Florida football sustained its third loss of the 2026 campaign on Saturday when the Georgia Bulldogs earned a definitive 27-8 victory at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. As a result of the Week 9 defeat, the Gators lost some ground in ESPN's Football Power Index, but still remain among the top 25 teams in the nation.

The FPI measures team strength and is meant to be the best predictor of a team's performance for the rest of the season; it shows how many points above or below average a team is. Each team is assigned a rating that measures its true strength on a net-points scale, as well as its expected point margin against an average opponent on a neutral field.

Projected results are based on 20,000 season simulations using FPI and the schedule. Take a look at how Florida's numbers shake out after Week 8's gridiron action.

Where Florida football ranks in ESPN's FPI after Week 9

Florida fell five spots to No. 22 in ESPN's FPI rankings after the Week 9 loss, and its rating dropped by 0.6 points to 13.9. Sumrall and Co. now sit between No. 21 Iowa (13.9) and No. 23 Texas A&M (13.6) in the standings.

The FPI now projects the Gators to finish this fall's regular-season schedule with a 7.6-4.4 record — a change of 0.1 wins — and a much improved 14.5% chance of winning out. Florida's chances of finishing with six wins remain at a near-certain 98.8%, while the odds of winning the conference fell by 1.7% to 0.8%.

The Gators' chance of making the College Football Playoff declined from 16.6% to 11.0%, along with a 0.4% chance of reaching the national championship game (down 0.5%) and a 0.1% chance of bringing home the title (down 0.2%).

Football Power Index top 25 rankings after Week 9

  1. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
  2. Ohio State Buckeyes
  3. Miami Hurricanes
  4. Georgia Bulldogs
  5. LSU Tigers
  6. Alabama Crimson Tide
  7. Texas Longhorns
  8. Indiana Hoosiers
  9. Ole Miss Rebels
  10. Utah Utes
  11. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
  12. Oregon Ducks
  13. Texas Tech Red Raiders
  14. Tennessee Volunteers
  15. USC Trojans
  16. BYU Cougars
  17. Nebraska Cornhuskers
  18. Louisville Cardinals
  19. Missouri Tigers
  20. Houston Cougars
  21. Iowa Hawkeyes
  22. Florida Gators
  23. Texas A&M Aggies
  24. Northwestern Wildcats
  25. South Carolina Gamecocks

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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida falls in Football Power Index after Georgia loss, still in top 25

Source: Yahoo Sports