Notre Dame on Cusp of Missing CFP and 8 Overreactions after Week 7 of 2026 College Football Season
When the dust settled and the final game finally ended well after midnight, the picture came into focus. Week 7 of the college football season delivered one of the most exciting and meaningful Saturdays the sport has ever seen.
This isn't an overreaction. This is a proper reaction.
With an avalanche of upsetsāincluding absolute madness inside the top 10 of the AP Pollāthe greatest sport on earth just reminded the world how unpredictable it can be.
As we approach Halloween, the stakes grow higher. The schedule grows shorter. The race to the end of the season picks up steam. As it does, our overreactions grow more robust.
Needless to say, after the madness that was, we have plenty to work with. Overreact we shall.
There are No Elite Teams This Season
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After Saturday, it's abundantly clear that we don't have a dominant team in college football in 2026.
Good. It's far more fun that way.
We have good teams. Heck, we have great teams. But there is not a team that feels unbeatable in the sport, and Saturday showcased this in a historic way.
The No. 1, No. 2, No. 5, No. 6 and No. 7 ranked teams in the AP Poll lost in Week 7. Big favorites lost, unbeatens lost, small favorites lost.
There were losses everywhere, and we will cover many of them at length.
We've spent the last few weeks trying to figure out the truly exceptional teams across the sport. The only team that looked like it might have fit that mold was Georgia, especially after such a strong win over Alabama on the road. On Saturday, the Bulldogs lost outright to Auburn at home 27-24 despite coming into the game as roughly a three-touchdown favorite.
Woof. And not the kind of woof for the Bulldogs.
The national championship chase has never been less clear, and that should make for a thrilling homestretch.
College Football Has a Sesimic Officiating Issue
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Too often this year, the officiating has been the story rather than the teams, players and coaches. And after Week 7, we once again find ourselves dissecting what the refs should have done (or didn't do) rather than the games themselves.
One could argue that the officials in the Notre Dame-BYU game missed two key plays. First, there was a clear defensive pass interference at the end of the game that was missed. More concerning is the fact that the officiating crew ended the game, even though there should have been one second remaining.
The Big 12 released a statement late on Saturday night confirming as such, essentially confirming that Big 12 officials botched this final moment that gifted BYU a 28-24 victory.
This season alone we've already seen enough. There was the Michigan-Western Michigan Hail Mary to kick things off, which featured clock malpractice similar in nature. We missed a flag on Tennessee's illegal dropkick against Texas and also had an incorrect spot on Oregon's two-point conversion try against UCLA.
Oh, it's a tough job. But botching huge moments with replay availableāespecially when it comes to something like clock timeāis unacceptable.
The stakes are too high for teams to lose the way Notre Dame did. Simple as that.
It has to be better, or we start to question the integrity of the whole operation.
Officiating Aside, Notre Dame is a Miami Loss Away from Missing the CFP
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Notre Dame's 28-24 loss to BYU was indeed controversial, and we'll be thinking about what could have been for quite some time.
That acknowledged, it won't change the result. Notre Dame's schedule is no longer unblemished, and the team's remaining path doesn't exactly ooze excellence beyond one game moving forward.
Sound familiar? It should.
The good news? That one game is a good one. Notre Dame plays Miami in November, and it will take place in South Bend. If there are doubts about this team, the Irish can silence them in short order.
The bad news? The schedule is largely "meh" outside of two games, which is how Notre Dame has operated in recent years.
The best win to date came against Wisconsin in Week 1, and the Badgers are coming off a loss to UCLA. Beyond that, the Irish play SMU, which has played better of late, but that doesn't jump off the page.
A win over Miami and a clean finish solves these issues. No debates. No weirdness. No selection committee questions But a loss at home, regardless of what else transpires, and things could easily turn (again).
A 10-2 season with this schedule might not be good enough.
Notre Dame fans don't want to hear it after last year, but a scenario is taking shape yet again.
Ohio State's Quarterback Situation Will Ultimately Sink This Team
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Julian Sayin was injured in the second half of Ohio State's wild 19-15 win over Indiana, and his immediate future is somewhat unknown. (We hope he gets healthy soon.)
Ryan Day told reporters that Sayin would be out "several weeks" following the game, although there will be more clarity on that in the days to come.
The Buckeyes have a bye next week, which couldn't come at a better time. After that, they'll travel to USC, play Oregon and Northwestern at home and then travel to Nebraska.
All of these games are supremely winnable under normal circumstances, although this isn't exactly normal.
While he's out, true freshman Luke Fahey and former 5-star Tavien St. Clair will compete for reps. Needless to say, there's plenty of concern. The lack of experience at the position could spell problems, especially if Sayin is out for a prolonged period.
It's also fair to question if Ohio State should have done more in the transfer portal to add depth and experience to that position, but that ship has sailed.
The bigger picture isn't a whole lot prettier. Sayin had some rough moments against Indiana, and he hasn't exactly progressed in a way many, including this writer, thought he would. While Jeremiah Smith has covered up a lot of QB worries, this was not a good day for the position and the outlook moving forward.
There were concerns before the injury; now those concerns are massive in scale.Ā
The SEC Continues to Play its Way Out of the Playoff
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To be clear, what a weekend it was.
In terms of parity and excitement, the SEC delivered. From a playoff perspective, however, no conference was dealt a bigger blow on Saturday than the SEC.
The conference came into the week with four teams ranked inside the top 10. Three of those teams lost. And Missouri, which came into the week ranked No. 13, was absolutely blown out by Ole Miss.
In terms of overall shock value, Georgia's defeat against Auburn was significant. When it comes to the impact on the College Football Playoff, however, Alabama's loss to Tennessee and Texas' wild loss to Florida could be the most impactful.
While one loss won't boot a team from playoff contention, three losses have historically removed teams from consideration entirely. That could change this season, of course, although a precedent has been set.
The SEC now has no unbeaten teams, and four teams have one loss. With so many massive games still to be played, the conference continues to deliver on the entertainment front. At the same time, it's been a brutal stretch for CFB Playoff resumes.
And we're not done.
Steve Sarkisian's Seat is Warming
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His facial expressions after the game said it all.
Following back-to-back losses against Oklahoma and Floridaāgames Texas was favored in by more than a touchdownāSteve Sarkisian couldn't hold back on his frustrations, saying all parts of the program will be analyzed.
Given how ugly it was at times in the 27-24 defeat, it makes sense. But in looking at the state of Texas, we should probably start to look at the head coach as well.
Sarkisian was paramount in bringing Texas back from the dead. The program is in a much better place than it once was, and his influence is a big part of that.
But it feels like the program has hit its ceiling, and Sarkisian's commitment to quarterback Arch Manning, at least to date, likely hasn't helped. Overall, the vibes surrounding the program just feel off.
Sarkisian's buyout is reportedly north of $50 million, and it's unlikely the Longhorns would do anything drastic this year. But this is how the hot seat conversation starts, and when it does, it becomes difficult to swing momentum back in the other direction.
Backup QB and All, UCLA is Trending Toward the CFP
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While the SEC continues to stack losses, UCLA still doesn't know what that feels like in 2026.
Amazing.
In his first season with the program, head coach Bob Chesney is working miracles. The Bruins are 6-0, and they just beat Wisconsin 17-7 without starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who is out for the year with an injury.
Backup QB Ty Dieffenbach wasn't perfect, although he was good enough. And he showed enough to start considering how far UCLA can take this unlikely surge.
The schedule moving forward is remarkably favorable, which is perhaps putting it mildly.
Ā UCLA only has two road games remaining, games at Minnesota and at Michigan. Outside of that, Chesney's team plays Michigan State, Nevada, Illinois and USC.
Of all the surprising things the 2026 season has delivered, UCLA's resurgence is near the top of the list. As the season grows deeper, however, the Bruins are on the cusp of morphing from a good story to a legitimate postseason threat.
The 24-Team Playoff Won't Kill College Football
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We're breaking protocol some, expanding to the topic currently engulfing the sport. But no piece of news throughout Week 7 was bigger than this one.
A 24-team College Football Playoff is coming, and it's coming next season barring something unforeseen. Conference championship games will be gone, the playoff will add multiple rounds, and the sport will look drastically different one calendar year from now.
The general response from this announcement has largely been negative, and that makes sense. It will certainly change the sport we know and love.
But this won't kill college football. It won't kill the regular season. The postseason, which will occupy much more time than it once did, will still absolutely deliver, especially with more games being played on college football campuses.
Is it perfect? Goodness no. Did we need it? Absolutely not.
But the sprint to declare the sport dead each time a change is made has grown exhausting.
Everyone take a deep breath. It'll be fine. Saturdays will still be exceptional, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.Ā
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