Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Oct. 11, 2026, 1:19 p.m.

Overall Rationale: Early season rankings are based largely on expected results versus other ranked teams, and as the season goes leans more heavily on results. By the end of the season, rankings are based entirely on resume. I lean heavily into head to head results and results against common opponents. I also sort teams into 6 tiers based on championship/playoff likelihood. Tier 1: Championship Frontrunners who are highly likely to make the playoffs, Tier 2: Playoff Teams who could conceivably win the championship but are behind Tier 1, Tier 3: Playoff Possibilities who are unlikely to compete for a championship, Tier 4: Teams with an outside shot at making the playoffs, Tier 5: Teams that can't make the playoffs except for winning conference or unprecedented chaos Tier 6: Teams that are eliminated from playoff contention. Tiers 5 and 6 don't enter into the top 25 until very late in the year.

• Ballot
• Analysis

Rank	Team	Reason
1	Georgia Bulldogs	Tier 1. Best win and undefeated. Easy.
2	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	Tier 1.
3	Indiana Hoosiers	Tier 2.
4	Miami Hurricanes	Tier 2.
5	Alabama Crimson Tide	Tier 2. Tough loss but a few very good wins.
6	Texas Longhorns	Tier 2. Not a great loss but still the second best win in the country.
7	Ohio State Buckeyes	Tier 2. Flawed team but lots of talent. A win over Indiana would move them up.
8	Texas Tech Red Raiders	Tier 3.
9	BYU Cougars	Tier 3.
10	Utah Utes	Tier 3.
11	Tennessee Volunteers	Tier 4.
12	Mississippi State Bulldogs	Tier 4.
13	Missouri Tigers	Tier 4.
14	UCLA Bruins	Tier 4.
15	Ole Miss Rebels	Tier 4.
16	Oklahoma State Cowboys	Tier 4. Hard team to figure out. Worst loss if any ranked team but have looked good since. Next game will make things clearer.
17	Northwestern Wildcats	Tier 4.
18	Houston Cougars	Tier 4.
19	Arizona Wildcats	Tier 4.
20	Kentucky Wildcats	Tier 4.
21	LSU Tigers	Tier 4.
22	Iowa Hawkeyes	Tier 4.
23	Wake Forest Demon Deacons	Tier 4.
24	Nebraska Cornhuskers	Tier 4.
25	Oregon Ducks	Tier 4.

Teams Ranked:

Rank	Team	Unusualness
1	Georgia Bulldogs	0.00
2	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	0.00
3	Indiana Hoosiers	0.00
4	Miami Hurricanes	0.00
5	Alabama Crimson Tide	0.00
6	Texas Longhorns	0.05
7	Ohio State Buckeyes	0.00
8	Texas Tech Red Raiders	0.00
9	BYU Cougars	0.00
10	Utah Utes	0.00
11	Tennessee Volunteers	0.87
12	Mississippi State Bulldogs	0.37
13	Missouri Tigers	0.00
14	UCLA Bruins	-0.22
15	Ole Miss Rebels	0.00
16	Oklahoma State Cowboys	0.19
17	Northwestern Wildcats	0.37
18	Houston Cougars	0.00
19	Arizona Wildcats	0.85
20	Kentucky Wildcats	0.00
21	LSU Tigers	0.21
22	Iowa Hawkeyes	-0.51
23	Wake Forest Demon Deacons	0.00
24	Nebraska Cornhuskers	0.00
25	Oregon Ducks	0.00

Omissions:

Team	Unusualness
USC Trojans	0.67
Boise State Broncos	0.33

Total Score: 4.65