CFP Bracket Predictions After Latest 2026 Playoff Bowl Rankings Projections

The 2026 college football season is far from finished, but the playoff picture is beginning to come into focus. The College Football Playoff (CFP) selection committee released its updated rankings on Tuesday.

The biggest issue with the rankings right now is that they're unlikely to stay static. We've seen upsets involving the top teams almost weekly. Teams ranked No. 1 in the polls have gone just 5-4 this season.

We saw another big "upset" this past week, as Notre Dame knocked off top-ranked Miami, though the Hurricanes were without Malachi Toney and the Irish were actually favored.

Here's a look at the latest rankings, what's in store for Week 11, and some early CFP bracket predictions.

Updated CFP Rankings

1. Georgia
2. Utah
3. Alabama
4. UCLA
5. Notre Dame
6. Texas
7. Miami
8. Tennessee
9. Indiana
10. BYU
11. Kentucky
12. Texas Tech
13. Wake Forest
14. Houston
15. Iowa
16. Oregon
17. South Carolina
18. USC
19. Mississippi
20. Ohio State
21. LSU
22. Missouri
23. Arizona
24. Boise State
25. Oklahoma State

*Rankings from CollegeFootballPlayoff.com

Key Week 11 Games

Justin Ford/Getty Images

Georgia QB Gunner Stockton

22. Missouri at 1. Georgia

The Bulldogs are the new top-ranked team in the country, not long after a surprising loss to Auburn knocked them out of the top spot. If Gunner Stockon and Co. hope to retain the No. 1 spot this time around, they'll have to fend off a scrappy Missouri team that has the goods to pull off yet another upset.

6. Texas at 21. LSU

It's still hard to know what to make of this Texas team. Quarterback Arch Manning has been up-and-down all season, and we've seen the Longhorns stumble against the likes of Oklahoma, Florida, and even Ohio State—though Texas did survive the Buckeyes.

A convincing win against an LSU squad that was just squashed by Alabama would go a long way toward legitimizing the Longhorns.

18. USC at 9. Indiana

USC has been a weird team this season. It played brilliantly against the Buckeyes a couple of weeks ago but looked lost in games against Oregon and Wisconsin. The Trojans need a win here to stay alive in a Big Ten race that is led by undefeated UCLA. They might get it against an Indiana team that has also looked inconsistent this season.

2. Utah at 23. Arizona

Utah remains undefeated and will need to beat a talented Big-12 rival this week to stay that way. Quarterback Noah Fifita and the Arizona offense are potent enough to make this one very interesting. The Utes could lose and still end up winning the conference, but they're unlikely to earn a first-round bye without a perfect record.

CFP Bracket Predictions

The CFP format will be very similar to last year's. The top four Power Four conference champions will earn automatic bids—though, they won't automatically earn top seeds as they did a couple of years ago.

This is why we could see two teams from the same conference earn first-round byes. The prediction here is that we do, with both Georgia and Alabama taking the opening round off.

A fifth guaranteed spot will go to the highest-ranked conference champion from the rest of the Group of Six. The prediction here is that Boise State earns that bid as the Pac-12 champion.

Whichever team earns the G6 bid is likely to push out a team like Texas Tech, which is currently in the No. 12 spot.

The big change this year is that Notre Dame, which doesn't exist within a conference, can earn an automatic bid by finishing inside the top 12. That would prevent the Irish from being dropped out for a team like Boise State if they end up in the No. 12 spot.

The prediction here is that Notre Dame doesn't come close to needing the automatic qualifier. The Irish survived Miami, and their remaining schedule—Boston College, SMU, at Syracuse—isn't particularly daunting.

We may not find out how good Notre Dame actually is until the playoff, but it shouldn't fall out of the CFP picture. The prediction here is that the Irish earn a high seed but are kept away from a bye by the CFP committee.