College football Top 25 after Week 8, 2026

Up three, and first is an editorial call. On this page's method Ohio State's résumé is a little stronger: it won at Indiana, now 7-1, and at Iowa, and lost by a point at Texas. Miami gets the spot because it's the only unbeaten team with two road wins over teams with winning records, 33-20 at Wake Forest, now 6-1, and 41-13 at Clemson, and it added Pittsburgh, 5-3, on Saturday. Miami led 31-7 at halftime; Darian Mensah threw touchdown passes of 19 and 53 yards to Malachi Toney and a 3-yarder to Gavin Mueller. Mensah went 31 of 37 for 387 yards and four touchdowns, and Toney caught 16 passes for 194 yards. Next: at North Carolina.

Down one while idle, and that's the result of an editorial call, not anything Ohio State did. On this page's method its résumé is still the strongest at the top: 19-15 at Indiana, now 7-1, 31-14 at Iowa and 42-19 over Illinois, which beat Oregon on Saturday, with the only loss by a point at Texas. Miami is first instead because it's unbeaten with two road wins over teams with winning records; see its note. Indiana won in overtime at Michigan, and Iowa lost 13-10 at Minnesota and is 5-2. Julian Sayin has 2,007 passing yards at 10.5 yards per attempt, and Jeremiah Smith has 984 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. Next: at USC.

Unchanged. UCLA's best win, 17-15 at Oregon, lost value when the Ducks lost 21-10 at Illinois to fall to 4-3, and the other good one is 17-7 over Wisconsin, which beat USC by 17 on Saturday. Texas has more good wins but sits a place behind as an editorial call; see its note. Michigan State scored first on a 14-yard pass, and UCLA answered with 28 straight points: Jaivian Thomas from 7 yards, Wayne Knight from 1, Ty Dieffenbach's 63-yard pass to Brian Rowe Jr. and Anthony Woods from 4. Woods ran 14 times for 112 yards, UCLA outgained Michigan State 443-156, and Donavyn Pellot and Malik Hartford had interceptions. UCLA lost two fumbles. Nevada visits Saturday.

Up two, and fourth is an editorial call. On the method Texas would be third: it has five wins over teams with winning records, more than anyone, led by Ohio State at home and 20-17 at Tennessee, and both losses are by three, to Oklahoma in Dallas and Florida at home. It's placed behind unbeaten UCLA because of how it played Saturday. Texas led 24-3 and gave up 21 straight points, seven on a fumble recovered in the end zone after Arch Manning was sacked for a 23-yard loss, and it turned it over three times and was penalized 14 times for 134 yards. Manning's 1-yard run with 8:04 left broke the tie. Mississippi State visits Saturday.

Up four while idle. Georgia's 20-17 win at Alabama is the best road win of any one-loss team other than Ohio State's at Indiana, and Alabama beat Texas A&M on Saturday to get to 6-2. The other win of note is 41-13 over Oklahoma, which won 23-15 at Mississippi State. The loss is 27-24 at home to Auburn, which lost 38-17 to LSU and is 4-3. Texas, with more good wins, and unbeaten UCLA are ahead of it; the win in Tuscaloosa and one fewer loss put Georgia ahead of Alabama. Gunner Stockton has 1,570 passing yards, 16 touchdowns and four interceptions. Next: Florida, in Atlanta.

Up four. Alabama won 45-17 at Kentucky, now 7-1, and 56-23 at Mississippi State, and it beat South Carolina, which beat Tennessee on Saturday, 49-18. The losses are by three at home to Georgia, a place ahead, and by 16 at Tennessee. The Vols won that game, but they now have a second loss and fewer good wins, and with résumés that far apart head-to-head doesn't decide it. Dijon Lee Jr. returned an interception 39 yards for the first score. Texas A&M led 20-17 in the third quarter before Keelon Russell threw touchdown passes of 5 yards to Marshall Pritchett and 8 to Kaleb Edwards early in the fourth. Russell went 19 of 30 for 311 yards. Idle Saturday.

Up four. Kentucky's best wins all gained value Saturday: LSU, beaten 35-34 in Lexington, won 38-17 at Auburn; Oklahoma, beaten 21-13 in Norman, won at Mississippi State; and South Carolina, beaten 35-34 in Columbia, beat Tennessee. With 31-21 at Texas A&M, that's three road wins over SEC teams. The 45-17 home loss to Alabama keeps Kentucky a place behind the Tide. Vanderbilt led 10-0 in the second quarter. Kenny Minchey's 9-yard pass to DJ Miller and Willie Rodriguez's 1-yard run with 21 seconds left in the half put Kentucky ahead, and it scored 34 of the last 41 points. Minchey went 19 of 26 for 203 yards, and Kentucky didn't turn it over. Idle Saturday.

Up seven. Indiana has four wins over teams with winning records, two on the road, 20-17 at Nebraska and Saturday's at Michigan, plus Northwestern, 6-1, and North Texas, 5-2, at home. The loss is 19-15 to Ohio State. Kentucky is a place ahead because its wins, LSU and at Oklahoma among them, are better. Nico Radicic kicked field goals of 22 and 34 yards, and Michigan tied it on a 26-yarder as time ran out, after Rolijah Hardy sacked Tommy Carr on third-and-goal. In overtime Josh Hoover hit Brock Schott for 21 yards and ran in from 4, and Michigan's last pass fell incomplete on fourth-and-9 from the 13. Indiana gained 212 yards; Michigan ran for 57. Minnesota visits Saturday.

Down one while idle. Florida's wins are as good as anyone's in this part of the list: 27-24 at Texas, now fourth, 52-28 over Ole Miss, 44-39 at Auburn and 66-21 over FAU, 5-2. The losses, 45-17 at Missouri and 38-19 at home to South Carolina, are why Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky and Indiana sit ahead of it, though South Carolina's win over Tennessee made the second one look better. The win over Ole Miss keeps Florida a place ahead of the Rebels, and the win in Austin isn't enough to pass a Texas team with five good wins and better losses. Jadan Baugh has 763 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns. Next: Georgia, in Atlanta.

Up two after a seven-point loss at Texas. Both of Ole Miss's losses came on the road to teams ranked above it, and its wins include LSU by eight in Oxford, Missouri by 28 and Louisville in Nashville. LSU's résumé is close enough that the head-to-head win puts Ole Miss ahead of the Tigers; the 52-28 loss at Florida keeps it behind the Gators. Ole Miss trailed 24-3, then scored 21 straight: Kam Franklin's fumble recovery in the end zone and Horatio Fields' touchdown catches of 6 and 27 yards tied it with 13:57 left. Trinidad Chambliss threw three interceptions, one on fourth-and-goal from the Texas 2 before halftime and the last with two seconds left. Auburn visits Saturday.

Up seven. LSU has four wins over teams with winning records, Saturday's at Auburn, which won at Georgia, plus Clemson, Louisiana Tech and Mississippi State at home, all by 21 or more, and it beat Texas A&M by 29. Both losses came on the road to teams ranked above it, by eight at Ole Miss and by one at Kentucky, which is why it sits behind both. Sam Leavitt went 32 of 45 for 387 yards and three touchdowns, two to Jackson Harris, whose 70-yarder made it 24-10, and Leavitt's 4-yard run with 17 seconds left in the half made it 31-10. LSU gained 552 yards, sacked Auburn seven times and didn't turn it over. Idle Saturday.

Down 10 after a double-overtime loss at UCF, 4-3. BYU still has two wins over teams that have lost once, Notre Dame and Arizona, but both came in Provo, and LSU and Ole Miss, just ahead, have lost only to teams ranked above them. The win over Notre Dame keeps BYU ahead of the Irish. Matthias Dunn's 47-yard field goal tied it 24-24 with 12:09 left. In the first overtime Bear Bachmeier threw 28 yards to Legend Glasker and UCF answered from 25. In the second, a roughing-the-kicker penalty wiped out a UCF field goal, Keyone Jenkins threw a 4-yard touchdown and the two-point conversion, and BYU reached the 4 before three straight incompletions. Arizona State visits Saturday.

Up three while idle. Notre Dame's best wins, 41-13 over Wisconsin at Lambeau Field and 37-26 at North Carolina, are over teams with winning records, and Wisconsin's 24-7 win over USC on Saturday made the first one better. North Carolina lost 31-30 in overtime to Syracuse and is 4-3. The loss is by four at BYU, and that result keeps the Irish a place behind the Cougars. Tennessee, a place behind, has the better single win, over Alabama, but two losses to Notre Dame's one. CJ Carr has 1,639 passing yards, 16 touchdowns and one interception. Next: Navy, at Gillette Stadium.

Down seven after losing on the last play. Tennessee's case is still 26-10 over Alabama and 24-14 over Auburn, both in Knoxville, and both losses are by three, to Texas at home and at South Carolina. That isn't enough to stay ahead of an Alabama team with the same record and more good wins. Tennessee led 24-17 after Cooper Ranvier's 37-yard field goal with 11:46 left. LaNorris Sellers tied it on a 4-yard run with 1:17 to go, Dylan Stewart sacked George MacIntyre and forced a fumble that Tomiwa Durojaiye recovered at the Tennessee 34, and Malik Orsan kicked a 48-yarder as time ran out. DeSean Bishop carried 32 times for 120 yards. Idle Saturday.

New. Utah was 6-0 and unranked last week because it hadn't beaten a team with a winning record. Saturday's win over Houston, 6-2, gives it one, but its other FBS opponents, Arkansas, Kansas, Iowa State, Colorado and Utah State, are a combined 13-22, which is why it starts behind teams with deeper résumés. Houston led 13-7 late in the third quarter. Wayshawn Parker's 5-yard run put Utah ahead with 11:57 left, and with 2:15 to go Jackson Bennee sacked Conner Weigman on first down from the Houston 20, Jireh Moe recovered the fumble at the 9, and Devon Dampier ran in on the next play. Dampier ran 15 times for 150 yards and two touchdowns. Next: at Cincinnati.

Up six. Arizona's best win got better Saturday: Cincinnati, beaten 34-7 in Tucson, beat Texas Tech by 13. The other good one is 52-31 at West Virginia, 5-3, and the loss is 28-17 at BYU. The Cincinnati result puts Arizona a place ahead of the Bearcats and ahead of Texas Tech, which lost to them. Noah Fifita's 71-yard pass to Isaiah Mizell put Arizona ahead 31 seconds into the game, and it led 25-3 at halftime. Fifita went 27 of 34 for 308 yards and two touchdowns, Mizell caught eight passes for 134 yards, and Iowa State gained 221. Next: at Texas Tech.

New. Cincinnati has four wins over teams with winning records, all at home: Texas Tech, Boston College, Miami (Ohio) and Kansas State. The losses are 34-7 at Arizona and 45-42 at West Virginia, and the Arizona result keeps it a place behind the Wildcats; beating Texas Tech by 13 puts it ahead of the Red Raiders. Texas Tech led 6-3, and JC French IV threw three touchdown passes in the last 7:48 of the first half, the last a 2-yarder to Lyviel Waters with five seconds left, for a 24-6 lead. French threw four in all, Cole Tabb ran 16 times for 173 yards, including a 58-yard touchdown with 6:06 left, and Texas Tech lost two fumbles. Utah visits Saturday.

Down 13. Texas Tech's best wins are 28-26 over Houston and 35-24 at Oregon State, and the loss is by 13 at Cincinnati. The Bearcats are ahead on head-to-head, and Arizona, which beat Cincinnati by 27, is ahead of both. The win over Houston keeps Texas Tech a place ahead of the Cougars. Will Hammond lost a fumble on fourth-and-1 at his own 45 on the first possession, Cincinnati scored three touchdowns in the last 7:48 of the first half for a 24-6 lead, and Coy Eakin lost a fumble at the Cincinnati 38 in the fourth quarter. Peyton Morgan returned an interception 53 yards for a touchdown, and Stone Harrington kicked four field goals. Arizona visits Saturday.

Down five. Houston has four wins over teams with winning records, Oklahoma State, Oregon State and UCF at home and Kansas State on the road, and both losses are on the road to teams ranked here, by two at Texas Tech and by eight at Utah. Losing to both is why it sits behind both. Houston turned it over on downs at the Utah 3 in the first quarter and led 13-7 late in the third. Trailing 14-13 with 2:15 left, Conner Weigman was sacked and fumbled on first down from his own 20, and Utah scored on the next play. Weigman went 19 of 35 for 282 yards, and Amare Thomas caught five passes for 133. Idle Saturday.

Up four. Oklahoma State has three wins over teams with winning records, 39-31 over Oregon, 41-24 at West Virginia and 42-28 over UCF, which beat BYU on Saturday. The losses are 24-10 at Tulsa, 4-4, and 35-32 at Houston, which keeps it behind the Cougars. Those wins are better than Boise State's, which is why it's a place ahead of the Broncos. Colorado led 24-23 at halftime, and Oklahoma State scored the last 34 points. Drew Mestemaker went 21 of 36 for 386 yards and four touchdowns, Sam Keltner kicked five field goals, LaDainian Fields intercepted two passes, and Oklahoma State gained 598 yards without a turnover. Next: at Iowa State.

Down two after a road win, with Utah, Arizona, Cincinnati and Oklahoma State moving past. Boise has three wins over teams with winning records, Memphis at home and Western Michigan and Fresno State on the road, and its loss is 34-27 at Oregon. Oregon now has three losses, which is why the Broncos stay ahead of the team that beat them. It was 10-10 after three quarters in Pullman. Maddux Madsen's 6-yard pass to Cam Bates put Boise ahead with 13:33 left, and Dylan Riley added touchdown runs of 33 and 72 yards. Riley ran 13 times for 128 yards, and Boise ran for 258. Texas State visits Saturday.

New. South Carolina has beaten two teams ranked here, 38-19 at Florida and Tennessee on Saturday, and no team ranked below it has two wins that good. The three losses, 41-34 at home to Mississippi State, 49-18 at Alabama and 35-34 to Kentucky, are why it's behind the Gators and the Vols despite beating both. LaNorris Sellers threw a 17-yard touchdown to Mazeo Bennett Jr. and ran 31 yards for another for a 14-0 lead. Down 24-17, Sellers ran for 22 yards on the tying drive and scored from 4 with 1:17 left, and Dylan Stewart's strip-sack set up Malik Orsan's 48-yard field goal on the last play. Sellers ran 18 times for 96 yards. Next: at Oklahoma.

New, a week after dropping out. Oklahoma has the best single win of any team ranked from 20th down, 27-24 over Texas in Dallas, plus New Mexico, 6-1, at home and Saturday's win in Starkville. All three losses came against teams with winning records, two of them ranked here, 41-13 at Georgia and 21-13 to Kentucky, plus 17-10 at Michigan. That's why a 4-3 team is ranked. Oklahoma led 17-0 after John Mateer's touchdown passes of 36 yards to Isaiah Sategna III and 32 to Rocky Beers. Mateer went 22 of 29 for 283 yards, Sategna caught eight passes for 164, and Mississippi State converted 1 of 11 third downs. South Carolina visits Saturday.

Down 11. Oregon still has three wins over teams with winning records, 34-27 over Boise State, 17-14 over Nebraska and 41-27 at USC, but it lost to a 4-3 Illinois team and now has three losses, which is why Boise, which it beat, and Oklahoma State, which beat it, are ahead. Oregon outgained Illinois 426-314 and led 10-0 before Aidan Laughery's 75-yard touchdown run late in the first half. Gage Hurych missed field goals of 52, 53 and 47 yards, the last two in the fourth quarter, and Michael Clayton II threw touchdown passes of 9 yards to Christian Abney and 23 to Collin Dixon. Dylan Raiola went 27 of 41 for 246 yards. Northwestern visits Saturday.

Down two while idle, with South Carolina and Oklahoma moving past on better wins. Wake Forest has four road wins over power-conference teams, at Purdue, Louisville, NC State and California, but Louisville, 4-3, is the only team it has beaten with a winning record. The loss is 33-20 at home to Miami, now first. Six wins over FBS teams keep it in the poll; the quality of them keeps it at the bottom. Gio Lopez has 1,947 passing yards, 17 touchdowns and one interception, and he has run for six more scores. Virginia visits Saturday.