Predicting College Football Playoff rankings entering Week 10 of 2026 season

Week 10 is here, and so are the first College Football Playoff rankings. Fans have been paying attention to both the Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25 poll each week, but now it all turns to the one ranking that truly matters.

Obviously, these rankings are going to fluctuate quite a bit week to week. There is so much more parity in college football compared to previous seasons and each week has plenty of upsets. This past week, we saw seven AP Top 25 teams lose, and top-10 Ohio State suffered its second loss of the season. The Buckeyes lost to USC in Los Angeles and that gave Lincoln Riley a big statement win.

This upcoming week will have some big-time matchups, which will really shake up the rankings next weekend. Miami and Notre Dame play, Utah and BYU will play in the Holy War, and Alabama vs. LSU will square off, among others, but that’s next week’s problem.

The CFP rankings will come out on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. ET on ESPN. Doing our best to think like the committee, here is how we think they will look when the rankings are revealed.

MORE: College football overreactions after Week 9: Does Indiana have a QB controversy?

25. New Mexico

Record: 7-1

24. Duke

Record: 6-2

23. Northwestern

Record: 6-2

22. Arizona

Record: 6-2

21. Iowa

Record: 6-2

20. Missouri

Record: 6-2

19. Boise State

Record: 7-1

18. Houston

Record: 6-2

17. USC

Record: 7-2

16. LSU

Record: 6-2

15. Tennessee

Record: 6-2

14. Texas Tech

Record: 7-1

13. Ole Miss

Record: 6-2

12. Wake Forest

Record: 7-1

11. Ohio State

Record: 6-2

10. BYU

Record: 7-1

9. Texas

Record: 6-2

8. Alabama

Record: 6-2

7. Kentucky

Record: 7-1

6. Utah

Record: 8-0

5. Indiana

Record: 8-1

4. UCLA

Record: 8-0

3. Notre Dame

Record: 7-1

2. Georgia

Record: 7-1

1. Miami

Record: 8-0

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