Ballot Type: Computer

Submitted: Nov. 8, 2026, 10:28 a.m.

Overall Rationale: I have made my own ELO-rating system (similar to chess) for college football. Only final scores are considered in the ratings. W-L records do not matter. Margin of victory matters. My code is on github here: https://github.com/kyleaforrester/cfb_elo Losing to a good team might actually improve your rating if you played them close enough. Beating a bad team with a slim margin might drop your rating if your margin of victory isn't good enough. I don't care about the end W-L result or the W-L team records, just how each team performs when compared to what was expected of them.

• Ballot
• Analysis

Rank	Team	Reason
1	Georgia Bulldogs
2	Ohio State Buckeyes
3	Indiana Hoosiers
4	Alabama Crimson Tide
5	Notre Dame Fighting Irish
6	Texas Longhorns
7	Miami Hurricanes
8	Utah Utes
9	LSU Tigers
10	Tennessee Volunteers
11	Ole Miss Rebels
12	Iowa Hawkeyes
13	Oregon Ducks
14	Missouri Tigers
15	UCLA Bruins
16	South Carolina Gamecocks
17	Arizona Wildcats
18	Northwestern Wildcats
19	BYU Cougars
20	Texas Tech Red Raiders
21	Kentucky Wildcats
22	Wake Forest Demon Deacons
23	Oklahoma Sooners
24	Texas A&M Aggies
25	USC Trojans

Teams Ranked:

Rank	Team	Unusualness
1	Georgia Bulldogs	0.22
2	Ohio State Buckeyes	3.61
3	Indiana Hoosiers	0.60
4	Alabama Crimson Tide	0.59
5	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	0.00
6	Texas Longhorns	0.32
7	Miami Hurricanes	-0.07
8	Utah Utes	-3.73
9	LSU Tigers	2.24
10	Tennessee Volunteers	0.00
11	Ole Miss Rebels	1.72
12	Iowa Hawkeyes	0.72
13	Oregon Ducks	0.88
14	Missouri Tigers	7.09
15	UCLA Bruins	-3.31
16	South Carolina Gamecocks	1.33
17	Arizona Wildcats	0.11
18	Northwestern Wildcats	7.16
19	BYU Cougars	-1.24
20	Texas Tech Red Raiders	-2.15
21	Kentucky Wildcats	-1.07
22	Wake Forest Demon Deacons	-3.24
23	Oklahoma Sooners	2.08
24	Texas A&M Aggies	1.24
25	USC Trojans	-1.82

Omissions:

Team	Unusualness
Houston Cougars	2.60
Boise State Broncos	1.15
New Mexico Lobos	0.48
SMU Mustangs	0.17

Total Score: 50.92