Down to 105 teams that can win it all according to the computer. Actually, the computer has a few less than that, as it included teams with winning records, including 3-0 UMass. I am not ready to kick out undefeated teams, so I am still filtering the list.

And it is still early enough in the season that teams can appear in the playoff hunt despite being out of it the week before. This is the last week I will allow that except under truly extraordinary circumstances.

Returning to the playoff hunt this week:

• Clemson Tigers
• Florida Atlantic Owls
• Miami (OH) RedHawks
• Ohio Bobcats
• Oklahoma State Cowboys
• Rutgers Scarlet Knights
• Texas State Bobcats

Better luck next year:

• #166 Buffalo Bulls 1-2
• #174 Eastern Michigan Eagles 1-3
• #130 Kennesaw State Owls 1-2
• #141 Nevada Wolf Pack
• #209 Sacramento State Hornets 1-3
• #167 Southern Miss Golden Eagles
• #102 Stanford Cardinal 1-2
• #134 Syracuse Orange 1-2
• #140 UNLV Rebels 1-2

The complete list of teams no longer in the hunt:

• #148 Akron Zips 1-2
• #107 Arkansas Razorbacks 1-2
• #145 Arkansas State Red Wolves 1-2
• #171 Ball State Cardinals 1-2
• #172 Bowling Green Falcons 0-3
• #166 Buffalo Bulls 1-2
• #204 Charlotte 49ers 0-3
• #174 Eastern Michigan Eagles 1-3
• #122 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 1-2
• #157 Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors 1-2
• #110 Jacksonville State Gamecocks 2-2
• #130 Kennesaw State Owls 1-2
• #147 Kent State Golden Flashes 1-2
• #127 Miami (OH) RedHawks 1-2
• #165 Missouri State Bears 1-2
• #141 Nevada Wolf Pack 1-2
• #170 New Mexico State Aggies 1-2
• #180 Northern Illinois Huskies 0-3
• #209 Sacramento State Hornets 1-3
• #142 San Diego State Aztecs 1-2
• #133 San Jose State Spartans 2-2
• #167 Southern Miss Golden Eagles 1-2
• #102 Stanford Cardinal 1-2
• #134 Syracuse Orange 1-2
• #144 UAB Blazers 1-2
• #244 UL Monroe Warhawks 0-4
• #140 UNLV Rebels 1-2
• #158 Utah State Aggies 0-3
• #163 UTEP Miners 1-2
• #195 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers 0-3
• #213 Wyoming Cowboys 1-2

The Spartans lost to the Irish and the Terps lost to the Hokies. Neither of those were big surprises, although it might have been nice to see Maryland pull that one out. The rest of the Big Ten was dominant in their inter-conference games. Maybe a couple were less dominant than they should have been (I am looking at you, Indiana), but all strong wins.

We won't talk about USC's win over Rutgers.

Solid Verbal Top 12

1. Texas
2. Georgia
3. Ohio State
4. Notre Dame
5. Indiana
6. Miami
7. Ole Miss
8. Alabama
9. Louisville
10. LSU
11. Penn State
12. Utah

Georgia and Ohio State move up because they continue to look the part. Notre Dame, Indiana, and Miami all slip a little due to somewhat unimpressive performances against weak competition. Ole Miss jumps into my top 12 behind my preseason national title contenders.

I'm not happy with Alabama at 8 because of how they looked against Florida State. On the other hand, I am happy with Alabama at 8 because of how they looked against Kentucky, which just beat Texas A&M.

Louisville and LSU feel right at 9 and 10 based on how they both performed against Ole Miss and how the Cards looked against SMU.

I'm not thrilled with Penn State and Utah at 11 and 12, but I don't know who else to put there. I have about 10 teams vying for those last two spots, and I could put them in any order.

As I have said before, I am including FCS football in my rankings for 2026. This has nearly doubled the number of teams from 136 to 266. But there are other noteworthy changes which will affect the rankings. This is another big year for conference realignment.

CJB Ratings, AKA Sports Ratings III, is a data-driven analytics platform designed to evaluate teams, project future performance, and provide transparent, reproducible rating systems across multiple sports. We currently do three sports:

• NCAA FBS College Football
• NCAA Division I Men's College Basketball
• NFL football

Watch this space for more information about what's available and what's coming!