Oklahoma State Back in AP Poll at No. 19 After Ending Big 12 Losing Streak

The Cowboys are No. 19 in the AP Top 25 and top the receiving-votes list in the coaches poll after a 41-24 win at West Virginia snapped a 19-game Big 12 skid.

Oklahoma State has returned to the AP Top 25. The Cowboys checked in at No. 19 with 345 points, their first ranking since Sept. 22, 2024. They narrowly missed the US LBM Coaches Poll, where they lead all teams receiving votes with 126 points, three ahead of Kentucky.

The ranking came on the strength of a 41-24 road win over West Virginia in Week 4, a result that ended a 19-game Big 12 losing streak. Oklahoma State now stands 3-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play.

The Cowboys have won three consecutive games, a stretch that includes an upset of Oregon. The Ducks nevertheless rank ahead of them at No. 15 in both polls, after rising five places in the AP and one in the coaches ranking. The blemish on Oklahoma State's record is a loss at Tulsa, and that result looked worse Saturday when Tulsa lost 34-6 at Arkansas.

Across the state, Oklahoma dropped out of both polls following its loss at Georgia. The Sooners picked up six points in the coaches poll. Both Oklahoma programs are idle in Week 5, so neither team has a game on the schedule this week.

Texas remains the No. 1 team in both polls at 4-0, taking 62 first-place votes in the AP and 45 in the coaches ranking. Georgia sits second and Notre Dame third in each, with the Fighting Irish collecting three first-place votes from the coaches. Florida made the week's biggest move, jumping 13 spots to No. 8 in the AP and 14 spots to the same position with the coaches.

The rest of the AP top 10 features Miami (FL) at No. 4, Ohio State at No. 5, Indiana at No. 6, Alabama at No. 7, Ole Miss at No. 9 and BYU at No. 10. The coaches poll flips Indiana and Ohio State into fifth and sixth and drops Ole Miss all the way to No. 12.

Texas Tech, also unbeaten at 4-0, is No. 10 in the coaches poll and No. 12 in the AP. LSU holds No. 11 in both, with Utah at No. 13 and Iowa at No. 14 in each ranking. Penn State tumbled eight spots to No. 22 in the coaches poll, where Michigan fell six to No. 24 and Tennessee four to No. 17.

Mississippi State climbed to No. 16 in both polls, rising eight places with AP voters and 11 with the coaches. UCLA surged 14 spots to No. 23 in the coaches poll and debuted at No. 23 in the AP. USC dropped six spots in each poll to land at No. 18.

Oklahoma State was one of four newcomers to the AP ranking, joining Boise State at No. 22, UCLA and Kentucky at No. 24. Missouri slipped six places to No. 25. In the coaches poll, SMU and Houston each rose six spots to Nos. 19 and 20, Houston also sits at No. 20 in the AP after a five-place gain, and Duke climbed seven to No. 21.