2026 CFB Tiers

Posted byjachoman9Posted inCollege Football

I put all 138 FBS teams into tiers:

Here’s my rule with tiers. If a team is in the same tier as another, that means that if you ranked them in any order, it would make sense. My first tier goes from 1 – 5. That means I think it would be rather bold if you ranked the no. 6 team any higher, but if you ranked the no. 5 team higher, you could make an arguement that could convince me.

Tier 1: The Championship Contenders

  • Oregon Ducks
  • Texas Longhorns
  • Notre Dame Fighting Irish
  • Ohio State Buckeyes
  • Indiana Hoosiers

Any of these teams could win the championship. They are all really good at every roster spot, they have tremendous talent, and great depth with the best coaches.

Tier 2: Could Make a Deep Playoff Run

  • Ole Miss Rebels
  • Miami Hurricanes
  • USC Trojans
  • Georgia Bulldogs

All of these teams are missing hust one or two things that could make them a championship contender. I was really having a tough time deciding where to place Ole Miss. I ultimately put them in this tier instead of with the championship contenders because it is Pete Golding’s first year, and they don’t have the same depth as the teams ahead of them. I also debated putting Georgia a year below, but Kirby Smart is too good of a coach to put under this tier.

Tier 3: Playoff Contenders

  • Michigan Wolverines
  • Alabama Crimson Tide
  • LSU Tigers
  • Oklahoma Sooners
  • Texas A&M Aggies
  • Texas Tech Red Raiders
  • BYU Cougars

These teams all have a chance of making the playoffs, but I don’t expect them to do much once they get there. They are similar to the teams ahead of them, but their flaws are a little more extreme. For example, USC could have a problem in the trenches when they play top tier elite teams, while Alabama could have problems in the trenches against mediocre teams, even though for both teams, both sides of the line are really the only problem I see on the roster.

BYU and Texas Tech have the easiest paths to the playoffs in this tier by far. They just have to win their conference, and they are the two best teams in the Big 12.

Tier 4: Really Good, but Playoffs May Be Out of Reach

  • Missouri Tigers
  • Houston Cougars
  • Washington Huskies
  • SMU Mustangs
  • Utah Utes
  • Louisville Cardinals

These teams are all really good. These are teams that could beat playoff teams if the operate at full strength. As much as I want to say Houston is on the same level as Texas Tech and BYU, I just can’t do it. They are really good, but they haven’t proven it yet. They have a chance to go to the playoffs, and so do SMU and Louisville, but that chance is very small, and they would require some luck to get there.

Tier 5: Trap Teams

  • Penn State Nittany Lions
  • Tennessee Volunteers
  • Oklahoma State Cowboys
  • Virginia Cavaliers
  • Florida Gators
  • Iowa Hawkeyes
  • Arizona State Sun Devils
  • Auburn Tigers

These teams could catch one of the contenders in the classic “trap game.” These teams are plenty capable, but probably don’t have the consistency to contend for a conference title or a playoff spot. They could beat a top team under the right circumstances, but they could also lose to someone more mediocre.

Tier 6: Pretty Good

  • Kansas State Wildcats
  • Pittsburgh Panthers
  • Boise State Broncos
  • UNLV Rebels
  • California Golden Bears
  • Virginia Tech Hokies
  • Mississippi State Bulldogs
  • Arizona Wildcats
  • Illinois Fighting Illini

These teams are unspectacular, but still solid. They don’t really have big upset potential, but they should have winning records. Boise State and UNLV are a little different since they are in the G6. They are the clear favorites to make the playoffs from the G6.

Tier 7: Solid

  • South Carolina Gamecocks
  • Fresno State Bulldogs
  • San Diego State Aztects
  • Vanderbilt Commodores
  • NCST Wolfpack
  • Memphis Tigers
  • TCU Horned Frogs
  • Clemson Tigers
  • Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
  • Northwestern Wildcats
  • New Mexico Lobos

These teams are good. They really don’t have much of a ceiling, but I would be surprised if they didn’t get to bowl eligibility (except South Carolina and Vandy since they are in the SEC). Memphis and New Mexico have decent shots at the G6 playoff bids if they can overcome Boise State and UNLV.

Tier 8: Mediocre

  • Kentucky Wildcats
  • Minnesota Golden Gophers
  • Wake Forest Demon Deacons
  • Arkansas Razorbacks
  • Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
  • Kansas Jayhawks
  • Maryland Terrapins
  • Nebraska Corn Huskers
  • Air Force Falcons
  • Utah State Aggies
  • Navy Midshipmen
  • UCLA Bruins
  • Wisconsin Badgers
  • Baylor Bears
  • West Virginia Mountaineers
  • North Carolina Tar Heels
  • Florida State Seminoles
  • Rutgers Scarlet Knights
  • Tulane Green Wave
  • Army Black Knights

Not terrible, but not impressive. If in the P4, making a bowl game should be the goal. Set your sights higher and you will be dissapointed. For G6 teams in this tier, they are your dark horse conference title contenders. They have a shot, but everything needs to fall right for it to happen.

Tier 9: Not Good

  • UCF Golden Knights
  • Colorado Buffaloes
  • Syracuse Orange
  • Duke Blue Devils
  • Cincinnati Bearcats
  • Iowa State Cyclones
  • USF Bulls
  • North Dakota State Bison
  • Michigan State Spartans
  • Purdue Boiler Makers
  • Washington State Cougars
  • Boston College Eagles
  • Troy Trojans
  • James Madison Dukes
  • Stanford Cardinal
  • Old Dominion Monarchs

These P4 teams will probably miss bowl games, and really just won’t be any good. The G6 teams should give the top G6 teams trouble and, in the case of the SBC teams in here, have a shot at the playoffs.

Tier 10: Good G6 Teams

  • Colorado State Rams
  • Jax State Gamecocks
  • Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
  • Texas State Bobcats
  • Western Michigan Broncos
  • UTSA Road Runners
  • East Carolina Pirates
  • North Texas Mean Green

These are G6 teams are pretty good, but WMU is probably the only team I could see making the playoffs, as long as they get a good record. A win over Boise State would be huge too.

Tier 11: Decent G6 Teams

  • Miami RedHawks
  • Ohio Bobcats
  • Louisiana Ragin Cajuns
  • Georgia Southern Eagles
  • Marshall Thundering Herd
  • Kennesaw State Owls
  • Nevada Wolfpack
  • Oregon State Beavers
  • San Jose State Spartans
  • UConn Huskies
  • Wyoming Cowboys
  • Temple Owls
  • Liberty Flames

These teams should be shooting for a winning record, but anything past that would be pretty unreasonable.

Tier 12: Okay G6 Teams

  • Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
  • Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
  • FIU Panthers
  • Toledo Rockets
  • Bowling Green Falcons
  • UAB Blazers
  • Tulsa Golden Hurricanes
  • FAU Owls
  • Arkansas State Red Wolves
  • South Alabama Jaguars
  • Deleware Blue Hens
  • Kent State Golden Flashes
  • Buffalo Bulls
  • Appalachian State Mountaineers
  • Southern Miss Golden Eagles

These teams should shoot for a bowl game, but most probably won’t make it.

Tier 13: Bad

  • Central Michigan Chippewas
  • Eastern Michigan Eagles
  • Rice Owls
  • UTEP Miners
  • Charlotte 49ers
  • Akron Zips
  • Georgia State Panthers
  • ULM War Hawks
  • Northern Illinois Huskies

Tier 14: Really Bad

  • Missouri State Bears
  • New Mexico State Aggies
  • Sam Houston Bearkats
  • Ball State Cardinals

Tier 15: De’Aaron Fox in the Finals

  • Sacramento State Hornets
  • MTSU Blue Raiders
  • UMass Minuteman

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