Inside Greg Luca's AP Top 25 ballot: Backup quarterback shortfall crushes would-be contenders

Ohio State Buckeyes tight end Christian Henry (13) is tackled by a USC Trojans defender during the NCAA football game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the USC Trojans at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California, on October 31, 2026. (Photo by Peter Zhan/NurPhoto via Getty Images) (NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images) Even after Saturday's 30-18 loss at USC, Ohio State theoretically should still have a decent case at ranking in the top 15, or potentially the top 10. The Buckeyes' losses are to new No. 18 USC and by one point at No. 10 Texas, and they hold wins over No. 6 Indiana and No. 21 Iowa. More InformationGreg Luca's AP Top 25 ballot Difference from poll results in parentheses 1. Miami (0) 2. Georgia (0) 3. Indiana (+3) 4. Utah (-1) 5. UCLA (0) 6. BYU (+1) 7. Notre Dame (-3) 8. Alabama (+1) 9. Kentucky (-1) 10. Texas (0) 11. Ole Miss (+1) 12. LSU (+3) 13. Texas Tech (0) 14. Wake Forest (0) 15. Tennessee (+1) 16. USC (+2) 17. Ohio State (-6) 18. Iowa (+3) 19. Houston (-2) 20. Arizona (+4) 21. Missouri (-2) 22. Oregon (+5) 23. Boise State (-3) 24. New Mexico (-2) 25. Northwestern (+1) Ranked teams not on ballot: 23 South Carolina; 25 Florida But among some other cracks that have started to emerge in Ohio State's armor, one weakness stands out as the most glaring: the loss of starting quarterback Julian Sayin to a season-ending injury. An obvious detriment to any team in any season, starting quarterback injuries have been more punishing than ever in 2026. Call it an unintended consequence of the transfer portal era. For the most part, the best 138 quarterbacks scatter to claim the 138 available FBS jobs, leaving the quality of backups at powerhouse programs lower than ever. Freshman first-time starter Luke Fahey was passable at times for Ohio State against USC, but when the Buckeyes needed him for a rally late, he missed some throws and struggled to find a few open targets. Even with the benefit of an open week following Sayin's injury to figure out a new starter and game plan, Ohio State became just the second team this season to not crack 20 points against USC. San Jose State scored 26, Louisiana scored 30 and Rutgers scored 35. So, while plenty of reasons remain to be lenient with the Ohio State, and the AP Top 25 voters ultimately landed them No. 11 in this week's poll, I ranked OSU lower than anyone else, dropping them all the way to No. 17. This allowed me to respect the recent head-to-head, slotting USC at 16, while acknowledging this is a much different Ohio State team without Sayin. Through each week of my debut season with an AP Top 25 ballot, we'll take you inside my thought process behind the picks, looking this week at situations where backup quarterbacks confound rankings choices. No. 6 Indiana BLOOMINGTON, IN - OCTOBER 31: Indiana Hoosiers QB Josh Hoover (10) stands next to Co-Offensive Coordinator Tino Sunseri and Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti during a college football game between the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Indiana Hoosiers on October 31, 2026 at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, IN. (Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) (Icon Sportswire/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Curt Cignetti was perhaps intentionally vague when asked after Saturday's win why starting quarterback Josh Hoover had been pulled for Grant Wilson, but the impact of Hoover's shoulder injury has been pretty clear. He struggled to get much offense going down the stretch after suffering the injury late in a 19-15 loss to Ohio State, and IU had to slog to a 13-6 win at Michigan last week and a 23-16 win against Minnesota on Saturday, both in overtime. But with how wild the last few weekends have been, not much room exists to penalize teams for winning too close against quality opponents. Hoover might benefit from an open date on the schedule next week, and Wilson looked solid in relief, so I was willing to trust the resume and leave Indiana at No. 3. No. 5 UCLA Pasadena, CA - October 31: UCLA starting quarterback Ty Dieffenbach (14) celebrates after carrying the ball for touchdown on a quarterback keeper play during the first half of a game against Nevada at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena on Saturday, October 31, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Antenore/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images) (MediaNews Group/Orange County Re/MediaNews Group via Getty Images) Is Ty Dieffenbach dynamic enough to beat a playoff-caliber opponent? Well, he may not have to be. He's not the running threat of injured starter Nico Iamaleava, who suffered a season-ending ACL tear three weeks ago, but the Bruins are still one of the elite rushing teams in the country. They also boast one of the nation's best defenses, and that combination is enough for me to keep them right on par with the rest of the voters at No. 5 despite the shaky quarterback situation. Oregon EUGENE, OREGON - OCTOBER 31: Dylan Raiola #8 of the Oregon Ducks fumbles the ball as he is hit by Matthew Smith #32 of the Northwestern Wildcats during the first half at Autzen Stadium on October 31, 2026 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images) (Tom Hauck/Getty Images) Going an abysmal 6-of-19 passing for 43 yards with two interceptions in his first start at Oregon, Dylan Raiola struggled so heavily that coach Dan Lanning reached to the bench for third-string quarterback Brock Thomas. The Ducks looked to be a disaster in the wake of the season-ending loss of starter Dante Moore, following with a 17-15 home loss to UCLA. A 21-10 road setback against Illinois was also unthinkable for an Oregon team that 14 voters, myself included, had No. 1 in the preseason. But Raiola also delivered some bright spots, rallying Oregon to a home win past his old teammates with Nebraska, then going 22-of-31 passing for 336 yards with three touchdowns in a 34-26 win Saturday against then-No. 20 Northwestern. Maybe the former five-star recruit with two years of starting experience has something to offer, and perhaps the shift to Jay Johnson at offensive coordinator this week provided another lift. Not many teams can boast a trio of wins like Boise State, USC and Northwestern, and the Ducks still have most of the talent that led to lofty preseason expectations. While most of my fellow pollsters left the Ducks off their ballots, I felt they were worthy of a No. 22 ranking. SubscribeThere’s more to San Antonio with the Express-News. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at Inside Greg Luca's AP Top 25 ballot: Backup quarterback shortfall crushes would-be contenders.