This exercise essentially turned into a question of whether or not I like a team’s quarterback. So much changes year-over-year in the sport now with the fluidity of the transfer portal. Who will be this year’s James Madison? Who will be this season’s Virginia? It’s much tougher to know those answers in the spring today than it was 10 years ago.
Nevertheless, we are in the business of ranking anything and everything and we can’t go 8 months without ranking college football teams. So, here’s a way-too-early Top 25 for the 2026 season.
Spring Top 25 Ranking
Let’s dive in.
25. Florida
Tulane won the American and made the College Football Playoff under Jon Sumrall. Sumrall left to take over Florida, but did so without gutting the Green Wave roster upon his exit. Instead, Sumrall sought his transfer quarterback from Georgia Tech, where his new OC used to coach, and made his splashy offensive addition via Auburn. I do have some questions on offense, but in Sumrall’s first year, the Gators might be a defensive force. That side of the ball ranks first in returning production, and projects as the 12th-best defense in the country for 2026.
24. Oklahoma State
With each passing year, we see programs attempt seemingly more aggressive rebuilds. At this point, we almost need a new term. Teams that bring a successful coach to a sputtering program have also started porting rosters. That’s what Oklahoma State did this offseason, bringing Eric Morris over from North Texas to replace program legend Mike Gundy. Drew Mestemaker (4,379 passing yards, 34 touchdowns), Caleb Hawkins (1,434 rushing yards, 25 TDs), and Wyatt Young (1,264 receiving yards, 10 TDs) are just a few of the 16 UNT transfers that joined the Pokes this offseason. North Texas led the FBS in scoring last year, en route to a 12-2 record and the first AP Poll finish (24th) in program history. If the port actually takes, OSU will be right back in the thick of the Big 12 conversation.
23. Auburn
Former South Florida coach Alex Golesh put together a portal class I quite like. Quarterback Byrum Brown is obviously the headliner. Golesh brought other Bulls with him, too, including one of Brown’s favorite targets in Keshaun Singleton (8 receiving TDs in 2025) and starting center Cole Best. But Golesh also brought in 4 SEC bodies on the line of scrimmage, a pair of disruptive 300-pound defensive linemen for the interior of the line, and former Baylor running back Bryson Washington. With the Bears last year, Washington ran for 5.1 yards per carry. The year prior, he ran for 5.9 and topped 1,000 yards while sharing the backfield. With Brown (1,121 sack-adjusted rushing yards) and Washington, Auburn could be the kind of offense teams in the SEC just hate to see coming. We know the Tigers are tough. Despite a 5-7 record last year, Auburn was 34th nationally in adjusted net EPA per play (per Game on Paper). A more buttoned-up culture with the talent on hand would be a darned good team.
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22. SMU
SMU went 9-4 last season, held on to coach Rhett Lashlee, held on to starting quarterback Kevin Jennings, and signed several pass catchers who should be big parts of the offense in 2026. Jalen Hale is a former 5-star recruit. Yannick Smith had 1,017 receiving yards in 2 seasons for East Carolina. A bounce-back season from Jennings is needed. The Mustangs lost both coordinators who had been with Lashlee for all 4 years of his SMU tenure.
21. Iowa
Iowa averaged 29 points per game in 2025, helping pave the way for another 9-win season. The scoring output was the best in a full season since 2018. The Hawkeyes capped the year with a 40-16 beatdown of Nebraska in Lincoln and a 34-27 win over Vanderbilt. The Hawkeyes have to replace a ton of production, but Kirk Ferentz has been there, done that.
20. Tennessee
The Vols’ defense took a significant step back in 2025, so coach Josh Heupel approached the offseason aggressively looking to retool that side of the ball. He fired Tim Banks and replaced him with former national championship-winning DC Jim Knowles. Two defensive linemen, a linebacker, and a safety followed Knowles from Penn State to Tennessee, and all of them should play big roles. Tennessee also landed Kayin Lee from Auburn and Qua Moss from Kansas State. Knowles has produced elite defenses everywhere he has been. I trust him to do the same in Knoxville.
19. Washington
It wasn’t about the additions this offseason so much as it was about the retention for the Huskies. Demond Williams Jr. almost bolted, but ultimately decided to stay. Given the way the situation played out, the easiest thing to do would have been to stay gone. Returning and spending an entire spring period mending bridges is commendable. If Williams takes another step in 2026, all will be quickly forgiven. Williams was electric in wins over Illinois and Boise State over the back half of the season.
18. LSU
The Portal King is on his throne in Baton Rouge. Fresh off a Playoff run with Ole Miss, Lane Kiffin is looking to get LSU back into title contention. Will that happen in Year 1? It’ll take everything coalescing beautifully, given the schedule. Not out of the realm of possibility, but I do want to see quarterback Sam Leavitt both stay healthy and play more like his 2024 self than his 2025 self before proclaiming the Tigers are anything more than good. Leavitt was awesome when he shared a backfield with Cam Skattebo, and less so once Skattebo left for the NFL. How good is Harlem Berry?
Prediction Markets College Football Playoff Qualifiers 2026 Learn more about Prediction Markets Kalshi Notre Dame 84% Oregon 76% Texas 74% Ohio St. 71% Texas Tech 70% Georgia 68% Indiana 65% Miami (FL) 65% LSU 53% Ole Miss 43% Predict17. Houston
The core of a 10-win Houston team is back for coach Willie Fritz. Conner Weigman is back at quarterback, and Fritz added former Tulane running back Makhi Hughes after a 1-year disaster run with Oregon. The Cougars also brought in Shadre Hurst on the offensive line. If Hughes has locked back in, he’ll be one of the Big 12’s best running backs.
16. Utah
The Utes went 11-2 last year. They held on to their starting quarterback after he produced 3,325 yards of offense and 34 touchdowns in 2025. They held on to running back Wayshawn Parker, too. But they pushed Kyle Whittingham out the door and lost big pieces of the team — offensive coordinator Jason Beck, defensive end John Henry Daley — in the process. Morgan Scalley has been the coach-in-waiting for some time now, so give him the benefit of the doubt, but how much of Utah’s steadiness over the last decade was because of Whittingham? We’re going to see.
15. Oklahoma
The Sooners built their CFP résumé on the back of the defense, and that defense suffered major losses this offseason. That means quarterback John Mateer will need to make up the difference in 2026. A Brent Venables-coached defense will still cause problems, but Mateer has to be better after spats of raging mediocrity during his first season in Norman.
14. Alabama
Alabama is 20-8 under Kalen DeBoer through his first 2 seasons. In 2024, the Crimson Tide ranked 13th in adjusted net EPA per play. In 2025, they ranked 29th. The defense has carried water for the offense to a degree I just didn’t see happening. Big season for DeBoer to prove this Alabama program is still elite.
13. Michigan
I love Whittingham as a head coach. Beck, as the new offensive coordinator, has spent the last 2 seasons making offensive magic with a 5-foot-11 passer. The Utah imports will help plug holes on defense. The offense will be in fine shape if Bryce Underwood continues to develop.
12. USC
The Trojans lose big names at the skill positions, but they return a top-5 quarterback in college football to keep the ship steady. Jayden Maiava enters Year 2 as the USC starter alongside 5 returning starters on the offensive line and 2 tailbacks who combined for 1,548 yards last season. Lincoln Riley always has good receivers, and he coaxed Gary Patterson out of the state of Texas to run his defense. USC has just a single 10-win season in the last 8 years; the Trojans are a threat to hit that mark in 2026.
11. BYU
BYU ranks sixth nationally in returning defensive production. Starting quarterback Bear Bachmeier and running back LJ Martin are both back. Bachmeier was awesome against everyone but Texas Tech as a true freshman, remarkable considering he was forced into the leading role over the summer. BYU is 23-4 over the last 2 seasons. One of the losses was in a conference title game. Another was to a Playoff team on the road. The other 2 were by a combined 9 points.
10. Texas A&M
All Mike Elko does is win football games. The offense returns Marcel Reed and Mario Craver. The lines suffered heavy losses but Elko hit the portal hard to reload both groups. Both coordinator jobs changed hands, but Elko deserves the benefit of the doubt.
9. Ole Miss
Trinidad Chambliss stayed. Kewan Lacy stayed. Will Echoles stayed. Suntarine Perkins stayed. Starting center Brycen Sanders stayed. Pete Golding got the key pieces of the Rebels’ Playoff push to eschew LSU and chase more in 2026. I like this team to play with a chip on its shoulder, especially early in the year.
8. Miami
Miami surged to the title game in 2025, led by Carson Beck and a tenacious defense. It’s a massive rebuild job in Coral Gables this offseason, defensively more than offensively. The offense should be fine. Darian Mensah, Mark Fletcher Jr., Malachi Toney, and Cooper Barkate form a terrific core to build around.
7. Texas Tech
Texas Tech upgraded at quarterback and brought back a pair of strong running backs. The offense should be better. The defense might take a step back after losing irreplaceable pieces in David Bailey and Jacob Rodriguez. But no one in the Big 12 is recruiting like Tech right now, particularly on the lines of scrimmage, which likely means the Red Raiders will stay a cut above.
6. Georgia
The Dawgs won another SEC title in 2025 despite being one of the league’s youngest teams. That experience makes Georgia all the more dangerous in 2026. Defensively, I’m looking for that spark to reignite. Offensively, I’ll hold my tongue.
5. Ohio State
Hiring Matt Patricia to run the defense proved to be a shrewd move for Ryan Day. So much so that he followed the same formula to fill his OC role this offseason, plucking Arthur Smith from the NFL. Talent abounds on offense. I’m curious what Patricia does for an encore now that he no longer has Caleb Downs, Sonny Styles, or Arvell Reese.
4. Oregon
If Dan Lanning has no supporters, I am dead and gone. Since the start of the 2022 season, only Georgia has a better winning percentage than Oregon. The Ducks have 5 total losses over the last 3 years — 2 to the national runner-up in 2023, 1 to the national champion in 2024, and 2 to the national champion in 2025. The Ducks added a stud to the offensive line and added a stud to the secondary. They brought back their starting quarterback and a ton of star power on defense.
3. Texas
It was good that everyone got their jokes off early last year, because the joking days are long gone with Arch Manning, who closed out the 2025 campaign on a tear. Texas went all-in this offseason to get Manning the necessary help he needs, adding Cam Coleman at receiver and a dynamic tandem at tailback. Coach Steve Sarkisian also made the stunning move to fire Pete Kwiatkowski and replace him with Will Muschamp, a move that, if it works, could put Texas within reach of a third Playoff semifinal appearance in 4 years.
2. Notre Dame
The Fighting Irish lead the nation in returning production. That’s despite losing 2,046 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns from Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price. Nine of the defense’s top 10 tacklers are back. CJ Carr, whose ceiling is remarkable, enters his second season as the starting quarterback. The schedule looks like a stroll through a tulip field. Notre Dame is also pissed after being shut out of the CFP in 2025. This team might be insufferable in 2026.
1. Indiana
My rule is a simple one: The defending champs stay No. 1. Indiana went 16-0 last season, bludgeoning everyone in its path. The Hoosiers have to fill a ton of holes, but Curt Cignetti hasn’t missed yet on a transfer evaluation. I love his new quarterback (Josh Hoover from TCU) and I trust Cignetti will have a retooled group playing with more of an edge rather than any sort of complacency.
Way-too-early Top 25 for the 2026 college football season Saturday Down South.
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