COLUMBUS, Ohio — Clemson easily held off Alabama to retain the No. 1 spot in The Associated Press college football poll, extending its longest run atop the poll to seven weeks.
The Crimson Tide ran away from Georgia to make the case to be No. 1, but it wasn't enough to topple the Tigers.
Clemson beat Georgia Tech by 66 points, the most lopsided Atlantic Coast Conference football game ever.
The Tigers received 54 first-place votes out of 62. The Crimson Tide got the remaining eight.
Notre Dame moved up to No. 3, No. 4 Georgia dropped one spot and Ohio State moved up to No. 5 a week before the Big Ten starts playing. Clemson had never been No. 1 more than five times in a single season.
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The Top 25 teams in The Associated Press college football poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Oct 11:
1. Clemson (54) 5-0
2. Alabama (8) 4-0
3. Notre Dame 4-0
4. Georgia 3-1
5. Ohio St.
6. Oklahoma St. 3-0
7. Texas A&M 3-1
8. Penn St.
9. Cincinnati 3-0
10. Florida 2-1
11. Miami 4-1
12. BYU 5-0
13. Oregon
14 (tie). North Carolina 3-1
14 (tie). Wisconsin
16. SMU 5-0
17. Iowa St. 3-1
18. Michigan
19. Virginia Tech 3-1
20. Kansas St. 3-1
21. Minnesota
22. Marshall 4-0
23. NC State 4-1
24. Southern Cal
25. Coastal Carolina 4-0
Others receiving votes: Memphis 76, Oklahoma 74, Tulsa 58, West Virginia 57, Auburn 48, Iowa 42, Louisiana-Lafayette 40, Liberty 37, Utah 36, UAB 30, Army 29, Arkansas 15, Air Force 14, Kentucky 12, Tennessee 11, Arizona St. 9, South Carolina 8, Washington 8, Indiana 4, Texas 1.
The first game for the Buckeyes is scheduled for October 24 against Nebraska.