The Washington Huskies are officially *out* of the USA TODAY Sports US LBM Coaches Poll. After being ranked No. 23, the Purple and Gold are nowhere to be found in Week 4, and that’s a tough one for anyone bleeding purple in the Emerald City. Meanwhile, the UCLA Bruins roared onto the scene, snagging the No. 23 spot for themselves, marking their first ranking this season.
Bruins Bring the Buzz
UCLA is absolutely on fire, kicking off the 2026 season with an undefeated 4-0 record. Head coach Bob Chesney has clearly injected some serious new life into that program, because they aren’t just winning, they’re dominating. You saw that 54-3 thumping they laid on Maryland at SECU Stadium, right? That wasn’t a fluke. These Bruins are a buzzsaw, putting up 50-plus points in both of their Big Ten Conference games so far. They snagged 183 points in the poll, landing them right between the No. 24 Michigan Wolverines and the No. 22 Penn State Nittany Lions. Talk about making a statement!
Big Ten Shake-Up and a Husky Heartbreak
While UCLA is celebrating their new rank, it stings to see our Huskies drop off the list. They held that No. 23 spot, and now, poof, gone. It’s a wake-up call, for sure. They aren’t the only ones feeling the heat, though. Both Michigan and Penn State took big tumbles this week after suffering tough losses to conference opponents. The No. 18 USC Trojans also got hit hard, losing this week and sliding six whole spots. Ouch.
It wasn’t all bad news for the West Coast, though. The No. 15 Oregon Ducks climbed one spot to break into the Top 15, even managing to beat USC without their star quarterback Dante Moore. And hats off to the No. 14 Iowa Hawkeyes, who climbed three ranks themselves after quieting Michigan with a last-minute score. Rounding out the stacked Big Ten are the No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes and the No. 5 Indiana Hoosiers. That’s a wild eight Big Ten teams ranked in the Top 25, just four weeks into the 2026 season.
What a crazy week for college football, especially with all these early season shifts. The Huskies dropping out is a tough pill, but it just means we gotta keep our eyes peeled and see how they fight back in the weeks to come!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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