Clemson moved up five spots to No. 19 in the latest USA Today Coaches Poll. Georgia Tech jumped to No. 12 this week.
| RANK | TEAM | RECORD | POINTS | 1st Place Votes | Prev | CHANGE | Hi/Low |
| 1 | Alabama | 11-1 | 1507 | 28 | 1 | 0 | 1/7 |
| 2 | Florida State | 12-0 | 1489 | 28 | 2 | 0 | 1/2 |
| 3 | Oregon | 11-1 | 1458 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3/11 |
| 4 | TCU | 10-1 | 1339 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4/NR |
| 5 | Baylor | 10-1 | 1300 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 3/13 |
| 6 | Ohio State | 11-1 | 1269 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 6/20 |
| 7 | Michigan State | 10-2 | 1136 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 5/13 |
| 8 | Arizona | 10-2 | 1050 | 0 | 12 | 4 | 8/NR |
| 9 | Kansas State | 9-2 | 1037 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 9/25 |
| 10 | Mississippi State | 10-2 | 979 | 0 | 4 | -6 | 1/NR |
| 11 | Wisconsin | 10-2 | 955 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 11/NR |
| 12 | Georgia Tech | 10-2 | 867 | 0 | 15 | 3 | 12/NR |
| 13 | Missouri | 10-2 | 820 | 0 | 17 | 4 | 13/NR |
| 14 | Ole Miss | 9-3 | 709 | 0 | 19 | 5 | 3/19 |
| 15 | Georgia | 9-3 | 590 | 0 | 9 | -6 | 6/17 |
| 16 | Oklahoma | 8-3 | 582 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 3/24 |
| 17 | UCLA | 9-3 | 517 | 0 | 10 | -7 | 7/NR |
| 18 | Arizona State | 9-3 | 486 | 0 | 13 | -5 | 8/24 |
| 19 | Clemson | 9-3 | 439 | 0 | 24 | 5 | 16/NR |
| 20 | Louisville | 9-3 | 395 | 0 | 23 | 3 | 20/NR |
| 21 | Auburn | 8-4 | 361 | 0 | 16 | -5 | 2/21 |
| 22 | Boise State | 10-2 | 253 | 0 | 25 | 3 | 22/NR |
| 23 | Nebraska | 9-3 | 166 | 0 | 27 | 4 | 11/NR |
| 24 | LSU | 8-4 | 87 | 0 | 26 | 2 | 8/NR |
| 25 | Minnesota | 8-4 | 86 | 0 | 22 | -3 | 22/NR |