The second edition of the College Football Playoff Rankings were released Tuesday night and Georgia took first place. Last week’s No. 1 team, Miami (FL), fell to Notre Dame in one of the most anticipated games of the 2026 season on Saturday night in Week 10. Simultaneously, the Bulldogs made an emphatic statement by demolishing Ole Miss on the road in Oxford, clearing the way for Kirby Smart and the Dawgs to sit atop the CFP rankings heading into Week 11. Sitting on 8-1 (6-1 SEC) with three weeks left in the regular season, Georgia appears to have a chance of making the 12-team field unless it stumbles hard down the stretch. Missouri, South Carolina and Georgia Tech, one of this season’s most notable disappointments, remain, along with a possible appearance in the SEC Championship Game. If the Dawgs continue to play to the standard they have set for themselves in 2026, another CFP appearance awaits them. Utah (9-0, 6-0 Big 12) fills the void left by Georgia at No. 2, as Morgan Scalley continues to impress in his first season leading the Utes following the departure of Kyle Whittingham. Utah, one of two undefeated teams remaining at the FBS level, is coming off its biggest win of the season, topping archrival BYU in the Holy War in Week 10. A tough test awaits Scalley and the Utes this week with a road trip to Arizona up for grabs. Rounding out the top five, Alabama moved to No. 3 after its win over LSU. Meanwhile, UCLA, one of two remaining unbeatens in the FBS, joined the top four and Notre Dame moved up to No. 5 after its big win over Miami. With the 12-team playoff model giving automatic bids to the five highest-ranked conference champions, Boise State would be last if the field were chosen today from the Group of Six level, as the Broncos are ranked 24th.~ First round byeGeorgia (8-1) ~Utah (9-0) ~Alabama (7-2) ~UCLA (9-0) ~Notre Dame (8-1)Texas (7-2)Miami (8-1)Tennessee (7-2)Indiana (8-1)BYU (7-2)Kentucky (7-2)Texas Tech (8-1)Wake Forest (8-1)Houston (7-2)Iowa (7-2)Oregon (6-3)South Carolina (6-3)USC (7-2)Ole Miss (6-3)Ohio State (6-3)LSU (6-3)Missouri (6-3)Arizona (7-2)Boise State (8-1)Oklahoma State (6-3)CFP Second Ranking TakeawaysThere aren’t as many complaints this week compared to last, now that we’ve gotten an overview of the selection committee process this season and where teams initially fell with respect to “groups” and various groups. Those 13 members wanted to see a signature victory, or at least a Notre Dame victory against Miami, and the Fighting Irish delivered. Moving up from 11th to 5th on Tuesday night is substantial and puts Marcus Freeman’s team on the threshold of a first-round home game. “We talked last week about Notre Dame having a lot of respect from the committee, a dominant team, but they hadn’t gotten their signature win yet, and they looked like the Notre Dame team that should be ranked No. 5. They were up 24-3 (over Miami),” CFP president Hunter Yurachek said. The biggest surprise was Indiana’s five-place drop to ninth, despite not playing over the weekend. The selection committee starts from scratch each week, and their reclassification did no favors for the Hoosiers, who host USC this weekend. Three SEC locks Georgia’s move to No. 1 was justified after the Bulldogs’ 35-point rampage at Ole Miss. 17. Widely considered the most overrated team in last week’s initial reveal at No. 5, Alabama strengthened the selection committee’s instincts after the Crimson Tide’s 31-13 win at LSU. Ranked near the FBS leaders in logging strength, SOS and game control, take the Sharpie for third-ranked Alabama, with Vanderbilt, Chattanooga and Auburn remaining to play. Texas, now ranked sixth, is in the top 15 in every measurable metric this season after beating Missouri on the road, a distinction no other SEC team has at the moment. The Longhorns also have the key data point associated with four nationally-leading ranked wins. Steve Sarkisian has a chance to play another Saturday at LSU. After knocking Ohio State out of the conference and the win at Tennessee, along with three straight wins since losing two in a row in October, Texas has room for error to be an at-large pick even if it loses another one. UCLA was no longer overlooked. After debuting at No. 8, UCLA moved to No. 4 in the second rankings. The metrics suggest the Bruins deserved to be this high considering their SOR (1st) and GC (9th), but an SOS ranked 67th isn’t strong. Winning assures UCLA a spot in the Big Ten Championship, but not necessarily a top-four spot. On Friday night, the Bruins host Illinois, which has won four straight, before finishing the season with Michigan and USC. Oregon leads teams with three losses. The Ducks’ win at Ohio State put them ahead of the Buckeyes, who suffered an eight-spot drop from 12th. Oregon now has three ranked wins this season, which is tied for second in the country behind Texas (4). South Carolina held off Texas A&M to win its fourth straight over the weekend and improved its CFP ranking to 17th, up four spots from last week. No. 16 Oregon (6-3)No. 17 South Carolina (6-3)No. 19 Old Miss (6-3)No. 20 Ohio State (6-3)No. 21 LSU (6-3)ACC Drama My biggest question going into this second reveal was where the selection committee would place previously higher-ranked Miami. We saw them demote Ohio State after losing quarterback Julian Sayin to injury, so what would they do with Miami after Malachi Toney’s unfortunate practice mishap that led to a loss in South Bend? A drop of six points is not justifiable considering that the Hurricanes were the equivalent of a nearly unanimous number one for the week. As for the ACC’s chance to be a two-bid league, Wake Forest brings up the rear at No. 13. The Demon Deacons, who play at SMU on Saturday, are the only team ranked by the selection committee this week with just one win this season over an opponent with a record above .500. By comparison, Texas has a national-leading six such wins, while Miami has four (leads the ACC) and more than Wake Forest, SMU and Duke combined.
