Reported Analysis · AP Football · Week 9
Ohio State Remains Above USC on 60 of 70 Ballots
Every AP voter lowered the Buckeyes after USC's 30–18 win. The Trojans reached all 70 ballots, but only ten voters put them ahead of Ohio State.
USC beat Ohio State 30–18 on Saturday, and every AP voter moved the Buckeyes down. Most still kept them above the team that had just beaten them: 60 of the 70 ranked Ohio State higher in Sunday's poll, with ten putting USC first in that comparison.
Both teams appeared on every ballot. Ohio State fell from No. 2 to No. 11, while USC returned at No. 18 after being left out of the previous Top 25. The seven-place gap between them survived a major change in support for each program.
Ohio State played without injured starting quarterback Julian Sayin. Freshman Luke Fahey made his first career start, throwing for 260 yards, according to the game recap published by USC. The loss left the Buckeyes 6–2 and the Trojans 7–2. USC was itself coming off a 24–7 loss at Wisconsin.
USC won, but Ohio State ranks higher. Large USC and Ohio State marks occupy two colored sides. 60 of 70 AP voters rank Ohio State above USC. November 1, 2026.
| Team | Oct. 25 AP Rank | Nov. 1 AP Rank | Ballot Inclusions | AP Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 2 | 11 | 70 → 70 | 1,681 → 1,049 |
| USC | NR | 18 | 3 → 70 | 7 → 539 |
Every Voter Lowered Ohio State
The Buckeyes lost 632 points, dropping from 1,681 to 1,049. All ten of their first-place votes disappeared. Their median fall on individual ballots was nine places, matching the aggregate drop, although the new placements ranged from fifth to 17th.
The most common placement was 11th, chosen by 20 voters. Twenty-six still kept Ohio State in the top ten, down from all 70 a week earlier. The result was a unanimous downward revision with substantial disagreement about where the Buckeyes belonged afterward.
USC Reaches the Whole Panel
USC's change began with inclusion. Only three voters ranked the Trojans on October 25, giving them seven points. All three raised USC this week, and the other 67 voters added it. Those newly including ballots contributed 505 points; higher placements from the original three supplied another 27. Together, those changes account for USC's 532-point gain to 539.
Under AP scoring, first place is worth 25 points, second 24, and so on through one point for 25th. An unranked team receives no points from that ballot. USC's new inclusions therefore mattered much more than a count of its three returning supporters could show.
The Trojans' placements ranged from 11th to 23rd. Every voter now found room for USC, but none placed it in the top ten. Ohio State retained 26 top-ten votes, helping explain why universal inclusion for both teams still produced very different totals.
The Win Narrows the Gap
The point gap contracted from 1,674 to 510, a reduction of 1,164. That combines Ohio State's lost points and USC's gains; it does not mean those points were transferred directly between the two. Each voter submitted a full ranking of 25 teams.
A season ranking can preserve an order that a recent head-to-head result challenges. Here, the submitted ballots show both a forceful response to the game and a continuing preference for Ohio State. USC ended the weekend with support across the entire panel. Moving above the Buckeyes would require a further change in relative placement, even after the Trojans eliminated every omission.
Sources & Methodology
Poll Behavior compared the October 25 and November 1 AP football editions using the same 70 voter IDs. Every ballot contains 25 teams. Direct order counts use all 70 ballots, which rank both teams on November 1. Median movement uses Ohio State's 70 paired ranked placements. USC's point decomposition separates 67 new inclusions from its three returning supporters. NR is categorical, never an assumed 26th-place vote. Game reporting comes from the linked official game centers and the AP recap hosted by USC.
Published ballot evidence: October 25 rankings, November 1 rankings and all November 1 ballots. Calculations use the accepted published snapshots, not projected or reconstructed ballots.
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Ohio State Remains Above USC on 60 of 70 Ballots
Graphic: Poll Behavior. Source. Original Poll Behavior composition; school trademarks remain with their owners.. Original editorial comparison from published AP ballots. Canonical school marks proportionally scaled without alteration. No claim of school or AP endorsement.