The coaches must've seen through the Spartans' lackluster offense. They dropped from #23 to #25 in the USA Today poll - despite winning by 38 pts. Here is the weekly poll;
| USA Today Poll | |||
| RK | TEAM | RECORD | PTS |
| 1 | Oklahoma (32) | 3-0 | 1434 |
| 2 | Alabama (7) | 4-0 | 1404 |
| 2 | LSU (20) | 4-0 | 1404 |
| 4 | Stanford | 3-0 | 1225 |
| 5 | Boise State | 3-0 | 1223 |
| 6 | Oklahoma State | 4-0 | 1172 |
| 7 | Wisconsin | 4-0 | 1156 |
| 8 | Nebraska | 4-0 | 1040 |
| 9 | South Carolina | 4-0 | 976 |
| 10 | Virginia Tech | 4-0 | 935 |
| 11 | Oregon | 3-1 | 914 |
| 12 | Florida | 4-0 | 817 |
| 13 | Texas A&M | 2-1 | 681 |
| 14 | South Florida | 4-0 | 631 |
| 15 | Clemson | 4-0 | 598 |
| 16 | Baylor | 3-0 | 528 |
| 17 | Texas | 3-0 | 525 |
| 18 | Arkansas | 3-1 | 432 |
| 19 | Michigan | 4-0 | 414 |
| 20 | TCU | 3-1 | 364 |
| 21 | Georgia Tech | 4-0 | 333 |
| 22 | Illinois | 4-0 | 181 |
| 23 | West Virginia | 3-1 | 158 |
| 24 | Florida State | 2-2 | 157 |
| 25 | Michigan State | 3-1 | 153 |
- Dropped from rankings: North Carolina 25
- Others receiving votes: Houston 70, Ohio State 61, Arizona State 57, Penn State 34, Iowa State 33, Kansas State 13, North Carolina 13, Texas Tech 13, Utah 11, Northwestern 5, Washington 3, Tennessee 3, Auburn 2, Temple 1, Air Force 1
