Final AP Poll punishes Oklahoma for losing in College Football Playoff
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
The Oklahoma Sooners closed the 2025 season with a loss in the College Football Playoff to the Alabama Crimson Tide, a team they beat earlier in the season in Tuscaloosa. And the AP voters punished them for it, dropping the Sooners from No. 8 in the College Football Playoff rankings to No. 13 in the final AP Poll for 2025.
Oklahoma fell behind Alabama, Notre Dame, BYU, and Texas. The Crimson Tide were dominated by national champion Indiana in the Rose Bowl. Notre Dame opted out of the Pop Tarts Bowl, and BYU and Texas won their respective exhibition non-playoff games.
The Sooners may have finished the season with a loss, but proved they were one of the 10 best teams in college football in 2025. Alabama being in front of Oklahoma is understandable. So is Texas, since they beat the Sooners in the Red River Showdown. But it doesn’t make sense to drop Oklahoma behind Notre Dame or BYU.
Notre Dame shouldn’t get rewarded for opting out of a bowl game cause they were sad they missed the playoff. BYU was proven even more fraudulent by Texas Tech’s shutout loss to the Oregon Ducks. The Cougars’ only losses on the season came to the Red Raiders, and BYU lost in decisive fashion.
It’s just more disrespect for a Sooners team that earned its way into the No. 8 seed of the College Football Playoff by rattling off road wins over Tennessee and Alabama before beating Missouri and LSU with dominant defensive performances.
Oklahoma’s been aggressive this offseason to upgrade their offense and retool their defense, and now the AP has provided fuel for the fire to make a return trip to the College Football Playoff in 2026.
Final AP Top 25
| Rank | Team | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indiana | 16–0 |
| 2 | Miami (FL) | 13–3 |
| 3 | Ole Miss | 13–2 |
| 4 | Oregon | 13–2 |
| 5 | Ohio State | 12–2 |
| 6 | Georgia | 12–2 |
| 7 | Texas Tech | 12–2 |
| 8 | Texas A&M | 11–2 |
| 9 | Alabama | 11–4 |
| 10 | Notre Dame | 10–2 |
| 11 | BYU | 12–2 |
| 12 | Texas | 10–3 |
| 13 | Oklahoma | 10–3 |
| 14 | Utah | 11–2 |
| 15 | Vanderbilt | 10–3 |
| 16 | Virginia | 11–3 |
| 17 | Iowa | 9–4 |
| 18 | Tulane | 11–3 |
| 19 | James Madison | 12–2 |
| 20 | USC | 9–4 |
| 21 | Michigan | 9–4 |
| 22 | Houston | 10–3 |
| 23 | Navy | 11–2 |
| 24 | North Texas | 12–2 |
| 25 | TCU | 9–4 |
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions.You can also follow John on X @john9williams.
This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Final AP Poll punishes Oklahoma for losing in College Football Playoff
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos