Notre Dame tops team rankings, despite loss

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A historic weekend of college football upsets produced a surprising leader in this week’s College Sports Social Pulse™ rankings from the University of South Carolina.

Notre Dame finished No. 1 in the rankings despite losing to BYU, which took the No. 2 spot.

The Pulse, which measures the influence of college football teams, players and coaches on social media, is published weekly in conjunction with the Sports Business Journal.

The Fighting Irish’s No. 1 ranking was driven in part by social media discussion of the game’s controversial ending, according to an analysis by USC’s Social Media Insights Lab. The Big 12 Conference acknowledged that officials incorrectly ended the game with one second remaining, denying Notre Dame an opportunity for one final play.

BYU came in No. 2 in the Pulse rankings, driven by celebratory posts, but also helped by ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit’s post on X saying, “Let’s not lose sight of what BYU did to put themselves in position to win this ballgame.”

Four games took eight of the top spots in Week Seven’s Pulse rankings. Three of those four were upsets. But the winner of the game wasn’t necessarily the winner in the Pulse rankings.

“In three of the weekend’s biggest games, the losing team actually finished higher in the Pulse than the winning team,” said Clay Owen, professor of practice at the University of South Carolina. “That’s why we look beyond the rankings to understand what’s driving the conversation.”

Teams

Indiana wide receiver Charlie Becker took the No. 1 spot in the player rankings, but it wasn’t his performance against Ohio State that drove much of the social media conversation.

Becker’s postgame apology to Ohio State coach Ryan Day for a profane chant following last year’s Big Ten Championship game generated widespread praise for his sportsmanship. Becker registered 85.24% positive sentiment. He also caught nine passes for 165 yards against the Buckeyes.

The Becker apology also figured prominently in the social media conversation surrounding Ryan Day, who finished No. 1 among coaches. But the conversation extended well beyond that exchange, with Ohio State supporters praising Day’s coaching performance against Indiana and highlighting his career record.

Kentucky coach Will Stein remained No. 2 for the second consecutive week, drawing attention for both his coaching decisions and his growing popularity in Lexington. A video analyzing Stein’s strategy on the game-winning two-point conversion against LSU attracted 2.3 million views on X. And a Lexington restaurateur announced a new menu item: “Steak à la Stein.”

Auburn coach Alex Golesh finished No. 3 following the Tigers’ upset of top-ranked Georgia. The conversation included praise for Golesh’s leadership and optimism about Auburn’s future, along with renewed interest in his remarkable personal story. A widely circulated post highlighted his family’s immigration from the Soviet Union and his introduction to American football as a child in Brooklyn.

The Week Six rankings are based on social media activity from Oct. 13 – Oct. 19.

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 at www.collegesportssocialpulse.com