Back to poll results >>

Pyromania1983 Ballot for 2026 Week 4

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Sept. 21, 2026, 6:46 p.m.

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

Rank Team Reason
1 Texas Longhorns Texas still has one of the most impressive wins of the season, if not the most impressive, with their victory over Ohio State two Saturdays ago. Facing UTSA, they dominated with a 24-point win, and even then things weren't completely impressive. Even so, they deserve to remain in their number 1 spot, with the tough conference games beginning this upcoming weekend against Tennessee.
2 Georgia Bulldogs I'm much higher on Georgia than the AP poll has been, and that remains after a third straight week of complete domination. Arkansas was absolutely a better opponent than WKU and Tennessee State, and the Bulldogs still took things in stride and ended things before they even began. Now actually at 2 in the AP poll, I think they are porperly ranked here until they start losing -- they've looked every bit the contender.
3 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Well, Notre Dame has had a really good start to the year. Sandwiching a 52-0 blowout over not-very-good Rice are two impressive wins by Notre Dame over two pretty good or solid B1G teams. This past week, they got out to a big lead and defeated a then-undefeated Michigan State squad. CJ Carr was extremely efficient and impressive, and the scoreline was actually not even as dominant as Notre Dame was in reality.
4 Miami Hurricanes Moved the Hurricanes down a spot, despite another double-digit win this past week. After two extremely good wins, Miami did struggle quite a bit against Wake Forest. QB Darian Mensah was very efficient, with only 4 incompletions and no interceptions, but Wake Forest looked almost as good on offense. They matched them pretty well in yardage, both in total and by average yards per play. Hence, the win wasn't as impressive as their first two, or of the top-3 in the poll currently.
5 Ole Miss Rebels Ole Miss got a signature win, getting the best of Lane Kiffin, deservedly so, in the process. They went from 13th last week to 5th this week in my poll, beating a really good LSU team that also looked impressive to start the season. Trinidad Chambliss has a rocket of an arm and the team's passing/receiving was a recipe for big plays at timely moments. A top-5 team for the time being.
6 Indiana Hoosiers Indiana has done literally everything right in non-conference play this year. Their defense has looked phenomenal, pitching two straight shutouts lowering their scoring average 5.3 points allowed per game. Week 3 featured the best of everything on offense too: a really good game from QB Josh Hoover, a great running game by RB Turbo Richard (great name!), and really awesome receiving from Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh.
7 Ohio State Buckeyes I really, really thought that Ohio State being dropped so far in the AP poll was so ridiculously stupid after barely losing to Texas in Week 2, and had then at 7. I keep them here after a ridiculous win over MAC school Kent State. Julian Sayin was able to spread the ball to so many different guys, and a lot of guys got playing time due to this game being over so early on. This is still an arguably top-5 team in football.
8 Penn State Nittany Lions Penn State has looked more and more comfortable in Matt Campbell's scheme this season. The defense continues to have a major effect on their dominant wins. The big difference this week than in the first two is that it looks like the running game finally got going! With the team's easy schedule, the defense looking as good as ever, and the offense finally having weapons at all of QB, RB, and WR, the Nittany Lions are poised to make big noise this year.
9 Texas Tech Red Raiders The Red Raiders have looked a little rough to start the year, and was even the case a bit in Week 3 but thankfully it came against much better competition than what they faced the first two weeks. I really like Houston and had them ranked last week, and this game was a pretty big one for both teams, even this early on. Houston's offense was great all-around, but Tech's wasn't too shabby either, doing just enough to overcome the fact that they had the ball for seven fewer minutes than Houston.
10 Alabama Crimson Tide Alabama has been teasing us with potential upsets over the past two weeks. The first halves of each of their past two games have been extremely close, both within five points. However, just like in Week 2 against Kentucky, Week 3 against Florida State led to a 50-spot and a 14-point win. The defense didn't look good at all, but the explosive offense carried the way.
11 USC Trojans USC is now one of the few teams at 4-0, having played in Week 0, and the team is making the most of their matchups. In their first B1G matchup of the year, the team outlasted a bad Rutgers team (better than their record, but still not a team that should have been within 7 points). The offense continues to roll, but there are some defensive concerns. Yes, they have one shutout, but they have allowed 26, 30, and 35 points as well, and against opponents who aren't exactly the best. Something to watch.
12 Tennessee Volunteers I consistently had Tennessee a few spots above where they have actually been ranked every single week of the season so far, and that continues this week. Ranked 14th in the AP poll, the Vols finished this set of non-conference games with a massive 42-9 win over Kennesaw State. The offense put up almost 500 yards, and put this game out of reach very early on. They get their first real test of 2026 with a Week 4 matchup against number 1 Texas.
13 Mississippi State Bulldogs Another team I have been higher on than the AP poll (having ranked them since the preseason), the team has finally officially been ranked by the AP. They have moved up 9 spots on my poll too, especially after beating a pretty good South Carolina team. Despite a 13-0 deficit at the end of the first, the team's offense started firing on all cylinders and persevered en route a 3-0 start to the season. A tough in-conference matchup in Week 4 against Mizzou will be a big game for their spot in the rankings.
14 LSU Tigers LSU still has a really good team. The first two weeks were pure dominance, and week 3 was still a very close matchup against a really good Ole Miss team. They have a few more weeks to sort things out before facing the big dogs of the conference. Week 4 might be tough against a Texas A&M team that just got upset, so a big bounceback win is definitely in order.
15 BYU Cougars BYU has been really good this year. They had things so out of question in Week 3 against Colorado State that, despite the Rams scoring 16 points in the 4th, the Cougars still finished with an 18-point win. The offense put up almost 600 total yards, with the rushing game playing a big part, chipping in a massive 332 yards on the ground. They have a bye week this week before few more games coming up to make things right, just in time for a big showdown with Notre Dame on October 17.
16 Iowa Hawkeyes That's more like it! Iowa didn't look like Iowa in Week 3, and that was the best thing for them. After barely getting by Iowa State in the CyHawk matchup, and scoring just 16 points in that matchup, the Hawkeyes put up 55 points and shut out Northern Iowa. Yes, Northern Iowa isn't a good team, but this was exactly what the Hawkeyes needed before the start of B1G play this week. They immediately get a tough matchup, facing a Michigan team that is still undefeated by technicality.
17 Utah Utes For as good as BYU has looked, the Utah Utes aren't too far behind. their offense might not be as good as the Cougars, but their defense definitely is. In a matchup against Utah State in Week 3, Utah's defense put up a shutout. They have allowed no more than 14 points in any of their games this season, held Utah State to just 188 yards overall, and created two turnovers. Great performance!
18 Michigan Wolverines Despite not really winning in Week 1, Michigan have looked really good over the past two games. After upsetting Oklahoma in Week 2, the Wolverines played a not-that-good UTEP team and took care of business. They outgained the Miners by almost 300 yards on offense, finally looking better on the offensive side. They have two tough games over their next three matchups, facing Iowa this upcoming weekend before facing Penn State a few games later. Season-defining stretch upcoming.
19 Duke Blue Devils I have been high on the Blue Devils since they wonn the ACC title last year, and the team has continued to look like a really good team. They still really aren't receiving love in the AP poll, but they have been the better team in all three of their games this year. Even with that, this past week's win over Stanford was on another level, as they won by 28, put up almost 500 yards of offense, and sustained a massive 268-yard rushing attack.
20 Missouri Tigers I hadn't had Mizzou ranked up to this point, but with losses by teams like Texas A&M and Virginia, the Tigers had to move into the poll this week. They haven't looked particularly dominant, especially not in this past week's game against Troy, but they have done enough to get double-digit wins in all three games so far. Week 4 will be their toughest matchup, facing a really good Mississippi State team.
21 Florida Gators After doing wonders in his time at Tulane, Jon Sumrall's Gators have looked really good to start the season. After two dominant wins to start the year, Florida was able to take down a tough Auburn team. The defense definitely didn't look very good, but the score was definitely closer than the actual performance. Florida had 122 more yards on offense, 19 more minutes in time of possession, almost a full yard more per play. They do need to clean up penalties though, if they want to stay competitive.
22 Virginia Tech Hokies James Franklin's new squad has gotten out to a hot start this year. With the Virginia Cavaliers losing, the Hokies are one of the top dogs in the ACC (alongside Miami and Duke). Franklin HATES Maryland, and it showed again this year. Penn State transfer Ethan Grunkemeyer was a fantastic field general, throwing over 300 yards and 3 touchdowns, with no interceptions. In the team's first somewhat tough matchup of the year, they looked poised for the battle.
23 North Dakota State Bison Another of the few teams who are 4-0 after playing in Week 0, the Bison have continued to adjust extremely well to FBS. Aside from their game against Air Force in Week 3 in which they allowed 32 points, the Bison have allowed just 7, 0, and 10 in their other three games. And the offense has been rolling, putting up at least 31 points in every game this year as well. In a not-so-tough Mountain West Conference, the Bison can make history and turn themselves into a CFP darkhorse if they keep on winning.
24 James Madison Dukes With Billy Napier taking over the team this season, and after making the CFP last season, the Dukes have looked just as good as they did last year. Despite just 26 points, the team still achieved 417 yards on offense this past week, allowing just 13 points as well. They will need to be a bit better with finishing off drives to get more on the scoreboard, but the team is having no issues moving the ball or stopping opponents from doing the same.
25 West Virginia Mountaineers The Mountaineers have some solid expectations from year-to-year but never seem to live up to them. They flipped the script in their first three games this year, actually looking really good after not having many expectations. Their Week 3 win over Virginia was a big win for WVU. Virginia had looked really good in their first two games, but the Mountaineers looked better in this one, putting up almost 100 more yards and 11 more points in just about 7 fewer minutes. 7/15 on third downs is huge, as well!

Back to poll results >>