3 overreactions from second College Football Playoff rankings of 2026

There was a lot to suss out after the second College Football Playoff rankings show of 2026.

Oregon is the top 3-loss team over a red-hot South Carolina squad? What are these “pods” that Hunter Yurachek keeps talking about that keep the Tennessee Volunteers and Alabama Crimson Tide from being compared head-to-head?

These shows continue to leave us with more questions than answers, but that’s OK for now. What’s important is that the final CFP top 25 is better than these first 2 iterations have been.

Do I have confidence that this version of the committee will get the top 12 right on selection day? Reader, I do not.

But I have no choice but to hold out hope for a miracle.

Anyway, here are my 3 biggest reactions to the second CFP rankings of the 2026 season:

1. Indiana dropped to where it probably should be

I don’t like the process that leads to Indiana dropping 5 spots (from No. 4 to No. 9) while on a bye week, but I do think the Hoosiers are now closer to where they should be in the rankings.

This is a team that I bet even Curt Cignetti would admit has flaws. The Hoosiers have had 5 of their 6 Big Ten games thus far decided by one possession. The only multiple-score win came against a hapless Rutgers squad. A loss to Ohio State in Bloomington (even though the Buckeyes were at full strength at the time) is aging poorly.

This is not the juggernaut that Cignetti had last year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the Hoosiers lose another game down the stretch (vs. USC, at Washington, vs. Purdue).

All that said… you can’t just drop a team 5 spots during its bye week. That’s just a bad process by the committee.

2. Miami dropped too far

Losing by one score on the road without your best wide receiver (and legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate) against the then-No. 11 team in the nation shouldn’t lead to a 6-spot drop.

Darian Mensah and company are still plenty good enough to win out, as they face Duke, Virginia Tech and Boston College, all at home, to end the year. Though the Hurricanes would certainly be wise not to overlook Manny Diaz’s Duke squad.

The 13-point win at Wake Forest earlier this year continues to age well. The ACC Championship Game will offer another chance at a semi-quality win. This is a team that shouldn’t have to hold its breath for a top-4 seed on selection day if it takes care of business the next few weeks. But based on how far Miami dropped on Tuesday night, that appears as though it’ll be the case.

3. UCLA is now too high

So the committee, as we discussed in the first section, dropped Indiana a few spots after it was overrated last week. However, the committee moved UCLA up several spots for a win over… Minnesota?

Now we just have another overrated Big Ten team in the No. 4 spot. I’m not trying to be negative about UCLA. Bob Chesney has done incredible work with the Bruins, but this is not a top-4 team. Anyone who says that should look at who the Bruins have played this year.

I wouldn’t be writing this section if the Bruins were ranked No. 5 or No. 6, but to have them in the mix for a first-round bye over Notre Dame seems foolish. Could another overcorrection be coming next Tuesday?

We’ll see how UCLA fares at home against Illinois (not exactly another juggernaut) on Friday night. The Big Ten is a mess this year.

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Adam Spencer

Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.