Week 9 of the 2026 college football season once again provided another example of why parity is the biggest storyline this year. On Saturday, we saw the unranked USC Trojans dismantled the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes, the reigning national champion Indiana Hoosiers needed overtime to beat Minnesota, and the top-ranked Miami Hurricanes nearly lost in Chapel Hill to a North Carolina team that lost days earlier to Syracuse. This is the season of chaos.
As Saturday’s action draws to a close, let’s dive into our Week 10 college football rankings.
1. Miami Hurricanes (1)
The Miami Hurricanes (8-0) are still undefeated. That in itself is an accomplishment. With that said, narrowly beating North Carolina and what happened on Saturday night in Chapel Hill leads us to believe the Hurricanes will lose at some point this season. The Hurricanes defense allowed 443 total yards and 35 points to Florida State, 403 total yards and 23 points to a Pitt offense with a backup quarterback, and it just surrendered over 400 yards and 34 points to the Tar Heels. That’s more than 1,200 total yards and 93 total points in the last three games. Whether it happens next week at Notre Dame or in the playoffs, the Hurricanes defense is going to be the reason Darian Mensah loses this year.
2. Georgia Bulldogs (2)
Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs defense were not going to get embarrassed again. Saturday’s victory didn’t exactly erase some of the concerns moving forward with Gunner Stockton, who failed to take advantage of a Gators defense that had been abysmal versus the pass entering Week 9. What the Bulldogs’ victory did show, thanks to Chris Cole and company, is that this defense can single-handedly win some games as long as the offense protects the football. Another defensive clinic feels necessary in Week 10 against the Rebels offense.
3. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4)
We’ll start with the good news for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish coming out of Week 9. They pitched a shutout in the second half, allowing just 20 total yards on four drives, and put up 28 unanswered points against Navy. Unfortunately for Marcus Freeman and defensive coordinator Chris Ash, slow starts remain an issue for this team, and they are about to face a Hurricanes offense that came into the weekend averaging the second-most points per first half (24.8). If the Fighting Irish come out slow out of the gate next Saturday night at Notre Dame Stadium, they might not get many opportunities to recover from it with second-half adjustments alone.
4. Utah Utes (9)
Maybe now the Utah Utes can be recognized as one of the best college football teams right now. The 2026 season has demonstrated how difficult it is to remain undefeated entering November, and the Utes have done it. A week after taking down Houston, Utah made the trip to face a 5-2 Cincinnati team and avoided the letdown game, which is something BYU certainly cannot speak to. Saturday was another example that Utes quarterback Devon Dampier can truly be a difference-maker in Big 12 play, and this program absolutely nailed the call to make a change at head coach this offseason. Now, let’s get excited about BYU versus Utah in Week 10.
5. Indiana Hoosiers (7)
Review: A quarterback change and a kicker with a cannon might’ve saved the Indiana Hoosiers‘ season. Josh Hoover struggled again on Saturday, forcing Curt Cignetti to pull the plug and roll with senior Grant Wilson. It worked, certainly in overtime, with that game-winning touchdown pass only happening because Paddy McAteer came in and drilled a 60-yard field goal as time expired. It allowed Indiana (8-1) to survive, but we do still question if the Hoosiers would win head-to-head on a neutral site against the four teams we have above them.
6. UCLA Bruins (7)
Stop us if you’ve heard this story before this season. The undefeated UCLA Bruins defense dominated on Saturday, snagging three first-half interceptions including a pick-six that set the tone at the Rose Bowl. Is this style of football going to work in the College Football Playoff? Almost certainly not. With that said, UCLA’s defense and ground game are good enough to beat Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, and we’d even say USC. If all that happens, we’d be looking at a 12-0 team.
7. Kentucky Wildcats (9)
The Kentucky Wildcats received a ton of praise for the hiring of head coach Will Stein this offseason, but they certainly weren’t expected to be this good so early. Stein hasn’t had much of a passing game to speak of, but it hasn’t been necessary thanks to a rushing attack that has averaged 4.6 yards per carry this season. Coming out of the bye, Kentucky (7-1) heads to Knoxville, where it will really be tested by a Tennessee defense that has allowed just 6.3 rushing first downs per game (19th) and just 0.262 points per drive (19th in FBS). Needless to say, it should be a defensive battle.
8. BYU Cougars (8)
The good news for the BYU Cougars (7-1) isn’t even that they won on Saturday. It was the reporting from days earlier, when On3.com‘s Pete Nakos reporterd there’s growing optimism that running back LJ Martin could suit up in Week 10 for the Holy War. Given the bit of regression in performance from Bear Bachmeier,, a reasonable dip for a sophomore quarterback, Martin’s return couldn’t come at a better time.
9. Texas Longhorns (12)
The Texas Longhorns are suddenly a top-10 team again, even with injuries starting to decimate this roster more and more. Cam Coleman exited on Saturday with another injury, that coming just days after left tackle Trevor Goosby was ruled out for the season. Meanwhile, Hollywood Smothers has been banged-up and All-American edge rusher Colin Simmons (ankle) remains sidelined. Despite all of that, Arch Manning and the Longhorns defense were able to do enough to easily take down Mississippi State on Saturday. If Simmons and Coleman can play next Saturday, Texas (6-2) should be able to handle its business at Missouri.
10. Ole Miss Rebels (13)
No Kewan Lacy? No problems for the Ole Miss Rebels. Running back Shekai Mills-Knight entered Week 9 with 67 rushing yards on 12 carries in two seasons of limited playing time. The 6-foot-2 running back was the standout on Saturday afternoon in Oxford, leading the team with 71 yards and one touchdown on a day where Mississippi put up 181 rushing yards against Auburn. Ole Miss (6-2) has been a bit up-and-down this season, but it’s gotten a golden opportunity to make a statement next Saturday night at home against Georgia.
11. Wake Forest Demon Deacons (12)
Make it five consecutive wins for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. After surviving the cross-country trip to blow out Cal two weeks ago, the Demon Deacons returned from their bye and had no trouble taking apart the Virginia Cavaliers. Wake Forest (7-1) now enters November standing alone with the second-best record in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and given how SMU looked this weekend, the Demon Deacons may have a good shot at winning out to close the regular season.
12. Ohio State Buckeyes (4)
The Ohio State Buckeyes (6-2) have a big problem. Even with two weeks to prepare, young quarterback Luke Fahey didn’t show nearly enough against a bad Trojans defense to believe that he can consistently get the football to Jeremiah Smith for big plays. It’s also apparent that this Buckeyes defense can’t carry the team on its own. Maybe the Buckeyes schedule—Oregon, Northwestern, Nebraska, and Michigan—will still ensure this team hits 10 wins and has a 10-2 mark entering the College Football Playoff. If Julian Sayin isn’t cleared for the first round, however, Ohio State might be one-and-done.
13. Texas Tech Red Raiders (19)
Where has this version of the Texas Tech Red Raiders been all season? We know the performance in the last week was bad, but it’s not like this program had been particularly impressive this season. Evidently, making the change at quarterback to Thomas Castellanos served as an eye-opener for everyone. Castellanos and J’Koby Williams combined for 303 rushing yards and two touchdowns in Saturday’s 34-26 win over Arizona, and Castellanos delivered some big plays through the air. The Red Raiders’ resume right now would still put them as a borderline College Football Playoff team in our view, but that can change if they beat West Virginia and Oklahoma State in the next two weeks.
14. LSU Tigers (14)
Sam Leavitt and Lane Kiffin should be feeling good heading into Week 10. In the last three games before the bye, the LSU Tigers offense boasted a 51.3 percent third-down conversion rate and averaged 4.7 red-zone trips per game. That certainly bodes well with Alabama coming to town on Saturday afternoon, especially with how one-dimensional the Crimson Tide offense has been in recent weeks. If LSU (6-2) can take down Alabama, it could quickly become one of the hottest teams in college football as it could then take down two more ranked teams (Texas and Tennessee).
15. Alabama Crimson Tide (16)
What does Kalen DeBoer have coming out of the bye? The Alabama Crimson Tide (6-2) couldn’t get anything going offensively in their losses to Georgia and Tennessee, with young quarterback Keelon Russell falling back to earth a bit. Russell did look better in the 11-point win over Texas A&M, but it’s a bit worrisome that Alabama’s rushing offense (3.4 yards per carry and 94.3 rushing yards per game) has been unable to get anything going in the last three contests. Forcing Sam Leavitt into at least one interception is probably the most viable path to victory for Alabama in Week 10 at Tiger Stadium.
16. Tennessee Volunteers (15)
What are we going to get out of the Tennessee Volunteers offense coming out of the bye? Jim Knowles has orchestrated a defense that is talented and well-coached enough to win out the rest of the way. It’s just a question with the other side of the football. While referees were blamed for the loss at South Carolina, DeSean Bishop averaged just 3.8 yards per carry, and quarterback George MacIntyre made two costly mistakes in the three-point loss. For a program with playoff aspirations, next Saturday’s night game against Kentucky is a must-win.
17. USC Trojans (Unranked)
Lincoln Riley might’ve just saved his job, albeit a little bit aided by that $70 million buyout. It doesn’t matter if there will be the argument that Ohio State is a vastly different team with Julian Sayin, Riley’s USC Trojans just beat the previously second-ranked Buckeyes on national television with this passing game leading the way. USC moved to 7-2 with the victory, as the record has to matter. Now, with that said, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if Riley’s penchant for losing on the road shows up in two weeks against Indiana, when this Trojans defense could get snuffed out just like it was at Wisconsin.
18. Boise State Broncos (17)
The Boise State Broncos have been on an absolute tear since the season-opening loss in Eugene, delivering big wins over Memphis (38-20) and Western Michigan (32-7) while wrecking shop against the Pac-12 Conference. It stands to reason that should continue next Saturday against Colorado State, which would set up a must-see clash on Nov. 14 versus Oregon State.
19. Houston Cougars (18)
All things considered, the bye week went relatively well for the Houston Cougars. The only teams they’ve lost to, Texas Tech and Utah, performed like top-12 programs on Saturday, and the loss by Arizona means there’s one spot to move up in the Big 12 standings. Two weeks to prepare for the Bearcats should be more than enough, and with road trips to Colorado and West Virginia after that, Houston has a good shot at a nice winning streak to kick off November.
20. Missouri Tigers (22)
Welcome back Ahmad Hardy. The Missouri Tigers running back was largely a non-factor on Saturday against Arkansas, but it’s still great to see the young man back on the field for the first time since he was shot this offseason. While Hardy didn’t play much, running back Jamal Roberts once again put on a show as he closes in on a 1,000-yard season. It’s another win against an unranked opponent for Missouri, but the tough test for Eli Drinkwitz’s program is coming with a three-game stretch against Texas, Georgia, and Kentucky looking all the more daunting.
21. Iowa Hawkeyes (Unranked)
Where did that come from? If you told us 30 total points would be scored on Saturday in Wisconsin vs Iowa, we would’ve believed it. Stunningly, it was the Hawkeyes offense that was responsible for all of the scoring with 30 points and 362 total yards put up on the Badgers defense. Thanks to quarterback Hank Brown (20-of-24, 222 yards, 2-0 TD-INT), Iowa had three catches go for 20-plus yards with wide receiver Tony Diaz and tight end DJ Vonnahme each finding the end zone and putting up 50-plus receiving yards. Iowa (6-2) rebounded perfectly from the Minnesota loss, but another challenge looms with a trip to Northwestern.
22. Oregon State Beavers (Unranked)
The Oregon State Beavers are one of the best stories in college football this season. True freshman wide receiver Jesse Legree (1,040 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns on 46 receptions) was a relative unknown entering September, quarterback Braden Atkinson was a transfer from Mercer, and head coach JaMarcus Shephard seemed to have a multi-year rebuild in front of him considering the program went 2-10 the previous year. Fast forward to Halloween, the Beavers have new money being invested into the program to keep their breakout sensations, and we legitimately might be looking at the best team in the Pac-12.
23. Arizona Wildcats (21)
It looked promising early on Saturday for the Arizona Wildcats in Lubbock. Senior quarterback Noah Fifita came out firing out of the gate, with the Wildcats offense jumping out to a 17-7 lead in the second quarter. Texas Tech outscored Arizona 27-9 from that point onward, with Fifita seeming incapable at times of completing a pass. So, why don’t the Wildcats drop out of our Week 10 college football rankings? Because Arizona’s only losses are one-score defeats at BYU and Texas Tech, which looks a lot better than SMU (lost to Louisville and Syracuse), Northwestern (lost to Indiana and Oregon), and the three-loss teams (Wisconsin and Florida).
24. New Mexico Lobos (Unranked)
With multiple top-25 teams picking up their third loss of the season on Saturday, the New Mexico Lobos (7-1) grab the 24th spot in the Week 10 college football rankings. Playing in the Mountain West Conference certainly helps, with New Mexico’s best win this season coming at home versus North Dakota State (7-2), and its close loss at Oklahoma (14-6) doesn’t look as impressive with hindsight. Still, Lobos head coach Jason Eck is showing why he’ll be a coveted name in the college football coaching carousel this offseason.
25. UTSA Roadrunners (Unranked)
What a job Jeff Traylor is doing in 2026. He’s got the UTSA Roadrunners (7-1) closing in on his third season with double-digit wins since 2021. For comparison, the program had never won nine games in a season prior to his tenure. Coming off the bye, UTSA now gets its chance on Thursday night at Florida Atlantic to prove itself on a national stage (7:30 p.m. ET kickoff on ESPN), and then we’ll get a battle for the top spot in the American Athletic Conference when North Texas and UTSA go head-to-head on Nov. 14.
Source: Yahoo Sports
Sign in to join the conversation.
Comments, replies, Roars, reports, and followed-thread notifications use your verified Rally & Roar account.
Sign in or create an account