Saturday’s. Week 7 college football schedule delivered several compelling matchups between ranked teams, including Indiana versus Oregon and Alabama vs Missouri. On top of that, the Red River Rivalry was intriguing and we got some great late-night duels in the SEC.
Let’s dive into our Week 8 college football rankings, evaluating the 25 best college football teams right now following Saturday’s Week 7 action.
1. Ohio State Buckeyes (1)
The Ohio State Buckeyes are the best team in college football. One way they demonstrate that in this undefeated season is by winning in different ways. In Week 7, the Buckeyes’ offense didn’t play up to its usual standard, but the defense made up for it. Ohio State turned three takeaways into 21 points and held Illinois to a 28.6 percent third-down conversion rate. Facing Wisconsin next week, Julian Sayin, Jeremiah Smith, and Carnell Tate should get back on track, but the Buckeyes can win even if they don’t.
2. Miami Hurricanes (2)
The Miami Hurricanes roster is good enough to overcome some of Mario Cristobal’s poor coaching decisions. That’s shown up in the three ranked victories—Notre Dame, South Florida, and Florida State—this season by a combined 46 points, and that total would be higher if Miami didn’t take its foot off the gas. Coming out of the Week 7 bye, the remaining games on the Hurricanes’ schedule give this team an opportunity to impose its will on inferior opponents with a shutdown defense and a passing game that’s starting to come alive.
3. Indiana Hoosiers (8)
Leave no doubt. Curt Cignetti’s Indiana Hoosiers are on another level this season, and going into Eugene and beating the Ducks by two scores is just the latest example. If not for a pick-six, we’d be talking about a Hoosiers team that has beaten two ranked opponents (Oregon and Illinois) by a combined 70 points. The Hoosiers are simply outstanding on both sides of the ball, and there is no doubt this undefeated record will hold for a long while, with Michigan State and UCLA next to feel this program’s wrath.
4. Ole Miss Rebels (4)
Some wins are going to be ugly in a long season, and that’s what happened to the Ole Miss Rebels on Saturday. Considering Mississippi had a missed field goal and a fumble in Washington State’s territory, Lane Kiffin and Co. should feel a bit fortunate that they still emerged with the victory. The standard will certainly need to be higher and the level of execution significantly better next week at Georgia.
5. Texas A&M Aggies (6)
It didn’t look good early for Mike Elko’s defense, allowing 14 points in the first quarter to Florida. Fortunately for the Texas A&M Aggies, Marcel Reed delivered three early touchdown drives. The Aggies’ defense locked in after that, helping pave the way for a convincing two-score victory over the Gators. Texas A&M should win versus Arkansas in Week 8, but the Razorbacks certainly look a lot more competitive under interim coach Bobby Petrino, and this game does come against his former employer.
6. Alabama Crimson Tide (7)
The Alabama Crimson Tide keep rolling, winning three straight games against ranked opponents, with two of those victories coming on the road against undefeated SEC programs. Losing to Florida State in the season opener seemed to be an eye-opener for this program, but more importantly, it unlocked Heisman-caliber play out of quarterback Ty Simpson. With the Third Saturday in October up next, Simpson and Kalen DeBoer will presumably keep it going in Week 8 with a victory over Tennessee.
7. Texas Tech Red Raiders (8)
Week 7 provided another example of just how difficult it is to remain undefeated well into October, but the Texas Tech Red Raiders are still perfect. Behren Morton and Cameron Dickey went at Kansas Early, putting the Red Raiders up 21-zip, but the Jayhawks answered back with 17 unanswered points. So, Texas Tech went right back to pounding the rock as Cameron Dickey and Will Hammond stepped up after Behren Morton departed with a right leg injury. If Morton misses time, Hammond has already proven (Utah) that he can step up ahead of a ranked matchup versus Arizona State.
8. Georgia Bulldogs (10)
Kirby Smart might want to burn the first-half tape from Saturday’s game, but the Georgia Bulldogs still came out of Week 7 with a much-needed victory. Quite frankly, the fact that Auburn dominated the first half so convincingly and still only led 10-3 is a credit to the Dawgs. The Bulldogs found a way to win in a hostile environment, taking advantage of Jackson Arnold’s goal-line fumble as a momentum turner. Georgia certainly isn’t as dominant as it used to be, there are shortcomings on both sides of the ball, but they can manage it right now given how much parity there is throughout most of college football at the moment.
9. Oklahoma Sooners (5)
The John Mateer injury clearly had a significant impact on the Oklahoma Sooners‘ offense, but the issues up front and the inability to run the football are so much worse. A healthy Mateer, paired with this defense, has demonstrated it can beat some quality Power 4 competition this season. Unless the Sooners suddenly discover an effective run game, though, there are two or three more losses coming.
Related: Winners, Losers from the Red River Rivalry 2025
10. Oregon Ducks (3)
The Oregon Ducks‘ signature win is now a double OT victory over a Penn State team that has also lost to UCLA and Northwestern. Dan Lanning’s program might’ve broken the Nittany Lions, but they also looked like the inferior team at home versus Indiana. While the remainder of the Ducks’ schedule offers a path to 11 wins, there might only be one ranked opponent left, and that’d be a blow for Oregon’s résumé.
11. Tennessee Volunteers (11)
The Tennessee Volunteers were at home against an Arkansas Razorbacks program that showed far more fight and consistency after the coaching change. On the one hand, the Vols can feel relatively confident about their offense and the ability to balance an explosive passing game with a dependable rushing attack. However, Tennessee’s defense looks like it will be the team’s undoing in Week 8 versus Alabama.
12. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (14)
The good times keep rolling for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Haynes King was almost flawless on Saturday through the air, but the real standout was the third-down defense. Georgia Tech didn’t allow a single third-down conversion on Saturday, which proved key in this team coasting to another victory. Now at 6-0, the Yellow Jackets have a great shot at maintaining that perfect record next Saturday at Duke
13. LSU Tigers (12)
Just another Saturday where the LSU Tigers had to bail out Garrett Gussmeier and Brian Kelly. LSU doesn’t come close to earning the title of the most disappointing team in college football this season, but this club and quarterback continue to fall way short of expectations. Sure, LSU survived in Week 7, pulling out a narrow home win over South Carolina, but this performance can’t leave anyone without ties to the team thinking the Tigers can beat the likes of Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, and Alabama. LSU’s time in the top 25 college football rankings might be over before it even travels to Tuscaloosa.
14. BYU Cougars (20)
There weren’t any style points in the double OT victory over Arizona on Saturday night, but the BYU Cougars are still undefeated heading into the third week in October. BYU’s defense gave up some big plays, but a stifling third-down defense helped keep Arizona to 10 points after the first half. With that support, Bear Bachmeier and LJ Martin’s exellence on the ground helped BYU pick up a big conference road win.
15. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (17)
There was a bit of a scare in the first half, with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish leading NC State just 10-7 at halftime. Soon after the second half began, C.J. Carr showcased why he’s the best first-year starting quarterback in college football this season. Notre Dame outscored the Wolfpack 26-0 in the second half, picking up its fourth consecutive win after a Saturday that saw quite a few top-20 teams go down or struggle.
16. Missouri Tigers (13)
Considering that Alabama shut down Ahmad Hardy (52 yards on 12 carries) and this offense went just 1-for-10 on third downs, the Missouri Tigers have to feel like they are still in a good position moving forward. Mizzou’s defense made strides in the second half, and quarterback Beau Pribula at least showed some flashes. The Tigers aren’t Alabama-good, but they should be favored over teams like Auburn and Vandy.
17. Virginia Cavaliers (18)
The lone blemish on the Virginia Cavaliers resume this season is a 21-point third quarter they allowed to NC State, resulting in their only loss of the season. What’s been particularly impressive with this program is its ability to keep fighting in games, overcoming Chandler Morris’ three interceptions in a double-OT win over Florida State and then surviving Louisville’s fourth-quarter rally to win in overtime. Virginia is far from dominant, but it’s exceeding expectations this season, and the wins should keep coming in the next two weeks versus Washington State and North Carolina.
18. Vanderbilt Commodores (19)
Two weeks to prepare for the LSU Tigers should be enough for Diego Pavia and the Vanderbilt Commodores to find some weaknesses to exploit. Fortunately for Vandy, LSU has been extremely up-and-down this season, and Pavia has done a nice job in the past of rebounding from down performances. It should be a more evenly matched game than we saw versus Alabama, so this will be an opportunity for Vanderbilt to prove it’s still one of the best college football teams in 2025.
19. South Florida Bulls (24)
In five wins this season, the South Florida Bulls have a +133 point differential with Alex Golesh’s offense putting up 54-plus points in its last three contests. That loss to Miami might have said a lot more about the Hurricanes’ defense than where South Florida is positioned right now this season. The real test for that will come in two weeks against Memphis.
20. USC Trojans (Unranked)
The USC Trojans pulled it out on Saturday night against Michigan, in large part thanks to running back King Miller and D’Anton Lynn’s defense. It’s a victory that really came down to USC’s ability to both run the football effectively and prevent Michigan running back Justice Haynes from breaking free for the big one. This is exactly the momentum that USC needed before making the trip to face Notre Dame next Saturday night.
Related: USC Trojans Football Commits 2026
21. Memphis Tigers (Unranked)
As Mike Norvell’s Florida State Seminoles drop out of the top 25 college football rankings following their third consecutive loss, all is far from great at his last job. The Memphis Tigers are 6-0 coming out of the bye, and while the resume isn’t stellar—32nd in ESPN FPI—all that really matters now are the victories. Memphis should beat the brakes off UAB in Week 8 before we get to see a great battle against South Florida on Oct. 25.
22. Utah Utes (23)
With Arizona State missing Sam Leavitt, Devon Dampier and the Utah Utes were able to coast to a home win on Saturday night over a ranked opponent. Dampier nearly single-handedly outrushed Arizona State and the Utes’ defense shut down everything backup quarterback Jeff Sims attempted to do. A dominant win with excellence on both sides of the ball is just what the Utes (5-1) needed before the Holy War.
23. Texas Longhorns (Unranked)
Did the Red River Rivalry get the Texas Longhorns back on track? It feels quite a bit premature to proclaim that, and there will be overreactions to Arch Manning’s performance from Saturday. What matters for Texas is that it played its most well-rounded game of the season, considering the level of competition, with the defense playing up to its talent level. Maybe this can be a springboard for Manning and Co., but we won’t really find that out until Nov. 1 against Vanderbilt.
24. Cincinnati Bearcats (Unranked)
A week after the Cincinnati Bearcats offense won a shootout over Iowa State, it’s the defense that rose to the occasion versus Central Florida. UCF might’ve put up 413 total yards in this one, but it came with just 11 points, and a majority of that damage came when the game was well out of reach. The Bearcats now have three consecutive wins against opponents that took the field with a winning record. Kudos to head coach Scott Satterfield, who is 5-1 after his team went 8-16 in his first two seasons with Cincinnati.
25. Nebraska Cornhuskers (Unranked)
The Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-1) are the only team to beat Cincinnati this season, doing so back in the regular-season opener. While this team stumbled versus Michigan, they’ve handled their business in the last two weeks against Michigan State and now Maryland. What really stands out, for the most part, is this program’s ability to overcome its own mistakes to still win one-score games. On Saturday, that meant Dylan Raiola moving past his 3 interceptions to deliver the go-ahead touchdown drive late with under 4 minutes to play. Nebraska now faces Minnesota, before a challenging stretch in early November.
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