AP Top 25 Poll ballot (Week 5): Arch Manning's Texas at No. 2 in CFB insider's updated list despite major win

The Week 5 AP Top 25 Poll will come out later today, and we will see which teams have moved around based on their Week 4 performances. The AP Top 25 is chosen by a select number of reporters and media members, and one of them revealed their top 10 ahead of the official list.

Action Network's Brett McMurphy is one of the AP Poll voters, and he posted his top 10 teams on social media:

Georgia Bulldogs
Texas Longhorns
Ohio State Buckeyes
Alabama Crimson Tide
Tennessee Volunteers
Miami Hurricanes
Ole Miss Rebels
Penn State Nittany Lions
Oregon Ducks
Utah Utes

One of the more notable changes in McMurphy's list is seeing the Texas Longhorns drop from the top spot, despite a massive 51-3 home win over the UL Monroe Warhawks in Arch Manning's first start. What's interesting about this is that the Georgia Bulldogs had an open week, meaning despite a 48-point victory, the Longhorns fell a spot in the AP Top 25 Poll.

It will be interesting to see how the AP Top 25 Poll shapes up for Week 5.

Why would the Texas Longhorns fall in the AP Top 25 Poll?

The Texas Longhorns were just able to climb to the top spot in the AP Poll last week, and now there seems to be a discussion about the program no longer being there. However, the injury to starting quarterback Quinn Ewers makes the team significantly weaker, as Arch Manning is more susceptible to making mistakes, likely due to inexperience.

This is similar to what happened to the Florida State Seminoles last season to a degree. The Seminoles in 2023 saw their starting quarterback, Jordan Travis, suffer a leg injury that ended his season ahead of the ACC championship game. Despite winning the conference title, they fell out of the top four for the College Football Playoff.

Another reason is the fact that the voters for the AP Top 25 Poll believe more in the Georgia Bulldogs after the injury to Ewers. It is not expected to be a long-term setback, but in the short term, the Longhorns appear a bit weaker as a roster.