Saturday’s win over USC had a strange impact on Tennessee’s national rankings. The Vols went into the game ranked 16th by the media and 21st by the coaches. But with the AP now including Big Ten and PAC-12 teams in the voting, (the coaches returned those teams to their poll last week) the Vols were dropped five spots by the writers to 21st. They moved up a spot in the coaches voting. Florida, USC’s opponent this weekend, moved up to third in each poll after winning at Ole Miss. Clemson maintained its hold on the top spot in each ranking by a wide margin over Alabama. The Tigers received 55 first place votes from the media, four less than last week. Georgia and Notre Dame complete the top five.
AP Ranking for September 27th
| Rank | School | Votes | Prev |
| 1 | Clemson (2-0) | 1542 (55) | 1 |
| 2 | Alabama (1-0) | 1473 (3) | 2 |
| 3 | Florida (1-0) | 1324 | 5 |
| 4 | Georgia (1-0) | 1310 | 4 |
| 5 | Notre Dame (2-0) | 1231 | 7 |
| 6 | Ohio State (0-0) | 1169 (4) | NR |
| 7 | Auburn (1-0) | 1133 | 8 |
| 8 | Miami (FL) (3-0) | 1045 | 12 |
| 9 | Texas (2-0) | 862 | 8 |
| 10 | Penn State (0-0) | 840 | NR |
| 11 | UCF (2-0) | 743 | 13 |
| 12 | North Carolina (1-0) | 734 | 11 |
| 13 | Texas A&M (1-0) | 705 | 10 |
| 14 | Oregon (0-0) | 651 | NR |
| 15 | Cincinnati (2-0) | 646 | 14 |
| 16 | Mississippi State (1-0) | 590 | NR |
| 17 | Oklahoma State (2-0) | 555 | 15 |
| 18 | Oklahoma (1-1) | 535 | 3 |
| 19 | Wisconsin (0-0) | 510 | NR |
| 20 | LSU (0-1) | 401 | 6 |
| 21 | Tennessee (1-0) | 377 | 16 |
| 22 | BYU (2-0) | 295 | 18 |
| 23 | Michigan (0-0) | 277 | NR |
| 24 | Pittsburgh (3-0) | 248 | 21 |
| 25 | Memphis (1-0) | 196 | 17 |
Coaches Ranking for September 27th
| Rank | School | Votes | Prev |
| 1 | Clemson (2-0) | 1194 (42) | 1 |
| 2 | Alabama (1-0) | 1144 (4) | 2 |
| 3 | Florida (1-0) | 1038 | 6 |
| 4 | Georgia (1-0) | 1006 | 3 |
| 5 | Notre Dame (2-0) | 971 | 7 |
| 6 | Ohio State (0-0) | 890 (2) | 10 |
| 7 | Auburn (1-0) | 889 | 8 |
| 8 | Miami (FL) (3-0) | 795 | 14 |
| 9 | Texas (2-0) | 745 | 9 |
| 10 | Penn State (0-0) | 589 | 13 |
| 11 | North Carolina (1-0) | 578 | 12 |
| 12 | UCF (2-0) | 577 | 15 |
| 13 | Texas A&M (1-0) | 561 | 11 |
| 14 | Mississippi State (1-0) | 492 | NR |
| 15 | Cincinnati (2-0) | 480 | 16 |
| 16 | Oklahoma (1-1) | 473 | 3 |
| 17 | LSU (0-1) | 445 | 5 |
| 18 | Wisconsin (0-0) | 438 | 17 |
| 19 | Oklahoma State (2-0) | 374 | 18 |
| 20 | Tennessee (1-0) | 321 | 21 |
| 21 | Michigan (0-0) | 271 | 19 |
| 22 | BYU (2-0) | 260 | 23 |
| 23 | Virginia Tech (1-0) | 215 | 24 |
| 24 | Memphis (1-0) | 210 | 20 |
| 25 | Pittsburgh (3-0) | 179 | NR |
