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Georgia Back on Top; Notre Dame’s Miami Knockout Sends CFP Board Spinning
By Piper Rampage
Georgia is back at No. 1, Notre Dame has crashed the top five, and the second College Football Playoff rankings of the 2026 season have made one thing clear: a single Saturday can still tear up this board.
The Bulldogs (8-1) reclaimed the top spot after dismantling Ole Miss 42-7. Utah (9-0) moved to No. 2 following its 28-20 win over BYU, while Alabama (7-2) sits third after beating LSU 31-13.
UCLA (9-0) jumped four places to No. 4 after winning 34-20 at Minnesota, leaving Utah and UCLA as the only unbeaten FBS teams in the country.
Then came the biggest swing near the top: Notre Dame (8-1) jumped six spots to No. 5 after beating then-No. 1 Miami 31-24. Miami (8-1), which entered the week atop the rankings, fell six places to No. 7.
Look, that is the kind of result this system is built to punish and reward. Notre Dame landed a massive win; Miami took its first loss and paid for it immediately.
The full second CFP Top 25:
1. Georgia (8-1)
2. Utah (9-0)
3. Alabama (7-2)
4. UCLA (9-0)
5. Notre Dame (8-1)
6. Texas (7-2)
7. Miami (8-1)
8. Tennessee (7-2)
9. Indiana (8-1)
10. BYU (7-2)
11. Kentucky (7-2)
12. Texas Tech (8-1)
13. Wake Forest (8-1)
14. Houston (7-2)
15. Iowa (7-2)
16. Oregon (6-3)
17. South Carolina (6-3)
18. USC (7-2)
19. Ole Miss (6-3)
20. Ohio State (6-3)
21. LSU (6-3)
22. Missouri (6-3)
23. Arizona (7-2)
24. Boise State (8-1)
25. Oklahoma State (6-3)
Elsewhere, Tennessee (7-2) climbed five spots to No. 8 after beating Kentucky 34-6, while Kentucky (7-2) dropped five places to No. 11. Indiana (8-1) fell five spots to No. 9 despite being on a bye.
The largest climb belonged to Oregon (6-3), which rose seven places to No. 16 after winning 41-28 at Ohio State. The Buckeyes (6-3) took the biggest drop of the week, falling eight spots to No. 20.
Ole Miss (6-3) fell nine places to No. 19 following its loss at Georgia, while LSU (6-3) dropped seven spots to No. 21 after losing to Alabama.
At the bottom of the rankings, Oklahoma State (6-3) entered at No. 25 after a 66-28 win at Kansas State. Florida dropped out.
Here is the deal: the rankings and the projected playoff field are not quite the same thing.
If the season ended today, Georgia, Utah, Alabama and UCLA would receive the four first-round byes. The projected first-round games would be Tennessee vs. Indiana, Miami vs. BYU, Notre Dame vs. Boise State, and Texas vs. Kentucky.
Boise State is the wrinkle that matters.
The Broncos, ranked No. 24, would take the No. 12 seed in this projection as the highest-ranked Group of 5 conference champion. That automatic place pushes No. 12 Texas Tech and No. 13 Wake Forest outside the projected 12-team field as the first two teams out.
That is the pressure point going forward. Ranking No. 12 is not, by itself, a guarantee of making the bracket.
Georgia has the top spot again. Utah and UCLA remain perfect. Notre Dame has the week’s biggest statement win near the top of the board, and Miami has learned how quickly the committee can rearrange the landscape.
The race is tightening. The margins are getting smaller. And the teams sitting just outside the bracket have no room left to assume their ranking tells the whole story.
Piper Rampage
College Football & Men’s College Basketball · The Library Media
The smaller programs aren’t asking for favors. They’re asking for the chance to compete on a field that isn’t tilted before kickoff.