Oklahoma State Football: Cowboys Move Up into the Top Four in the Polls

The Oklahoma State football team has finally moved up into the top four — of the polls at least. After a grinding, come from behind 35-31 win over Iowa State in Ames on Saturday, the Cowboys moved up to No. 4 in both the Associated Press top 25 poll, and the coaches poll. OSU slid in to the No. 4 spot that was vacated by Baylor, who fell to No. 10 in both polls after losing to OU last night in Waco by a score of 44-34. The Sooners moved up to No. 7 after previously being at No. 12.

The Cowboys have steadily climbed in the polls nearly every week since they broke into the rankings shortly after conference play began, and now sit in the top four for the first time all season. It remains to be seen as to how these rankings and general committee perception will affect Oklahoma State on Tuesday night when the newest edition of the College Football Playoff rankings are released. The Cowboys are currently ranked No. 8, with both Stanford and Baylor above them. With Baylor’s loss, combined with Stanford’s loss to Oregon, it’s safe to say that OSU will be at least No. 6, barring some more inconsistent nonsense from the committee. It’s actually a strong possibility, given the Cowboys’ struggle against Iowa State.

Meanwhile, Iowa moved from No. 8 to No. 6 in the polls after edging out a win over Minnesota at home. The Hawkeyes were ranked fifth in last week’s CFP rankings, to the dismay of many. Clemson, Ohio State, and one-loss Alabama round out the top three, respectively, with Notre Dame right behind the Cowboys at No. 5 after a 28-7 win over Wake Forest. The Fighting Irish were ranked just ahead of OSU at No. 4 in ESPN’s power rankings.

North Carolina and Michigan State matched OU for the biggest jumps this week. The Tar Heels moved up five spots to No. 12 after roughing up Miami (FL) 51-29 at home, while the Spartans moved up to No. 9 after taking down Maryland 24-7 at home.

LSU and Utah both fell eight spots to No. 17 and No. 18, respectively, after losses to Arkansas and Arizona. UCLA and Mississippi State both dropped out of the AP rankings, along with Temple and Memphis, which leaves Houston and Navy as the two remaining non Power-5 teams remaining in the poll. The two teams are both in the American Athletic Conference, which has had four different teams ranked this season.

You can view the AP poll in it’s entirety here.