Josh’s College Football Rankings 2026–Week 7

Nothing makes ranking teams harder than everyone losing. And has there ever been a week like this? Five of my top ten lost. Ten of the Top 25! Now, the nice thing with ranking out to forty is that most of those losses happened to teams inside that group (only four losses came to unranked teams for me). 

This is also the time of year where you have to start to justify ranking 2-loss teams over 1-loss teams. Sometimes it is due to talent level, other times it may be because of strength of schedule. It would be nice if all the conferences were equal, but sadly, they are not. 

Okay, enough excuses! Here are the rankings:

1. BYU (6-0)–#7–W 28-24 #3 Notre Dame. I debated this one for awhile. The Cougars looked great against the Irish last night, so it is hard to deny them the top spot. If Notre Dame wins, I easily put them at #1 since Georgia lost, so why was it so difficult to put BYU in that position?
2. Miami (6-0)–#5–W 43-35 2OT Florida State. They came very close to getting upset as well. If they had won easily over FSU, I would have put them at #1.
3. Ohio State (6-1)–#2–W 19-15 #6 Indiana. If Julian Sayin does not get hurt during the game, then I may have considered ranking the Buckeyes in the top spot. I even considered dropping them further for that injury. BUT, it is Ohio State, and their backup QBs are probably better than 92% of the QBs in the country, so they should be just fine for a few weeks.
4. Ole Miss (5-1)–#13–W 31-3 #17 Missouri. You can see how much different the offense is when Kewan Lacy is in the lineup. This team is very dangerous if he can stay healthy.
5. Tennessee (6-1)–#12–W 26-10 #4 Alabama. The Vols shut down the Tide offense. Plus their only loss came to Texas by three points. Weird seeing Tennessee as a good defensive team.
6. Georgia (6-1)–#1–L 27-24 #30 Auburn. I have said before that Auburn was a solid team. Georgia will rebound after this loss. They will be fine.
7. Notre Dame (6-1)–#3–L 28-24 #7 BYU. This was a great game. The Irish played well, so it is hard to fault them.
8. Indiana (6-1)–#6–L 19-15 #2 Ohio State. If only Nick Marsh could have kept that foot in bounds…I would feel bad for Indiana for losing in that way, but…I am still bitter about the Michael Penix call in 2020.
9. Kentucky (6-1)–#11–W 21-13 #39 Oklahoma. The Wildcats defense forced Mateer to throw 3 INTs, which helped seal this one.
10. Utah (6-0)–#8–W 27-24 Colorado. The Utes continue to pick up wins, but I am ready to see them in action against some better competition.
11. Texas Tech (6-0)–#9–W 53-25 Arizona State. Same as above.
12. UCLA (6-0)–#14–W 17-7 #22 Wisconsin. I was not totally sold on the Bruins, but after winning a low-scoring game against Wisconsin, I am on board.
13. Alabama (5-2)–#4–L 26-10 #12 Tennessee. Way to go Bama, I was all-in on this team being the second best team in the country. Then they go and play like this.
14. SMU (5-1)–#15–W 23-13 Virginia
15. Houston (6-1)–#18–W 35-32 #23 Oklahoma State. The Cougars are quietly doing their thing. They have Utah up next, if they win that one, it is not crazy for them to go 11-1.
16. USC (6-1)–#19–BYE
17. Iowa (5-1)–#20–BYE
18. Florida (5-2)–#26–W 27-24 #10 Texas. Just when we assumed the Gators season was over, they show signs of life.
19. Auburn (4-2)–#30–W 27-24 #1 Georgia. I knew this team had it in them. I mean, maybe not against Georgia, but I assumed they would upset someone.
20. Texas (4-2)–#10–L 27-24 #26 Florida. Yikes. What is happening in Austin?
21. LSU (5-2)–#21–W 31-0 #16 Mississippi State. Before we bump the Tigers up to the top ten, remember that Mississippi State was missing their star QB.
22. Mississippi State (4-2)–#16–L 31-0 #21 LSU. How long will Kamario Taylor be out? Another game like this and the Bulldogs will be out of the rankings.
23. Missouri (5-2)–#17–31-3 #13 Ole Miss. The SEC is confusing…either all of these teams are super close and that much better than everyone else OR all of these teams are mid.
24. Oregon (4-2)–#24–W 17-14 #25 Nebraska. Speaking of mid…the Ducks stay put because them and Nebraska are basically the same team.
25. Northwestern (5-1)–#27–W 24-21 Michigan State. An emotional win for the Wildcats. Their former coach wanted to win and Northwestern did what it could to hold them off.
26. Oklahoma State (5-2)–#23–L 35-32 #18 Houston
27. Arizona (5-1)–#28–BYE
28. Wake Forest (6-1)–#29–W 41-7 California. I want to rank this team higher, but it hard to justify when the ACC continues to look like trash.
29. Wisconsin (4-2)–#22–L 17-7 #14 UCLA
30. Nebraska (5-2)–#25–L 17-14 #24 Oregon
31. UNC (4-2)–HM–W 24-20 #35 Duke
32. Boise State (5-1)–#31–BYE
33. James Madison (7-0)–#34–W 49-22 Georgia State
34. Minnesota (4-2)–#37–BYE
35. Michigan (4-2)–#38–W 21-18 Penn State. The Wolverines finally pulled the trigger and benched Underwood for Tommy Carr. The move paid off.
36. Oregon State (5-2)–HM–W 48-30 Washington State. The Beavers are an offensive juggernaut (them and WVU would be a fun no defense game!).
37. New Mexico (5-1)–#40–W 21-10 Hawaii
38. Duke (4-2)–#35–L 24-20 UNC
39. Kansas State (4-2)–HM–W 35-24 Kansas
40. UTSA (6-1)–HM–W 38-34 Navy

Honorable Mentions
Baylor (4-2)–#33–L 17-6 TCU
Virginia Tech (5-2)–NR–W 34-24 Georgia Tech
Liberty (5-1)–NR–BYE
Western Michigan (5-2)–NR–W 21-14 Central Michigan
Cincinnati (4-2)–#36–L 45-42 West Virginia

Three big games this week. #4 Ole Miss heads to #20 Texas. Can the Longhorns rebound or will another loss end their post-season hopes?  The biggest game though is #15 Houston at #10 Utah. A win for the Utes would at least give them some top five legitimacy, whereas a win for the Cougars might make their playoff hopes a reality. And then we have a game I am intrigued about: #17 Iowa at #34 Minnesota. If the Hawkeyes are for real, they should blow out the Gophers, but PJ Fleck has a way of ruining team’s season.

Tiny But Mighty

I want to shift to high school football this week. My cousin, Connor Guenot, had an awesome 89-yard run against Bishop McCort. He has been having a great season for the Philipsburg-Osceola Mounties. Proud relative moment.

Coaching Hot Seat

Nothing really changes in that department. Now it becomes a matter of when for a few coaches.

Heisman Watch

The Hoosiers did a solid job of shutting down Jeremiah Smith (more to do with the pressure on Sayin), but when it mattered, Smith stepped up and made an excellent touchdown catch.