USC had a chance to further its cause, only to drop its Big Ten debut to Michigan 27-24. So, the only changes in our top 12 were near the bottom of the dozen as Northern Illinois falls to Buffalo, relinquishing its chance to be the Group of Five representative — at least for now.

It seemed the college football world moved past Clemson after the opening 34-3 loss to Georgia, but reports of the Tigers’ demise may have been greatly exaggerated. Since that loss, Clemson has a 66-20 win against Appalachian State and a 59-35 win against NC State on Saturday.

In Week 4 of the college football season, the matchups provided the first big glimpse of the premier teams in their new conferences. The USC Trojans began Big Ten play on the road against the Michigan Wolverines while the Oklahoma Sooners began their inaugural season in the SEC with a visit from the Tennessee Volunteers.