How Ohio State's loss to Oregon should affect AP poll rankings

The battle in Eugene between the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes and the No. 3 Oregon Ducks will go down as an instant classic. It was nothing less than a heavyweight fight with punches thrown all night long.

After flipping the lead several times, Oregon took a one-point lead with less than two minutes to play. Although the Buckeyes drove down the field and initially got into field goal range, they made several costly errors that resulted in them losing the game 32-31.

Will the outcome of this game significantly change the latest AP Poll rankings?

Probably not.

The safe assumption is that the Texas Longhorns will remain at No. 1 after defeating the Oklahoma Sooners 34-3 in the Red River Rivalry.

As for the undefeated Ducks, they should move up one spot to No. 2 after a big win over the Buckeyes. Despite a slower start to the year and some closer than expected non-conference games, this should give this team a lot of momentum.

As for #3 to #5, things might get a little controversial here. Penn State is undefeated but was tested on the road at USC before winning 33-30 on a walk-off field goal. Georgia was ranked No. 5 and defended its only loss against Alabama. Despite Saturday's win over Mississippi State, it wasn't a convincing win (41-31).

I strongly believe that Ohio State should only drop to No. 3 since it is a one-point game on the road in a No. 2 vs. No. 3 matchup. That being said, in less than 24 hours, the recency bias likely means Penn State will be at No. 3, Georgia at No. 4, and Ohio State at No. 5.

There shouldn't be any reason for the Buckeyes to fall far behind.

I don't think this loss will really hurt Ohio State in the long run.

The new 12-team College Football Playoff means teams with two or even three losses will make the playoffs. Ohio State would have to suffer a complete collapse, and I don't think that will happen.

Honestly, it feels like we saw the two best teams in the Big Ten Conference last night, despite some poor individual performances from Ohio State. The Buckeyes and Ducks will likely meet again later in the season, not once, but twice.