South Carolina receives a vote, Clemson drops a spot in latest AP Top 25

South Carolina received some love (again), while Clemson dropped in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll.

The Tigers came in at No. 5 nationally — one spot lower than they were in the AP preseason poll — while the Gamecocks received two points in the voting process.

Clemson played the final game of Week 1 on Monday, downing Georgia Tech 41-10. The Tigers defense dominated in spurts, but the offense was erratic for much of the contest before pulling away late.

South Carolina downed Georgia State and former Steve Spurrier assistant coach Shawn Elliott in Week 1. The Gamecocks trailed 14-12 in the third quarter, but a Spencer Rattler touchdown pass and a pair of blocked punts that were returned for scores gave USC the breathing room it sought.

Alabama remained the No. 1 team in the poll. The rest of the top five included Georgia (No. 2), Ohio State (No. 3), Michigan (No. 4) and Clemson.

South Carolina’s two points came from the Wichita Eagle’s Kellis Robinett, who voted the Gamecocks 24th on his ballot. Robinett had USC in that same slot in his preseason ballot.

The Southeastern Conference had eight teams ranked in this week’s poll — No. 1 Alabama , No. 2 Georgia, No. 6 Texas A&M, No. 12 Florida, No. 16 Arkansas, No. 20 Kentucky, No. 22 Ole Miss and No. 24 Tennessee.

Auburn (15) and Mississippi State (10) also received more points than South Carolina.

Note: The State’s Ben Portnoy is a voter in the AP Top 25

Associated Press Top 25 Week 2

1. Alabama
2. Georgia
3. Ohio State
4. Michigan
5. Clemson
6. Texas A&M
7. Oklahoma
8. Notre Dame
9. Baylor
10. Southern Cal
11. Oklahoma State
12. Florida
13. Utah
14. Michigan State
15. Miami (FL)
16. Akransas
17. Pittsburgh
18. N.C. State
19. Wisconsin
20. Kentucky
21. BYU
22. Ole Miss
23. Wake Forest
24. Tennessee

Receiving votes: Oregon 131, Penn State 122, Texas 118, Cincinnati 63, Florida State 42, Fresno State 22, UCF 22, Minnesota 22, Kansas State 18, Auburn 15, Mississippi State 10, Air Force 8, Oregon State 5, North Carolina 3, South Carolina 2, Purdue 1, UCLA 1, Arizona 1

Ben Portnoy

The State

Ben Portnoy is The State’s South Carolina Gamecocks football beat writer. He’s a 10-time Associated Press Sports Editors award honoree and has earned recognition from the Mississippi Press Association and the National Sports Media Association. Portnoy previously covered Mississippi State for the Columbus Commercial Dispatch and Indiana football for the Journal Gazette in Ft. Wayne, IN.