How will LSU, Michigan and Oregon fare in the AP Top 25?

College football is finally back, and so is the regular-season AP Top 25.

The preseason AP Top 25 teams went 24 and 1 in Week 1, with only No. 24 Louisville landing in the loss column despite an impressive outing vs. No. 9 Ole Miss.

But not all wins were created equal and other teams could still be on the move. No. 16 Michigan controversially beat Western Michigan with a second-chance Hail Mary and No. 2 Oregon narrowly edged Boise State after trailing for most of the game.

Follow along for poll predictions, Q&A with a voter and live updates when the latest rankings drop at 2 p.m. EDT.

Big Ten goes 16-2 as Oregon and Michigan dodge major upsets

By MAURA CAREY

Week 1 got off to a shaky start for the Big Ten.

After paying UMass $1.55 million in what was supposed to be an easy win, a 29.5-point favored Rutgers team was upset 37-21 by the Minutemen on Thursday night.

The conference’s other loss belonged to Wisconsin, which fell 41-13 to No. 4 Notre Dame.

Boise State gave No. 2 Oregon a game, leading for the first half before the Ducks tied it up in the third. In a back-and-forth second half, Dakorien Moore’s 62-yard receiving touchdown with 7:51 on the clock proved to be the game-winner.

No. 16 Michigan also narrowly dodged a major upset with a controversial 13-12 win against Western Michigan. The Wolverines’ win hinged on one second being put back on the clock after time had expired.

The SEC goes 16-0

For the first time since 1997, the Southeastern Conference swept its opponents with a perfect 16-0 record in Week 1.

No. 9 Ole Miss vs. No. 24 Louisville and Baylor-Auburn came down to the final moments. Ole Miss kicker Lucas Carneiro drilled a 48-yard field goal to come out on top of a barnburner with a 41-38 win. Auburn stopped Baylor short of a two-point conversion as the clock wound down for a 17-16 win.

All other SEC teams won by at least three touchdowns. Most notably, LSU cruised past Clemson 51-10.

What happened in Week 0?

College football kicked off on Aug. 29 with a slate of eight games in Week 0. No. 14 USC was the sole Top 25 representative, defeating San Jose 42-26 in the season-opener.

Bill Belichick’s North Carolina Tar Heels beat TCU 15-10. Virginia delivered a 34-8 rout of NC State. Florida State rolled past New Mexico State 34-17.

The stage is set

Results of the first regular-season AP Top 25 poll are three hours away. Here’s where we left off in the preseason:

Ohio State ranked No. 1 for the ninth time after receiving 40 first-place votes. Oregon earned its highest preseason ranking of all time, at No. 2 with 14 first-place votes. Georgia landed in the preseason top five for the ninth consecutive year at No. 3. No. 4 Notre Dame and No. 5 Texas rounded out the top five.

The Southeastern Conference led the way with nine teams in the preseason rankings. The Big Ten had eight. The Big 12 had four, and the ACC had three. And, of course, Notre Dame is independent.

The Top 25 origin story

A version of The AP Top 25 college football poll started in 1936, the brainchild of former Sports Editor Alan J. Gould.

The number of teams ranked, the number of voters on the panel and how the ballots are tabulated have fluctuated over the years, but no news organization has been ranking teams and naming a college football national champion longer than the AP.

How the votes are counted

For decades, voters called, emailed and faxed their votes to the AP and ballots were tabulated by hand.

Now voting happens online and the count is automated first before AP checks for miscues.

The poll operates on a 1 to 25 point system, with the No. 1 team receiving 25 points down to the 25th team receiving 1 point. In between, the poll lists the teams with the most points from 24 down to 2. Teams that receive votes but not enough to make the top 25 are noted separately.

Lane Kiffin’s debut is a powerful success

After much anticipation — and a two-hour rain delay — Lane Kiffin made his LSU coaching debut on Saturday.

Clemson took an early lead after its opening drive culminated with a 49-yard field goal. But LSU barely looked back.

Kiffin’s Tigers led 17-3 by the end of the first quarter after a 1-yard rushing touchdown by Dilin Jones and a 30-yard pick-six by Jordan Ross. That lead was extended to 31-3 by halftime after two second-quarter rushing touchdowns by quarterback Sam Leavitt.

Leavitt was done for the day at the end of the third quarter after leading LSU to a 44-3 lead. The high-profile transfer finished the outing 16-of-28 for 230 passing yards, a touchdown and an interception. He also led LSU with 12 carries for 113 yards and two rushing touchdowns.

Backup quarterbacks Landen Clark and Husan Longstreet led drives for LSU in the fourth quarter en route to the 51-10 victory.

24 of the Top 25 open with Week 1 wins

Ranked No. 24 in the preseason, Louisville entered the weekend with limited room for error. But despite a 41-38 loss to No. 9 Ole Miss, the Cardinals proved they can hang with the best of them.

Louisville quarterback Lincoln Kienholz impressed as the former Buckeye completed 18-of-29 passes for 307 yards and two touchdowns while also leading the Cardinals with 69 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.

All other Top 25 teams won in Week 1, though near upsets for Oregon and Michigan could impact their rankings. Eyes will also be on No. 11 LSU, which had arguably the best performance of the week with a 51-10 rout of Clemson.