It was an instant classic as Ohio State faced its first big challenge of the 2023 season. A road game at night against a top-10 Notre Dame team lived up to the hype as the Buckeyes needed every second on the clock to pull out the victory.
It was a game in which new Buckeye quarterback Kyle McCord can build upon with his clutch play down the stretch.
Buy Buckeyes TicketsBut was it enough to get the attention of the talking heads? It wasn’t a dominating performance but a win on the road has to be worth something, doesn’t it? Well, Joel Klatt seemed to like what he witnessed and gave OSU a boost in his personal rankings. There are, of course, the usual suspects that Klatt has thought fondly of like Georgia, Michigan, Texas, and Florida State, but the Buckeyes are making a move.
Let’s take a look at how the Fox college football analyst sees things after a weekend full of ranked matchups.
Teams just outside Klatt's rankings
Teams just outside the Klatt’s top ten
Duke Blue Devils
Washington State Cougars
Alabama Crimson Tide
Oklahoma Sooners
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
What we think
Duke and Washington State are the surprises of this bunch with Alabama maybe taking on the team with the most disappointing season thus far. The jury is still out on Oklahoma, and Notre Dame’s loss is a respectable one. Who knows, depending on how Ohio State’s season goes, the Fighting Irish might easily be a top ten team.
NEXT … Klatt’s top ten teams
No. 10 - Utah Utes (4-0)
What we think
The Utah defense is top-notch. Holding UCLA to just seven points is impressive. When Cam Rising makes his return, he should give the offense a boost.
No. 9 - Oregon Ducks (4-0)
What we think:
Oregon looked every bit the part of national contender in dismantling Coach Prime’s Colorado Buffaloes. Of course, we don’t really know how good Colorado is, so we’ll hold our opinion until the Ducks face Washington this week.
No. 8 - USC Trojans (4-0)
What we think:
The USC defense is still suspect, and you can look no further than the struggles against Arizona State. Caleb Williams is still really good and can keep this team in any game.
No. 7 - Florida State Seminoles (4-0)
What we think:
FSU hasn’t looked quite the same since taking LSU to the woodshed. Is it possible the ‘Noles played one really good game and are living off that hype? Very well could be.
No. 6 - Penn State Nittany Lions (4-0)
What we think:
Penn State keeps showing up and passing every test given, this week, taking it to a pretty stout Iowa defense. Of course, the Hawkeye offense still leaves much to be desired. A clash against Ohio State looms.
No. 5 - Texas Longhorns (4-0)
No. 4 - Ohio State Buckeyes (4-0)
What we think
The Buckeyes passed their first big challenge of 2023. It wasn’t necessarily a pretty win, but a win nonetheless. And that defense is starting to look special.
No. 3 - Michigan Wolverines (4-0)
What we think:
Michigan struggled in the first half once again only to pull away in the second half against a lesser opponent. Are the Wolverines bored? Whatever it is, the Maize and Blue don’t seem to be fully engaged at this point, but I guess they get the benefit of the doubt for now.
No. 2 - Washington Huskies (4-0)
No. 1 - Georgia Bulldogs (4-0)
What we think
The Bulldogs didn’t have much of a challenge this week in Alabama-Birmingham, but until someone knocks off the defending champs they’ll remain tops in most polls.
NEXT … Klatt’s opinion rankings shared on “X” (formerly Twitter)
Joel Klatt's opinion rankings after Week 4
My CFB Top 10 (9/17)
1) @GeorgiaFootball
2) @UMichFootball
3) @TexasFootball
4) @uscfb
5) @UW_Football
6) @OhioStateFB
7) @FSUFootball
8) @PennStateFball
9) @Utah_Football
10) @NDFootball
Almost: @oregonfootball @BeaverFootball @LSUfootball @AlabamaFTBL @OU_Football— Joel Klatt (@joelklatt) September 17, 2023
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