The College Football Playoff selection committee placed Miami at No. 1 in its first rankings of the 2026 season on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Miami is 8-0, and the Hurricanes sit ahead of Georgia, Utah and Indiana in the top four. Georgia is 7-1, Utah is 8-0 and Indiana is 8-1.
In the AP poll released on Nov. 1, Miami received 62 of 70 first place votes. The Hurricanes moved to No. 1 in that poll on Oct. 18 after a 43-35 double overtime win over Florida State. The committee ranking is the first time Miami has held the No. 1 spot in the committee rankings in the 13-year history of the playoff system, according to the University of Miami student newspaper.
Why Miami opened at No. 1
Miami is one of three undefeated teams left in the Football Bowl Subdivision, according to NCAA.com. The Hurricanes won close games against Florida State and North Carolina. That record, with no loss on the ledger, put Miami ahead of a group of one-loss teams led by Georgia.
Georgia is the highest ranked one-loss team at No. 2. The Bulldogs lost to Auburn, which NCAA.com listed as an unranked 4-4 team. Georgia also owns a win over Alabama, which is ranked No. 5, and a win over a ranked Florida team.
Utah is 8-0 at No. 3. The Utes own a win over No. 17 Houston, a result NCAA.com cited as a useful point in their favor when compared with other unbeaten teams. Indiana is 8-1 at No. 4. The Hoosiers lost to Ohio State, and NCAA.com noted that Indiana does not have a ranked win after a weak nonconference schedule. Indiana is the defending national champion, and a No. 4 ranking would give the Hoosiers a first-round bye if the season ended now.
Under the current format, the teams ranked No. 1 through No. 4 earn the top four seeds and a first-round bye, whether or not they win their conference title. Seeds 5 through 12 play each other in the first round, with the higher seeded team hosting on campus. The 12-team field also includes automatic bids for the conference champions of the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC, plus the highest ranked team from the group of six smaller conferences.
The rest of the top 25
Alabama is No. 5 at 6-2, followed by Kentucky at No. 6 at 7-1, Texas at No. 7 at 6-2, UCLA at No. 8 at 8-0, BYU at No. 9 at 7-1 and Ole Miss at No. 10 at 6-2. Notre Dame is No. 11 at 7-1, Ohio State is No. 12 at 6-2, Tennessee is No. 13 at 6-2 and LSU is No. 14 at 6-2. Texas Tech is No. 15 at 7-1, Wake Forest is No. 16 at 7-1, Houston is No. 17 at 6-2 and Missouri is No. 18 at 6-2.
Iowa is No. 19, Southern California is No. 20, South Carolina is No. 21, Arizona is No. 22, Oregon is No. 23, Florida is No. 24 and Boise State is No. 25. Boise State is the highest ranked team from the group of six conferences, so NCAA.com projected the Broncos as the No. 12 seed in the bracket based on the current rankings.
The SEC has the most teams in the top 25, with 10. The Big Ten has six, the Big 12 has five, the ACC has two, and Notre Dame is the one independent team in the list. Boise State is listed by NCAA.com as the one Pac-12 team in the top 25.
What the Miami ranking means for Saturday
Notre Dame drew the most attention for its position. The Fighting Irish were No. 4 in the latest AP poll after improving to 7-1 with a win over Navy, but the committee placed them at No. 11. That is seven spots lower than the AP ranking. Notre Dame does not have a ranked win, and its loss came against BYU, which is ranked No. 9.
Saturday gives Notre Dame a direct chance to change that picture. No. 1 Miami travels to Notre Dame for a 7:30 p.m. ET game on NBC. Other ranked Week 10 games include No. 2 Georgia at No. 10 Ole Miss, No. 9 BYU at No. 3 Utah, No. 5 Alabama at No. 14 LSU and No. 7 Texas at No. 18 Missouri.
The first round begins on Friday, Dec. 18, with one game, followed by three more on Saturday, Dec. 19. The final bracket is set on Dec. 6.