College Football Power Rankings: How did the Top 25 look in Week 13? - ESPN

USC averaged 190.8 rushing yards across its first 10 games this fall. On Saturday, an Oregon defense that struggled to stop the run in the early parts of this fall stifled the No. 15 Trojans' ground game, limiting USC to 52 rushing yards as the No. 7 Ducks improved to 10-1.

«I think it's huge when you can take away a team's strength,» Oregon coach Dan Lanning said after the 42-27 win. «I think they've been able to run the ball really well this season, and for us to be able to stop it was big.»

The in-season turnaround of the Ducks' run defense, which has held each of its past four opponents to less than 125 yards rushing, is powering the program toward a second straight College Football Playoff appearance. Across the country, vastly improved units like Oregon's and individual players surging in the back half of the 2025 season shined in Week 13.

Texas quarterback Arch Manning made Longhorns history with his six-touchdown performance against Arkansas, delivering the latest in a late-fall run of mature performances from the first-year starter. Turnover-starved in September and early October, Oklahoma continued its late-season takeaway spree in a 17-6 victory over Missouri. Elsewhere, Tennessee's running back tandem of DeSean Bishop and Star Thomas combined for 187 yards as the program's slow run game exploded in a win at Florida, while the Vols' Week 14 opponent Vanderbilt put together another smothering effort against the run in a 28-point victory over Kentucky.

As we enter the final week of the regular season, this week's Power Rankings focus on the biggest improvement each of the nation's top programs has made since Week 1. — Eli Lederman

Previous ranking: 1

The Buckeyes have gotten their running game going just in