A new statistic arises almost every week that proves this college football season is one for the record books. For instance, an AP top-two team has lost to an unranked opponent in three consecutive weeks for the first time since 2007. We are also on pace for more top-10 upsets this year than that all-time season.

To further prove the unpredictability of the 2026 campaign, consider that there are three or fewer undefeated teams this late in the season for the first time since 1977. Yep, Miami, UCLA and Utah are the only teams unscathed — just as everybody predicted back in August.

No. 2 BYU, which was undefeated heading into the week after a marquee win over Notre Dame, lost 39-31 in double-overtime to UCF. No. 8 Texas Tech also hadn’t taken a loss until Saturday when it lost the Brendan Sorsby Bowl 37-24 to Cincinnati. No. 7 Ole Miss was the third top-10 team to go down over the weekend, as No. 19 Texas got back on track with a 34-27 win.

UCLA running back Anthony Woods (6) and quarterback Ty Dieffenbach (14) celebrate after a touchdown against Michigan State at the Rose Bowl on Oct 24, 2026, in Pasadena, California.Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
UCLA running back Anthony Woods (6) and quarterback Ty Dieffenbach (14) celebrate after a touchdown against Michigan State at the Rose Bowl on Oct 24, 2026, in Pasadena, California.Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

It was a bad week to be on the road as a ranked team. No. 11 Tennessee also lost 27-24 to South Carolina on a walk-off field goal. No. 14 Houston fell 21-13 to No. 10 Utah. No. 15 Iowa also lost to Minnesota 13-10 on a last-second kick. And No. 16 USC was blown out 24-7 by Wisconsin.

The only top-25 teams that won on the road were No. 6 Indiana (which needed overtime to outlast Michigan 13-6), No. 18 LSU (which blew out Auburn 38-17) and No. 21 Boise State (which won 31-10 at Washington State). Six teams were idle, including three of the top five, and it was still a chaotic week of games.

Depending on how voters react to losses by Iowa and USC, there could be two new teams in the rankings. Oklahoma State could return after a 57-24 blowout over Colorado in a game it trailed at halftime. And New Mexico might crack the top 25 after a 21-16 win over North Dakota State that will shape the Group of 6 playoff landscape.

The next set of rankings comes out on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET. Here’s how Athlon Sports projects the AP Top 25 will look after Week 8.

Graphic created with Claude
Graphic created with Claude

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This story was originally published by Athlon on Oct 25, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Source: Yahoo Sports