Unbeaten Penn State climbs into top 10 in AP college football poll

Fresh off a sloppy victory against Northwestern, Penn State (5-0) climbed one spot to No. 10 on Sunday in the Associated Press college football poll.

Alabama reclaimed No. 1 from Georgia in one of the closest votes in the recent years, and six teams — including Kansas — made their season debut in the top 25.

The Nittany Lions have room for improvement after a 17-7 home win on Saturday that included five turnovers. Coach James Franklin included quarterback Sean Clifford in that group after the redshirt senior completed 10 of 20 passes for 140 yards and a touchdown with one interception.

“Obviously, that’s not up to the standards that he normally plays at,” Franklin said. “The one interception, and there could have been a couple of others. But overall, he did a great job in the run game and did a great job managing situations and did a great job managing the clock. ... I don’t think this was one of Sean’s best games. And just like I am for the running backs, I’m not going to allow the weather to be an excuse.”

After a bye week, the Nittany Lions will visit No. 4 Michigan on Oct. 15.

The Crimson Tide received 25 first-place votes and 1,523 points in the media voting, two points more than the Bulldogs. Georgia received 28 first-place votes to become the first team since Alabama in November 2019 to have the most first-place votes but not be No. 1.

Ohio State remained third, but the Buckeyes also gained some ground on the top two, getting 10 first-place votes.

» READ MORE: No. 11 Penn State slushes past Big Ten foe Northwestern 17-7 in a messy day at Happy Valley

The Crimson Tide started the season at No. 1, but the defending national champion Bulldogs took the top spot away from their Southeastern Conference rivals after Week 2 when Alabama needed a late field goal to beat Texas.

The Bulldogs remain unbeaten but needed a fourth-quarter rally to beat four-touchdown underdog Missouri on Saturday night. Earlier in the day, the Tide managed to pull away from Arkansas in the second half without Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young.

Young sprained his throwing shoulder in the first half and missed most of the game in Fayetteville, Ark.

Michigan, No. 5 Clemson, and No. 6 Southern California all won and held their places this week, though the Wolverines and Tigers are now separated by just three points.

No. 7 Oklahoma State, followed by Tennessee, Mississippi and Penn State, round out the top 10.

The rest of the AP top 25 got a major overhaul after 10 ranked teams lost, five to unranked opponents. That cleared the way for seven teams to move into the rankings this week, most notably No. 19 Kansas.

The Jayhawks are ranked for the first time since Oct. 18, 2009, which was the longest drought for a team currently in a Power Five conference.

This article contains information from the Associated Press.