3 Undefeated College Football Teams Remain. Can Any of Them Run the Table?

Undefeated teams keep falling. BYU, Texas Tech and James Madison all endured their first loss of the season in Week 8, which leaves just three members in the shrinking unbeaten club.

No. 1 Miami, No. 6 Utah and No. 7 UCLA are the last undefeated teams still standing. That’s the fewest number of teams without a loss this early in the season since 1977. This is a level of parity unprecedented in modern college football.

For comparison, three teams entered the 2025 regular-season finale 11-0. Only Indiana ran the table through the College Football Playoff en route to its first national championship in program history. Can the Hurricanes, Utes or Bruins join the Hoosiers in that quest for a perfect season?

Athlon Sports analyzed each team’s remaining schedule to predict when — or if — they will lose their first game.

No. 1 Miami (7-0)

Outside of South Florida, the Hurricanes have been criticized for what many see as a weak schedule. The metrics largely support that characterization, as Miami ranks 11th in the ACC and 60th nationally in ESPN’s strength of schedule metric.

Though the ’Canes lack a top-25 win at the time of the game, Wake Forest — which Miami beat 33-20 on the road back in September — has risen to No. 14 in the AP Poll. Coach Mario Cristobal’s team also ranks No. 2 in game control, per ESPN, despite a close call in double-overtime against Florida State. Miami has won every other game this season by at least two scores and is tied for the national lead in average margin of victory (plus-27.7), ironically with No. 5 Notre Dame.

The Fighting Irish are the toughest remaining team on the Hurricanes’ schedule, which ramps up considerably down the stretch (seventh-hardest in the ACC and 36th nationally). Miami’s final five opponents all have a winning record, and its next two games against North Carolina and Notre Dame are both on the road. Depending on how the next few weeks go, Duke or Virginia Tech could have a number next to their name by the time they face the ’Canes.

When we did this exercise a month ago, I projected that Miami’s first loss would come in its first trip to South Bend in a decade. Now, I’m not so sure. The Hurricanes are exceptional on both sides of the ball. And Notre Dame proved it is not infallible against BYU. Miami can beat the Irish on the road. And if they do, they might just run the table.

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The Hurricanes have had some mystifying losses in recent years (see: 2025 Louisville, 2024 Georgia Tech), but this program has come a long way under Cristobal. Miami has two bona fide Heisman Trophy candidates in quarterback Darian Mensah and wide receiver Malachi Toney. Who’s to say what will happen in the ACC championship, which the ’Canes have inexplicably still never won, or the College Football Playoff, but Miami should stay unscathed for the remainder of the regular season.

No. 6 Utah (7-0)

The Utes validated their best start since 2015 over the weekend with a win over then-No. 14 Houston. Even with that victory, they have also faced little resistance to date. Utah has played the 89th-hardest schedule in the country, per ESPN, and the easiest in the Big 12. Beating the Cougars as they did, a week after a close call against Colorado, got people outside of the Beehive State to start believing in the Utes, who reached their highest ranking since 2019.

The remainder of Utah’s schedule is still full of challenges, though. Three of its final five games are on the road, and only one is against a team (TCU) with a losing record. Coach Morgan Scalley’s team is up against the 37th-hardest schedule the rest of the way and sixth-hardest in the conference. No. 8 BYU and No. 22 Arizona are in the class of one-loss Big 12 programs that can challenge the Utes down the stretch.

A month ago, I projected that Utah would drop its first game against Houston. Obviously, that did not come to pass. I’m ready to update that prediction to the Holy War two weeks from now. BYU has won the last three games against Utah, which had won nine in a row in the rivalry before then.

The upcoming trip to Cincinnati, which handed Texas Tech its first loss this past Saturday, should not be overlooked. Arizona also appears to be wildly underrated. But BYU is expected to have star running back LJ Martin back against the Utes. Utah is in the toughest stretch of its season, and the Cougars are catching them at a tough time with the desperation of already taking a loss (with the silver lining that it was out of conference play).

That’s a recipe for a letdown. And if that’s where Utah’s undefeated season ends, it shouldn’t hurt the Big 12’s case to be a multi-bid league.

No. 7 UCLA (7-0)

The Bruins have been one of the biggest surprises in college football. Unranked to start the season — unlike Miami and Utah — they have cracked the top 10 for the first time since 2022 and are off to their best start since 2005. UCLA is enjoying this rare success under the leadership of first-year head coach Bob Chesney and with quarterback Nico Iamaleava out for the season.

Some metrics recommend pumping the brakes on the Bruins hype. Oregon, their signature win, has fallen from grace. And Wisconsin, which UCLA beat two weeks ago, just cracked the top 25. Other than that, Purdue is its best win. Chesney’s squad ranks 63rd nationally and 16th in the Big Ten in strength of schedule. But things don’t get much harder from here. The Bruins’ remaining schedule ranks 56th in the country and 15th in their conference. And backup-quarterback-turned-starter Ty Dieffenbach has already proved his mettle.

UCLA has arguably its easiest game of the season next week against Nevada, which lost to an FCS team in September. The rest of the slate, while not particularly intimidating, could prove to be tricky. Minnesota just upset then-No. 13 Iowa at home. Illinois, also down to its second-string quarterback, is typically a tough out. Michigan’s defense is one of the best in the nation, even if its offense is ghastly. And then there’s the regular-season finale against mercurial USC, which could either be led by an interim coach by the time that game is played or be back in the playoff hunt.

Previously, I picked the Bruins to bow out against Oregon. They proved me wrong with a gutsy road win. Now, I think their perfect season could very well end at the hands of the Golden Gophers, who have won seven consecutive home Big Ten games and are 3-1 outright as an underdog this season. The way Chesney has UCLA playing, this team is well on its way to its first 10-win season since 2014. But it seems unlikely the Bruins will win out.

Related: 2026 Bowl Projections After Week 8: Utah, LSU and Texas on the Rise

Related: College Football Rankings: Athlon Sports Top 25 (After Week 8)

Related: The Best QB in the 2027 NFL Draft Class? It Sure Looks Like Miami’s Darian Mensah

This story was originally published by Athlon on Oct 27, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.