It didn't take long for the Alabama Crimson Tide to get back within one loss of a possible national championship berth. In the Week 12 USA Today coaches poll, the Tide are No. 3, leading the pack of one-loss teams behind the only two undefeated squads left in BCS automatic qualifier conferences, No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Oklahoma State.
The Tide rose after Stanford lost to Oregon in Week 11, sending the Cardinal down to No. 9 and elevating the Ducks to No. 4. And they were already ahead of Boise State, which falls out of the top 10 to No. 11 after being upset by TCU at home.
The Broncos' loss is Houston's game. The Cougars are the only undefeated team that isn't in a BCS automatic qualifier conference, and show up at No. 10.
Oklahoma is No. 5, rounding out the top five, and is followed by No. 6 Arkansas, No. 7 Virginia Tech, and No. 8 Clemson before Stanford and Houston round out the top 10.
Elsewhere, TCU moved up to No. 19 after knocking Boise State from the unbeaten ranks, Southern Mississippi moved into the top 20 at No. 20 after surviving pesky UCF, and Florida State and Notre Dame re-entered the top 25 at No. 22 and No. 25.
Here's the full USA Today coaches poll top 25 for Week 12: