Ohio State started the season with a senior quarterback and a No. 6 preseason ranking. By Week 4, the Buckeyes had a freshman under center, lost to Virginia Tech and slipped to 21st in the polls.
On Monday night, down to their third-string quarterback, they won a national title and finished atop the final College Football 24/7 Top 25 Power Rankings, gaining all seven first-place votes in the process. The team they beat, Oregon, finished second, getting all but one of the second-place votes.
TCU, which missed out on the first College Football Playoff despite a solid resume, leapfrogged two teams that did make it ahead of them and finished third.
Here's a look at the final top 25:
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1. Ohio State
Points: 175 (7 first-place votes)
W-L: 14-1
Previous ranking: 4
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2. Oregon
Points: 167
W-L: 13-2
Previous ranking: 3
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3. TCU
Points: 159
W-L: 12-1
Previous ranking: 5
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4. Alabama
Points: 153
W-L: 12-2
Previous ranking: 1
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5. Florida State
Points: 147
W-L: 13-1
Previous ranking: 2
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6. Michigan State
Points: 142
W-L: 11-2
Previous ranking: 7
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7. Georgia Tech
Points: 131
W-L: 11-3
Previous ranking: 11
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8. UCLA
Points: 116
W-L: 10-3
Previous ranking: 14
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9. Baylor
Points: 106
W-L: 11-2
Previous ranking: 6
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10. Georgia
Points: 102
W-L: 10-3
Previous ranking: 17
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11. Mississippi State
Points: 93
W-L: 10-3
Previous ranking: 8
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12. Clemson
Points: 92
W-L: 10-3
Previous ranking: 15
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13. Missouri
Points: 90
W-L: 11-3
Previous ranking: 13
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14. Wisconsin
Points: 83
W-L: 11-3
Previous ranking: 20
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15. Boise State
Points: 78
W-L: 12-2
Previous ranking: 19
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16. Arizona State
Points: 71
W-L: 10-3
Previous ranking: 16
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17. USC
Points: 64
W-L: 9-4
Previous ranking: 23
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18. Kansas State
Points: 53
W-L: 9-4
Previous ranking: 10
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19. Ole Miss
Points: 52
W-L: 9-4
Previous ranking: 9
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20. Arizona
Points: 51
W-L: 10-4
Previous ranking: 12
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21. Utah
Points: 41
W-L: 9-4
Previous ranking: 24
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22. Auburn
Points: 21
W-L: 8-5
Previous ranking: 18
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23. Louisville
Points: 16
W-L: 9-4
Previous ranking: 21
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24. Marshall
Points: 14
W-L: 13-1
Previous ranking: NR
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25. Stanford
Points: 12
W-L: 8-5
Previous ranking: NR
Others receiving votes: Arkansas 10, Minnesota 9, Notre Dame 7, Memphis 4, Duke 3, LSU 3, Louisiana Tech 3, Nebraska 2, North Carolina State 1, Utah State 1
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Voters in the College Football 24/7 Top 25 Power Rankings include: NFL Media analysts Gil Brandt, Bucky Brooks, Charles Davis and Daniel Jeremiah, and College Football 24/7 writers Bryan Fischer, Chase Goodbread and Mike Huguenin.
Follow College Football 24/7 on Twitter _@NFLCFB_.