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sgtshenanigans Ballot for 2026 Week 8

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Oct. 18, 2026, 1:02 p.m.

Overall Rationale: I am submitting this after the AP poll but have not read the AP poll yet to avoid bias. I try to be willing to make big changes to my poll as new information is presented to avoid poll inertia.

Rank Team Reason
1 Miami Hurricanes The game against Florida State was tight all game more so than it probably should have been. I can chalk that up to being a rivalry game and the Noles playing up in a rivalry game. However, I wouldn't be surprised if this is showing some weakness for Miami. Still Miami is undefeated at a point in the season when most teams have at least one loss. So Miami gets the top spot.
2 BYU Cougars BYU is also undefeated with one of the better wins in the country. There is an argument to be made that BYU should be #1 however I think it's close and as such I am going to give the tie break (if you will) to the fact that I think Miami has the overall more talented team.
3 Ohio State Buckeyes Ohio State is the first one loss team in the country right now for me. With good wins over Iowa and Indiana and a close loss against a good but not great Texas team on the road. However, Ohio state's QB got his arm folded into his shoulder and looks like he might be out for a while. Ohio State has some tough games upcoming so the odds of them staying at 3 with a back up QB seems low.
4 Texas Tech Red Raiders Texas tech went bta on Arizona state. Their close win against Houston is looking better because Houston beat Oklahoma St. All that being said I still Texas Tech has some pretty big holes and are getting a little lucky that they won't face BYU or Utah in the regular season. Still they are undefeated so earn a top 5 ranking for now.
5 UCLA Bruins UCLA is undefeated and has some pretty decent wins against Oregon and Wisconsin. That being said they are playing their back up QB who seems to have played ok but not great. UCLA has one of the easiest schedules for a top team going forward which might be enough to keep them in the playoff hunt all season.
6 Ole Miss Rebels Ole miss trounces what I think is a pretty good Missouri team. Their win this week cements my thought that their loss against Florida was more of a talented team catching a higher ranked team at home after an emotional win rather than some proof that Ole Miss is not good. Is Ole Miss the best team in the SEC I think it's still a bit too early to tell but I do think they are a solid contender for a playoff spot. They get a chance to officially end Texas's playoff hopes next week.
7 Utah Utes Utah is undefeated which means something at this point of the season when so few teams are undefeated but their schedule so far has been pretty uninspiring. Next week they get their first real test of the season against Houston. Utah benefits the least from the carnage that happened above them as I think they are the most fraudulent of the undefeated big 12 teams.
8 Georgia Bulldogs Georgia takes their first L of the season against Auburn. Auburn controlled the middle half of the game and benefitted from some miscues from Gunner Stockton. This loss being as bad as it is and Gunner Stockton being as underwhelming as he has makes me seriously if Georgia was fools gold. The Oklahoma win which may have once been impressive really isn't and The Win against Alabama really felt skewed by the refs. Georgia will get to prove themselves one way or the other with their schedule remaining difficult ahead still.
9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Tough loss for Notre Dame. The offense had some really nice plays but struggled to finish drives especially drives that started in plus territory. The Defense struggled in the first half but made some adjustments and only let up 7 in the second half but did not clutch up when they needed to and let BYU score a touchdown on a long time consuming drive. I feel like this game was really close if Notre Dame had done a better job converting in the redzone they win but credit to BYUs defense they did well to cover NDs TEs and Receivers in the redzone.
10 Indiana Hoosiers Indiana's defense is legit and nasty possibly elite and were able to shut down the numerous weapons of Ohio State. Corralling Jeremiah Smith for most of the game. And even after Ohio State scored and took the lead late in the game the Indiana offense was still able to put themselves within a foot of winning but their receiver inexplicably seemingly made no effort to keep one foot in bounds on a wide open potential touchdown. With their schedule pretty soft the rest of the way Indiana still has a pretty good shot of making the BIG championship.
11 Tennessee Volunteers Some people will never give defenses their due but I will. Tennessee's defense is elite and that is why they are a bubble playoff team. Their offense has weapons but is missing a signal caller that can bring it all together. Really solid win against Bama gives Tennessee a signature win they were missing.
12 USC Trojans USC move up one during the bye week. Possible could have been two but I had Tennessee leapfrog USC on the strength of the Bama win.
13 James Madison Dukes James Madison wins again. The dukes are the only 7-0 team in the country. Their wins against a one loss Liberty and two loss Georgia State give them a pretty solid record when compared to other G6 schools.
14 Iowa Hawkeyes Iowa moves up two during the bye week. Ohio State, Michigan, and Washington all winning this week helps Iowa a little here.
15 Houston Cougars The Cougars beat CFB darling Oklahoma state in a tight game. Big matchup next week on the road against Utah could help sneak Houston into the playoff picture.
16 Kentucky Wildcats the cardiac cats strike again retaking the lead against the Sooners and in the 4th quarter and sealing the game by picking of John Mateer late. Might not be the most impressive win for Kentucky but they just keep finding ways to win which matters.
17 Northwestern Wildcats For a while it looked like Michigan state was going to win this game at home. However Northwestern found just enough offense to survive and get out of East Lansing with a win. A rather unimpressive win but a win all the same.
18 Alabama Crimson Tide Alabama losses their second in a row. While they were able to hold Tennessee to only field goals the Tennessee defense was suffocating and while there was some doubt as to how this game would turn out there wasn't that much. Tennessee simply dominated this game. And the Tennessee running game ground down the Alabama defense to pull away in the end. Georgia's loss to Auburn further solidifies my thought that the SEC is the most cannibalistic conference this year with a lack of true dominant teams. Alabama is the highest ranked two loss team for me.
19 Wake Forest Demon Deacons Wake Forest simply rolls over Cal. While this win isn't the most impressive Wake did have to go on the road so some added points their. Overall their schedule is uninspiring which holds them back quite a bit.
20 Boise State Broncos Boise State wins the bye week moving up 4 spots despite not playing. Oregon's win against Nebraska helps a little here but the Broncos benefit the most from losses from Mississippi St, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Texas.
21 Oregon Ducks Oregon gets the W over Nebraska despite their QB woes. their win against USC is helping to keep them afloat as their loss to Oklahoma state looks more inexcusable.
22 Texas Longhorns For a second year in a row Texas's playoff hopes are in danger thanks to a perplexing loss to Florida. HUGE matchup next week at home against Ole miss. Wins against Ohio State and Tennessee are keeping Texas ranked but losing to Oklahoma and Florida are back breakers. Arch Manning only had 173 yards of passing that is simply inexcusable with all the weapons Texas has on offense.
23 Arizona Wildcats Arizona also grabs a bye week win with all of losses from teams ahead of them this week.
24 SMU Mustangs SMU has not been super impressive this year but they only have one loss and beat Virginia this week to improve their resume a little. Another team that is benefitting from the chaos above them.
25 New Mexico Lobos New Mexico sneaks in to the bottom of my rankings here however just barely. I think New Mexico was given a lot of credit for keeping it close against what people though might be a good Oklahoma team. However we now know that losing to Oklahoma close isn't a positive statement. Their win over Hawaii isn't really impressive despite it being on the road because Hawaii is really bad. So this week isn't much better than a bye week for New Mexico. (other teams hanging near the top 25 in no particular order Liberty, Virginia Tech, LSU, Florida, Minnesota, Kansas State, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi St.)

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