Nebraska, Baylor, West Virginia and Boise State -- all previously undefeated -- lost on the road Saturday. The Cornhuskers got beat in overtime, the Bears by a field goal and the Broncos by a safety. Week 9 started with nine undefeated teams eyeing playoff bids and spots in the New Year's Six. Suddenly, there are just four undefeated Power Five teams and one unbeaten team in the Group of Five as Western Michigan hopes to get the golden ticket.

With the first College Football Playoff Rankings coming out Tuesday, you get the feeling that we're still a few major shakeups away from seeing the playoff picture clearly. The last couple of weeks of conference play should be enough evidence to know that we're nowhere close to the end, but history provides even more reason to believe in the continuation of chaos.

Top four teams, first 2014 CFP Rankings: Mississippi State, Florida State, Auburn, Ole Miss

Top four teams, first 2015 CFP Rankings: Clemson, LSU, Ohio State, Alabama

Only three of the eight teams named to the top four in the initial rankings have gone on to make the playoff thanks to a series of bracket-busting defeats in November. We think that Alabama, Michigan, Clemson and Washington are the teams most likely to be in the top four Tuesday, but given recent history, we should also be paying attention to the other teams lurking in the wings to take their spot.

Two teams expected to make notable jumps up in the polls are Florida and Wisconsin. Both the Gators and Badgers picked up crucial division wins Saturday to boost their chances of making their respective conference championship game. If you're looking for playoff dark horses, maybe it's time to pay attention to these other teams starting to lock up spots on the field for that final weekend of football before selection Sunday.

It's all part of the madness of this 2016 college football season, bursting with anticipation as we turn our attention to Alabama-LSU in Week 10.

Here's how the AP Top 25 will look on Sunday after the Week 9 action.

1. Alabama (Previous AP Top 25 ranking -- 1): The Tide were off as they prepare for Saturday night in Death Valley. Alabama at LSU is in the prime-time spot on CBS next week.

2. Clemson (3): The Tigers survived three lead changes in the final 15 minutes and white-knuckled their way to a victory in Tallahassee, the first since 2006. Six Clemson sacks from a relentless front sealed the win after allowing Dalvin Cook to run for four touchdowns in yet another ACC Atlantic thriller for the defending conference champs.

3. Michigan (2): The Wolverines got Paul Bunyan back after three straight losses to Michigan State. Jabrill Peppers showed out in the big win, scoring both offensive and defensive touchdowns while adding to his Heisman reel, as the Michigan football machine moves on to hosting Maryland next week back at the Big House. The Wolverines may well keep their spot at No. 2, but the Tigers' performance was impressive in prime time.

4. Washington (4): That's it, I believe in Washington. The Huskies are a complete team and the best in the Pac-12. There's a spot in the playoff for Washington if it can win the conference as an undefeated or one-loss team. Utah is a tough team to beat at home and Washington was able to overcome early mistakes and win the game with Dante Pettis and special teams in the game of the year so far in the Pac-12.

5. Louisville (5): The Cardinals might take a step back in the polls after a near-loss on the road at Virginia, but Lamar Jackson's Heisman Trophy chances didn't take a hit in the 32-25 win. The Cardinals still look like the best one-loss team in the country and their spot in the rankings should reflect that.

6. Ohio State (6): After starting the season with large-margin wins, Ohio State played its third straight one-score game in as many weeks, squeaking past Northwestern in a 24-20 victory. J.T. Barrett converted a pair of third downs down the stretch of a tight, nerve-wracking win for the Buckeyes after last week's upset loss at Penn State.

7. Wisconsin (11): Both Alex Hornibrook and Bart Houston played at quarterback and led scoring drives, but it was Justin Wilcox's defense that won the game. It's a spot that D'Cota Dixon, Vince Biegel and the rest of the Badgers' defense loves to be in -- with the game on the line. Ryan Connelly had a huge game in the first outing since Jack Cichy's season-ending injury, and it's hard to argue for another team in the Big Ten West right now.

8. Texas A&M (9): Christian Kirk became the first player in school history with two punt return touchdowns in a single game. New Mexico State apparently missed the preseason memo of "not kicking to Christian Kirk in 2016."

9. Nebraska (7): Nebraska wasn't exposed in its first loss of the season. The Cornhuskers played great on the road, covered the Vegas number and fell in overtime. The Huskers still have Ohio State and several tough tests left on the schedule, but they're first place in the standings. We're guessing they don't fall just outside the top 10.

10. Florida (14): The Gators' defense ranks among the best in the SEC, and it did a great job of making sure Florida remains on track for a return to Atlanta in a 24-10 win against Georgia in Jacksonville. Georgia went three-and-out seven times and turned the ball over on downs twice in the fourth quarter, failing to get anything against a Gators group that included star linebacker Jarrad Davis.

11. Baylor (8): The Bears will tumble after the messy loss in Austin, facing a razor-thin margin for error in order to win the Big 12 title with several of the season's toughest games left on the schedule.

12. West Virginia (10): Four Mason Rudolph touchdowns contributed to West Virginia getting bounced from the undefeated club. The Mountaineers will take a slide, but likely not too far.

13. Auburn (15): It took a while, but eventually the Auburn-Ole Miss shootout turned into another display of the Tigers' ground greatness. Kamryn Pettway finished with 236 rushing yards and a touchdown to pace the group. On the other sideline, Chad Kelly broke Archie Manning's single-game school passing record with 465 yards and three touchdown passes in the loss.

14. Oklahoma (16): The Sooners took care of business against Kansas and moved into first place in the Big 12 standings. Baker Mayfield has been nearly flawless the past two weeks, and it's hard to imagine this Sooners offense slowing down anytime soon.

15. LSU (19): Off this week with Alabama coming to town next Saturday.

16. Western Michigan (20): Midweek MACtion awaits the 8-0 Broncos, who have a Tuesday night date at Ball State coming up next after a Saturday off.

17. Boise State (13): The Broncos got downed by a Wyoming a safety dance. It's the most disrespectful way to have your unbeaten season spoiled, according to most industry experts.

18. Utah (17): There's not going to be much of a penalty for losing to Washington in the polls. The biggest disappointment for Utah is the impact the loss has on its spot as the Pac-12 South front-runner. Utah sits tied with Southern California in second place at 4-2, a half-game behind Colorado (4-1) in the division standings with Arizona State, Oregon and the Buffs left on the schedule. In order to win the South, Utah needs to stay within one game of Colorado heading into that regular-season finale in Boulder.

19. Penn State (24): Impressive note from Penn State's high-scoring win at Purdue? Almost all of the work was done by players who will be around for 2017 as well. James Franklin's recruiting might be paying off before our eyes.

20. North Carolina (21): The Tar Heels were off this week and are back in action next week with Georgia Tech coming to town.

21. Colorado (23): The Buffs were off this week but moved up in the Pac-12 South standings with Utah's loss. Up next is a nationally televised home game against UCLA on Thursday night.

22. Virginia Tech (25): The Hokies won a tight Thursday night ACC game for the second week in a row. The head-to-head advantage against the Tar Heels make the Hokies the ACC Coastal favorite with three conference games (at Duke, Georgia Tech and Virginia at home) left to play.

23. Oklahoma State (NR): Saturday's win against West Virginia was by far the best victory on the Cowboys' résumé. Their longevity in the rankings will be tested by more conference play, but a 6-2 record with a top-10 win ain't a bad spot to be in heading into Week 10.

24. Florida State (12): Seminoles fans will be talking about the penalties, miscues and frustrations from the second half of Saturday night's loss to Clemson for a while. Dalvin Cook did a lot for his individual stock in terms of awards and the national conversation, but the third loss will drop FSU to the edge of the top 25 and possibly out of the rankings.

25. USC (NR)*: The Trojans are rolling with Sam Darnold at quarterback and will continue to put the heat on Utah and Colorado in the Pac-12 South.

Dropped out: Tennessee (18), Navy (22)