
- Michigan
Yes, after a 21-7 road win over No. 24 Michigan, Herbstreit has placed Jim Harbaugh and the Wolverines in the top five. They are now the only B1G team with an unblemished conference record and sit alone atop the B1G East standings.
While Michigan is currently on the outside of the College Football Playoff picture according to these rankings, you’d have to like the chances it would earn one of the four bids should it win out. The Wolverines still have Penn State and Ohio State on the schedule. And if they took care of business, the Wolverines would also add a win over the top B1G West team and a conference title to their resumé.
There’s still plenty of football to be played, but Michigan has creeped into the top five. A few more big wins and it might sneak into one of those four spots.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB