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redrumsoxLoL Ballot for 2026 Week 5

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Sept. 29, 2026, 10:16 a.m.

Rank Team Reason
1 Texas Longhorns While it wasn't the cleanest win, taking down another ranked opponent in Tennessee keeps them at the top of the list. There can be discussion on if the Horns are the true best team in the country, but they without a doubt have the strongest resume at this point in the season with wins two ranked wins and two wins against quality mid-major opponents, UTSA and Texas State.
2 Georgia Bulldogs The Bulldogs are my pick at this stage for best team in the country, but they don't have the resume to prove it with their best win coming against a heavily flawed Oklahoma team.
3 Ohio State Buckeyes The Buckeyes rolled against Illinois this weekend and allowed for receiver Jeremiah Smith to show off with 217 yards and 4 touchdowns.
4 Miami Hurricanes The Hurricanes have looked nearly unstoppable except in a relatively close game to ACC contender Wake Forest.
5 Indiana Hoosiers The Hoosiers narrowly defeated an improved Northwestern team on Friday night as they look to repeat. This game could be a cause for alarm on Indiana's offense this season.
6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish The Irish have had an easy schedule but they have BYU, SMU and Miami ahead of them on the schedule. They need to win at least one of these to have a chance at qualifying for the playoffs.
7 Florida Gators The Gators look completely real and look like a true contender in the SEC early on. They took care of business against a strong Ole Miss team on Saturday night.
8 Texas Tech Red Raiders Even though a number of mistakes, the pure talent difference of the Red Raideds overpowered Sam Houston St on Saturday.
9 Alabama Crimson Tide Bama continues their strong season with a win against South Carolina. The Crimson Tide have been a very quietly good team so far. They have a test against upstart Mississippi State this weekend
10 Ole Miss Rebels Falling to Florida drops the Rebels down the list, but I still expect them to make more noise this season.
11 BYU Cougars I really love the way BYU plays football and I hope they continue their strong performances as they get into the heart of Big12 conference play.
12 LSU Tigers The Tigers embarrassed Texas A&M in a get back game after losing to Ole Miss the previous weekend.
13 Utah Utes Utah has been another under the radar strong team. They haven't had any big tests so far but easily handled two Power 4 teams in Arkansas and Iowa State already.
14 Iowa Hawkeyes Iowa came back to win against Michigan on a last second touchdown through the air last Saturday. Iowa's defense is strong as always but they need a more consistent offense to be a contender.
15 Oregon Ducks Oregon battled through adversity to defeat USC in one of the best games of the weekend. The Ducks look to bounce back after their early loss against Oklahoma St
16 Tennessee Volunteers The Vols fell to Texas in a close game that they had possession of the ball in the closing seconds. This loss doesn't get in the way of the rest of the season at all if they can get back to winning.
17 Mississippi State Bulldogs Mississippi State has been one of the biggest surprises of the season. They look great after a good win against Missouri and play Alabama this weekend to prove they belong in SEC title conversations
18 Boise State Broncos The Broncos are simply the best mid-major team after defeating both Memphis and Western Michigan now. They are in the driver's seat to claim the automatic playoff spot for the G6 teams.
19 Houston Cougars The Cougars looked strong on offense against Georgia Southern but you may have hoped for more from their defense in that match up. Still this is a very fun team to watch if you love textbook football.
20 Duke Blue Devils I think Duke is real this season and I am hoping they prove me right. They are on a bye week and then 8 straight weeks of ACC play including a match up against Miami in November.
21 UCLA Bruins UCLA is another one of the most surprising teams this season. It is underappreciated how difficult their early schedule was with 3 Power 4 opponents and a strong G6 team San Diego St. They are undefeated and have a bye week before they play Oregon on Oct 10th.
22 Oklahoma State Cowboys It is tough to judge the Cowboys. They have really high-highs in beating Oregon and West Virginia but they lost to Tulsa to start the season. If they can keep winning that Tulsa loss may be completely forgotten by season's end as growing pains in a tune up game.
23 James Madison Dukes The Dukes are looking to return to the playoffs and are off to a good start. If Boise St falters, I believe JMU is in the best position at the moment to claim a playoff spot from the mid-major conferences.
24 Nebraska Cornhuskers The Cornhuskers are undefeated to start the season and have a match up against Maryland which on paper should raise them to 5-0 before they take on Indiana on October 10th.
25 Wake Forest Demon Deacons Defeating a Louisville team that had just wrapped up taking down SMU the week before earns Wake Forest the final spot on my rankings.

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