BYU No. 1 team; LaNorris Sellers No. 1 player
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Upsets, unbelievable athletic plays and ousted coaches shook up the College Sports Social Pulse in Week 8.
BYU finished No. 1 in the Pulse rankings after being upset by UCF in a double-overtime thriller. The Knights finished No. 2 in the Pulse rankings. It was their first-ever win over an AP top 5 opponent.
The Pulse, which measures the influence of college football teams, players and coaches on social media, is published weekly in partnership with the Sports Business Journal.
An analysis of the social media conversation by the University of South Carolina's Social Media Insights Lab revealed an unexpected reason for BYU's continued prominence.
“BYU is the latest symbol of college football chaos,” said Clay Owen, professor of practice at the University of South Carolina. “Our research found that some of the most influential posts weren't criticizing the Cougars at all. Fans were celebrating the sheer unpredictability of college football, and BYU was at the center of it.”
Michigan finished No. 3 in the team rankings following its overtime loss to Indiana. Social media conversation reflected growing frustration with the Wolverines' struggling offense, questionable play calling and uncertainty at quarterback. Michigan registered a negative sentiment score of -24.58, among the lowest in the Top 10.
| Rank | Team | Pulse Score | Last Week's Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | BYU | 96 | 2 |
| 2. | UCF | 81.1 | 27 |
| 3. | Michigan | 71.2 | 29 |
| 4. | Alabama | 70.6 | 4 |
| 5. | Ohio State | 63.9 | 5 |
| 6. | Texas | 63.8 | 50 |
| 7. | Indiana | 63.5 | 6 |
| 8. | Utah | 63 | 18 |
| 9. | Kentucky | 62.8 | 12 |
| 10. | Tennessee | 62.6 | 7 |
South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers took the No. 1 spot in the player rankings after his extraordinary touchdown run against Tennessee became a national social media sensation. A widely circulated post from Schultz Report attracted nearly 14,000 likes on X, while three Instagram posts from South Carolina Football, CBS Sports and independent creator Dylan Talks Ball generated more than 70,000 combined likes.
Tennessee running back DeSean Bishop finished No. 8 in the player rankings after rushing for 120 yards against South Carolina. Among the social media reactions was a particularly enthusiastic post on X from @NBAYOUNGVOL:
“DeSean Bishop isn’t just some ‘Football Player’ he is my goat. The reason why I wake up in the morning and the reason why I fall asleep at night. He is my oxygen. My soul. My love.”
The post attracted more than 12,000 views.
| Rank | Player | Team | Pulse Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | LaNorris Sellers | South Carolina | 100 |
| 2. | Arch Manning | Texas | 95.9 |
| 3. | Malachi Toney | Miami | 76 |
| 4. | Julian Sayin | Ohio State | 73.9 |
| 5. | Sam Leavitt | LSU | 72.7 |
| 6. | Jeremiah Smith | Ohio State | 73.9 |
| 7. | Darian Mensah | Miami | 63.2 |
| 8. | DeSean Bishop | Tennessee | 62.3 |
| 9. | Charlie Becker | Indiana | 58.3 |
| 10. | Trinidad Chambliss | Ole Miss | 57.6 |
A wave of coaching firings helped drive the Week 8 coach rankings. Maryland's Mike Locksley finished No. 1, followed by Baylor's Dave Aranda at No. 3 and NC State's Dave Doeren at No. 10.
Kentucky's first-year coach Will Stein held the No. 2 spot for the third consecutive week as the Wildcats moved into first place in the SEC with a 7-1 record. Among the widely shared posts was a video from @BarstoolDucks showing Stein laughing and sticking out his tongue in the Kentucky locker room. The video attracted nearly 120,000 views on X.
| Rank | Coach | TeamHeader | Pulse Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mike Locksley | Maryland | 85 |
| 2. | Will Stein | Kentucky | 83.4 |
| 3. | Dave Aranda | Baylor | 79.6 |
| 4. | Steve Sarkisian | Texas | 71.6 |
| 5. | Kalani Sitake | BYU | 68.9 |
| 6. | Ryan Day | Ohio State | 65.7 |
| 7. | Lane Kiffin | LSU | 63.9 |
| 8. | Morgan Scalley | Utah | 63.5 |
| 9. | Curt Cignetti | Indiana | 62 |
| 10. | Dave Doeren | NC State | 59.1 |
The Week Eight rankings are based on social media activity from Oct. 20 – Oct. 26.
About the College Sports Social Pulse™
Developed by the University of South Carolina’s Social Media Insights Lab, the College Sports Social Pulse™ transforms social media conversation into insight about the teams, athletes and coaches shaping the culture and business of college sports.
The Pulse tracks the national conversation across major social platforms and uses advanced analytics to identify who is generating attention, engagement and emotional response — regardless of what happens on the scoreboard.
Learn more about the College Sports Social Pulse™ here.