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Pyromania1983 Ballot for 2026 Week 3

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Sept. 13, 2026, 3:33 p.m.

Overall Rationale: Using the eye-test, standings, win-loss record, margins, and stats

Rank Team Reason
1 Texas Longhorns What can you say? They had one of the best comebacks in recent history and took down the former number 1 ranked Ohio State. Faced adversity for the first 45 minutes of the game before completely controlling the 4th. Great finish!
2 Georgia Bulldogs Georgia hasn't really faced anyone good so far, but they've dominated the lesser opponents to an insane degree. Glorified scrimmages but there has been essentially nothing the team has need to work on.
3 Miami Hurricanes Had Miami third last week, and keep them there again. Their 77-7 win on Thursday night was expected, but the fashion was still dominant. They have two more easy matchups coming up before conference play starts. The Hurricanes look primed for that part of their schedule.
4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish I had Notre Dame a little lower the first two polls, but the team decimated Rice yesterday. After a strong victory in Week 1 over Wisconsin as well, it's safe to say that Notre Dame will stay in my top-5 unless they show otherwise.
5 Indiana Hoosiers The defending national champs are still rolling after the loss of Fernando Mendoza. Just like in Week 1, Indiana's offense continued to dominate, putting up over 50 points for the second straight week. It was the team's defense that made the bigger difference, completing a shutout against Howard.
6 LSU Tigers After a disappointing season last year, LSU looks much better through the first two weeks this year. Last week, I had them in 7th, and now in 6th, slightly ahead of the actual AP poll in both weeks.
7 Ohio State Buckeyes I mean, for the first 45 minutes of their game against Ohio State, the Buckeyes looked poised for a dominant win and solidified as the number 1 team in the poll. Instead, they blew it terribly in the 4th. Even so, this team might be the most talented in the country, and if they continue to win, they'll easily remain in a playoff spot.
8 Texas A&M Aggies The Aggies had a harder opponent in Week 2, and had themselves another amazing week. Despite being outgained in yards and yards per play, they scored a great 48 points. Even without firing on all cylinders, the team has an insane level of talent to win a game like this.
9 Penn State Nittany Lions I might be a bit bullish and biased on this one, but the Nittany Lions look like a completely different team than last year. Led by LB Tony Rojas, the defense looks like a top-10 defense in the entire country, allowing 0 points and 9 points respectively over the first two weeks. The offense struggled a bit in the first half, but Matt Campbell made halftime adjustments (shocking!) that made Penn State's victory an easy one in the end. Additionally, the team should be able to rack up wins without having to face Ohio State, Oregon, or Indiana this year.
10 USC Trojans After playing in Week 0, USC is one of the few teams in the country with a 3-0 record. They've been every bit the contender this year. High-scoring offense? Got it. A defense that can show up when needed and cause problems? Got it. The schedule will become much tougher in the coming weeks but for now, this team is looking great.
11 Alabama Crimson Tide With things tied yesterday, it looked like Kentucky might bring us a big upset. Instead, once the second half rolled around, Alabama completely took over the game. The Crimson Tide are always a contender from year-to-year and, until the schedule gets more difficult, these games will continue to be won in resounding fashion.
12 Texas Tech Red Raiders Texas Tech is looking great so far, though there is a little bit of a worry with the team's defense. They let up 10 against a very bad ACU team and 24 points against a bad Oregon State team. In fact, they were outgained by 120 yards. The team's defense will need to clean things up if they want to move up and be a playoff team.
13 Ole Miss Rebels I had Ole Miss ranked a bit low last week, at 15th, and I still have them behind the AP poll. Their huge win over Louisville moved them up last week for me, and their dominant win over much lesser Charlotte solidified their spot even more. If they win over LSU this next Saturday, they are poised to move up massively.
14 Tennessee Volunteers I've been a little bit higher on Tennessee than the national consensus, and I'm moving them up three more spots with Oklahoma and Oregon dropping from my poll completely. And props to the Vols. Their offense looks ridiculous, especially their running game, and their defense has created some timely turnovers that have keep games out of arm's reach.
15 Michigan Wolverines I still kept Michigan in the poll last week, and well they ended up completing the funniest result, beating a good Oklahoma team. The team is scrappy. They won't get blown out very much and they'll keep things close, but the super close results could lead to unnecessary losses too.
16 BYU Cougars BYU's offense struggled a bit more in Week 2. After putting up 63 points in Week 1, Arizona largely held BYU at bay, allowing just 28 points and keeping it within 11. Even so, with Oklahoma and Oregon's losses, BYU was able to stay put despite a less-than-stellar performance.
17 Houston Cougars I'm buying tons of stock in Houston this year. The offense was ROLLING in Week 2 and the team's mostly favorable schedule will allow them to be a contender for Big 12 champion by season's end. Looking forward to seeing them more this season.
18 Iowa Hawkeyes Well, Week 2 was much more of an Iowa performance than Week 1. The CyHawk game was competitive as always, and low-scoring (Iowa's special). The defense kept the team in it, and offense did just enough in the 4th quarter to outscore the Cyclones 6-0 and come out with a 3-point victory. With the team's defense, they are staying in my poll until there is reason not to.
19 Washington Huskies Another B1G team that is underperforming a bit, I am still keeping Washington in the poll (something not even AP did). I was lower on the consensus at the start of the year, and that has shown to be true. The first loss this team suffers, if pretty early in the year, they will likely be dropped from my poll altogether. They stay alive one more week.
20 Virginia Cavaliers Virginia is rolling and looking like a true contender in the ACC. After a 34-8 Week 1 win, Virginia topped that with a 59-3 win in Week 2. With the way the team has looked, and a favorable schedule this year, this team will likely continue moving up in the rankings in the coming weeks.
21 Duke Blue Devils Last week, I said I would keep Duke in the poll for as long as they gave me reason not to keep them in it. I put them in my poll after a big conference championship win last year and Sun Bowl victory. They ended up showing a ton of resilience and took down a pretty good Illinois team to start 2-0 this year. On this issue, I must quote Joker in the Dark Knight: "I'm not a monster, I'm just ahead of the curve."
22 Mississippi State Bulldogs Since the preseason, I've had Mississippi State in my poll, being higher on them than the general consensus. They've begun the season with two blowout victories and they will remain in my poll for as long as they keep winning. Very fun team with an explosive offense!
23 Utah Utes After putting them in 23rd last week, Utah stays in that spot again this week. Two dominant victories have led the team to a great start. They face an easy Utah State team this upcoming week as well. If they keep winning, this team is definitely in a good spot to make some noise in the Big 12.
24 Virginia Tech Hokies After two dominant victories to start the season, new head coach James Franklin has this team rolling. As is the special with Franklin, the Hokies covered the spread in their first two games and that will probably happen again in Week 3 as Franklin faces the Maryland Terrapins, a team he has absolute hatred for. Expect another spread to be covered.
25 North Dakota State Bison In their first season as an FBS school for football, the Bison have hit the ground running! 3 straight dominant victories to start the year have put them on people's radar's and they are in my poll for the time being, as long as they keep winning. They are in a favorable Mountain West Conference, and they will continue to have a good year. Definitely a fun team to watch.

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