2026 College Football Rankings: Texas Slips After ‘Sloppy’ Performance

Joel Klatt has a new No. 1 team in the country. Oregon and Florida join the top 10 after wins over USC and Ole Miss, respectively. Meanwhile, Ole Miss and LSU both drop out. Georgia takes over the top spot after another dominant win, this one over Oklahoma. Texas slips to No. 2 after a sloppy 20-17 win at Tennessee. Now that month of college football are in the books, here are Klatt’s 10 best teams in the country. Klatt’s thoughts: “I had a very tough debate in my head between Utah and BYU, and I gave it to Utah. I know BYU fans — and by the way, I’ve met a bunch of you — your guys are right there. It doesn’t mean I don’t like BYU. I think BYU is a very good team. But there’s just something about this Utah team and the efficiency with which they play, and Morgan Scalley. I love Kalani Sitake as well, but Utah is going to get that 10 spot. “Wayshawn Parker ran it for 174 yards. They took care of things in their Big 12 opener at Iowa State.” Klatt’s thoughts: “Oregon deserves to be in my top 10. I don’t know if I would want to play Oregon, and I certainly wouldn’t want to play them in their own building. “Oregon’s big victory has major implications for the rest of their season. Obviously, they still have a tough road ahead. They’ve got to go to Ohio State, and they’ve got a lot of monster games on their schedule. But I’m going to go back to this point: they can walk on the field and know that if they play their best, they can beat anybody in the country. They’re now one of the best scoring teams in the entire country.” Klatt’s thoughts: “The challenge for Florida: How do you go to Missouri and put your best foot forward? “Where do I have Florida? I have them in my top 10. Yes, I do. I’ve got them at No. 8. That was a resounding win, albeit at home, but a resounding win. They beat Ole Miss, and they did it with 53 rushes for 300 yards. “I really like Florida, and it’s not just because of their performance on Saturday. I liked what they did against Auburn the week prior. I loved what they did against Ole Miss. They were ready. They were tough. Is it the best team in the SEC? I don’t think it’s the best team in the SEC, but I do think that there is a pathway to the college football playoff.” Klatt’s thoughts: “It wasn’t the greatest performance against Northwestern, but they were doing that with a decimated backfield. Running back Turbo Richard left that game early. It looks like he avoided a major injury, and there is some hope he’ll be back in fairly short order. He went down on a hip-drop tackle out of bounds, and that looked bad, kind of a foot-ankle injury. But Lee Beebe Jr. came in and ran for more than 200 yards. “Now, here’s the thing: I don’t think you can just say Indiana struggled with Northwestern. Do I think there’s much difference between Northwestern and Missouri? No, I don’t. I think Northwestern is a pretty good football team. Quarterback Aidan Chiles was a highly ranked recruit, Chip Kelly is a very creative offensive coordinator, at times getting into the wing-T, and head coach David Braun knows what he’s doing.” Klatt’s thoughts: “Their offense is becoming scary, scary good. They beat South Carolina by 31. “Quarterback Keelon Russell is dynamic as a runner, and he can throw the football down the field. They’ve got talent all over on the outside, and he’s getting better and better. Nearly 400 yards of total offense, five touchdowns for Russell.” Klatt’s thoughts: “If I were you, and I was combing through this for inconsistencies, this is where I would knock me, because I think this is probably my bias jumping into my rankings. I will never not admit when I’m wrong or when I think I could be wrong. This could be that spot. “I thought Notre Dame took care of business in the game they should. They were up 35-0 on Purdue and won 49-10. I believe that’s a very good football team with an elite quarterback. I’d like to see them run the ball and continue to run it better.” Klatt’s thoughts: “This is a team I know is really good. They’re battling some injuries right now, and they’re extraordinarily explosive with one of the best players in the country. “They played Central Michigan and won 52-3. Quarterback Darian Mensah has 12 incomplete passes on the season and 14 touchdowns. Wake me up when they play somebody. Maybe it’s Clemson, I don’t know. Wide receiver Malachi Toney had 120 yards and a touchdown. They’re going to be very good, and they’re going to be right there to the end.” Klatt’s thoughts: “I think Matt Patricia and Ryan Day are going to be looking at that defense and thinking, ‘We need to do something to shore up what we’ve got on that side of the football.’ Illinois was a fourth-down conversion away from making that an interesting game. “Ohio State is going to be No. 3. It’s a very good team, and still a team I absolutely believe can win the Big Ten, can win in the playoff, and maybe even win the national championship. It’s a deep team, and it’s a young team on the defensive side. They have the best player, Jeremiah Smith.” Klatt’s thoughts: “I had Texas at No. 1. I was honoring that win against Ohio State, but Texas is going to drop a spot because, let’s face it, that was incredibly sloppy. “What wasn’t sloppy was the defense. The defense was outstanding, and it has elite talent, led by a guy who I think could be a top-two, -three or -four pick in the NFL draft: Colin Simmons. What we should be talking about is the day he had. He had five sacks. This is Derrick Thomas-style stuff. If you don’t know who Derrick Thomas is, please Google him. You’re young, so I understand. It is remarkable. This is J.J. Watt stuff. This is Aaron Donald stuff. It should be getting him the Nagurski Award, and it should be creating Heisman buzz for a defensive player, like we’ve seen before.” Klatt’s thoughts: “Georgia is going to be No. 1. There’s something about that team, that head coach. We haven’t had to see Gunner Stockton be great in the fourth quarter, but we know he can be. So I’m not even worried that they’re not in a one-possession game. “Do I still have concerns about some areas of their team? Yes, just like everybody has some flaws. I don’t know how they can throw the football, and Stockton threw a pick in that game. Oklahoma’s defense is excellent, and it’s not in any way, shape or form indicative of what their offense is. Georgia jumped out to a 28-0 halftime lead. It was 41-13 in that game, but they only had 306 yards of total offense. “Are they head and shoulders above everybody else? No. But up to this point, I can say to myself, ‘OK, I trust that coach, I trust that quarterback, I trust that culture to not lose games on their own, and be one of, if not the best teams in the country.’”