B/R's Way-Too-Early College Football Top 25 for the 2026-27 Season
Another college football season is officially done after the Indiana Hoosiers were crowned national champions on Monday night with a 27-21 victory over the Miami Hurricanes.
For everyone outside of those two teams, the offseason is already well under way, and a whirlwind of activity in the transfer portal has reshaped the college football landscape.
Rosters are starting to take shape for 2026, though NFL draft decisions and some late transfers and recruit commitments still provide opportunity for shake-ups.
Working under the assumption that plenty will still change between now and the start of the next college football year, here's a look at B/R's Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings for the 2026 season.
B/R's Super Early Top 25
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B/R's Super Early 2026 Top 25
1. Ohio State
2. Georgia
3. Indiana
4. Texas
5. Oregon
6. Notre Dame
7. Texas Tech
8. Texas A&M
9. Miami
10. Oklahoma
11. Alabama
12. BYU
13. Ole Miss
14. Michigan
15. LSU
16. USC
17. Utah
18. SMU
19. Penn State
20. Houston
21. Tennessee
22. Washington
23. Iowa
24. Louisville
25. Clemson
The QB Carousel
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The attention surrounding the transfer portal reached new heights this year thanks to a condensed window for players to shuffle teams, and the end result was something even more closely resembling NFL free agency.
As always, quarterbacks were the biggest focal point, and more than a few found new homes on teams expected to be nationally relevant in 2026.
Here's a quick rundown of the quarterback transfer who landed at one of the teams in our Super Early Top 25 rankings:
No. 3 Indiana: Josh Hoover (via TCU)
No. 7 Texas Tech: Brendan Sorsby (via Cincinnati)
No. 9 Miami: Darian Mensah (via Duke, not yet official)
No. 13 Ole Miss: Deuce Knight (via Auburn)
No. 15 LSU: Sam Leavitt (via Arizona State)
No. 19 Penn State: Rocco Becht (via Iowa State)
Outside of those notable transfers, Group of Five standouts Drew Mestemaker (North Texas to Oklahoma State) and Byrum Brown (South Florida to Auburn) are also making the jump to major conference competition after following their head coaches.
Former 5-star recruits DJ Lagway (Florida to Baylor) and Dylan Raiola (Nebraska to Oregon) have also found new homes, though Raiola is expected to hold a clipboard now that Dante Moore is returning for another year.
Quick Hits
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The SEC and Big Ten are tied with eight representatives each in our Super Early Top 25, and each conference has two teams inside the top four of the rankings, as the gap has seemingly closed between the SEC and the field for the title of best conference in college football.
Returning quarterbacks at Ohio State (Julian Sayin), Oregon (Dante Moore), Michigan (Bryce Underwood), USC (Jayden Maiava) and Washington (Demond Williams Jr.) help provide some continuity in the Big Ten, while Indiana (Josh Hoover) and Penn State (Rocco Becht) also boast proven starters.
The ACC was absolute chaos in 2025 after Clemson and SMU both failed to live up to expectations, and while Miami reached the national championship, they didn't even play in the conference championship game. The Hurricanes will be the team to beat, especially if they seal the deal with Duke quarterback Darian Mensah, but expect another wide open battle.
There seems to be some separation between Texas Tech and BYU and the rest of the Big 12 pack, though Utah and Houston can't be overlooked with Devon Dampier and Conner Weigman both back under center.
The sleeper team to watch inside the rankings is No. 15 LSU, who has reeled in the nation's top-ranked transfer class under new head coach Lane Kiffin, while No. 2 on that list belongs to his former employer Ole Miss.
If you're looking for teams to keep an eye on that fell just outside the rankings but have Top 25 upside, the "just missed" group includes Arizona, Florida, Illinois and Virginia Tech.
Previewing the Top 5
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With quarterback Julian Sayin, running back Bo Jackson and wide receiver Jeremiah Smith all returning, the Ohio State Buckeyes return with a level of offensive continuity that is rarely seen in the transfer portal age.
They also bring back four of their starters on the offensive line and a pair of impact defenders in edge rusher Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr., along with the No. 4 transfer class and the No. 5 recruiting class.
After falling to Indiana in the Big Ten Championship and Miami in the Cotton Bowl, the nation's most talented team will be playing with a chip on its shoulder.
The Georgia Bulldogs and Texas Longhorns will enter next season as the top dogs in the SEC, due in large part to returning starters at quarterback in Gunner Stockton and Arch Manning, along with their well-established talent pipelines to help replace departing talent.
It will be interesting to see what Manning can do with shiny new weapon Cam Coleman. The former 5-star recruit and No. 3 prospect in the 2024 recruiting class was the top wide receiver in the portal after hauling in 56 catches for 708 yards and five touchdowns at Auburn.
After turning Kurtis Rourke into an NFL draft pick and Fernando Mendoza into a Heisman Trophy winner during his first two seasons, it will be interesting to see what Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti can do with TCU transfer Josh Hoover under center. The three-year starter has 9,629 yards and 71 touchdowns under his belt and brings a wealth of experience to the defending national champions.
The final spot inside the top five was a coin toss between the Oregon Ducks and Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who both check all the boxes with returning standout quarterbacks in Dante Moore and CJ Carr, top-tier recruiting classes and plenty of transfer talent.
However, the Fighting Irish will need to replace All-American running back Jeremiyah Love, who racked up 2,497 yards and 35 touchdowns over the past two seasons. That ultimately served as the tie-breaker for two teams with legitimate championship upside.
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