College football top 25 rankings for Week 3: Georgia, Texas on collision course in SEC

Did we all have the wrong SEC game circled?

The immediate focus for most college football fans was on September 28 and the matchup between Georgia and Alabama in a rematch of last year’s SEC championship. But October 19,  when the Bulldogs travel to Darrell K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium to face Texas, might end up being the game that shapes the the College Football Playoff race.

Georgia is a clear No. 1 heading into Week 3 of the college football season. The Bulldogs built on a 34-3 blowout victory against Clemson with a 48-3 victory against Tennessee Tech in Week 2. Through two weeks, quarterback Carson Beck has looked like a top NFL draft prospect, completing over 70 percent of his passes for seven TDs and no interceptions.

Speaking of great QB play, Quinn Ewers and Texas impressed in a 31-12 victory at Michigan in Week 2. The Longhorns look the part of a team that could crash the SEC championship game one year after their first College Football Playoff appearance.

The Ewers vs Beck matchup in October will have massive Heisman Trophy implications.

No. 2 Ohio State shut out Western Michigan 56-0 in Week 2.  The Buckeyes have a very easy schedule to start the season, with now-unranked Iowa being the first real challenge on the schedule in October.

Sporting News Top 25 for Week 3 features five SEC schools in the top 10. Alabama, Ole Miss and Tennessee are 2-0 through two weeks, with Tennessee being perhaps the most impressive team of that group.

Oregon, which survived in a 37-34 shootout against Boise State in Week 2, is ranked No. 5.

And then there is Notre Dame, which plummeted nearly out of the top 25 altogether following a devastating loss at home to Northern Illinois.  The Irish sit at No. 23 and will likely be left out of the College Football Playoffs, even if they somehow manage to win out.

Here is a closer look at The Sporting News top 25 rankings:

Sporting News Top 25 rankings for Week 3

READ MORE: College Football Week 3 Bracketology

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READ MORE: Michigan has an offensive problem