The AP Top 25 Week 10 poll kept Miami at No. 1 on Sunday, November 1, 2026, rewarding the unbeaten Hurricanes for surviving a 38-35 road scare at North Carolina and setting up a season-defining trip to Notre Dame, while Georgia climbed to No. 2, Utah surged to No. 3 and Ohio State tumbled nine places to No. 11 in the final AP ranking before the first College Football Playoff rankings of the season are released on Tuesday.
Miami, now 8-0, increased its first-place vote total from 59 to 62 despite the close call in Chapel Hill, a sign that voters still see the Hurricanes as the clearest team in the country even after a weekend when several contenders wobbled. Georgia, 7-1, moved up to No. 2 after demolishing Florida 27-8 in Atlanta, while Utah, also 8-0, jumped three spots to No. 3 after a 49-25 road win over Cincinnati. Notre Dame sits at No. 4 and UCLA, 8-0 after a 27-0 shutout of Nevada, rounds out the top five.
The Associated Press released its Week 10 Top 25 on Sunday afternoon, following a Week 9 slate that produced a handful of upsets and several statement wins. The full ranking is: 1. Miami, 2. Georgia, 3. Utah, 4. Notre Dame, 5. UCLA, 6. Indiana, 7. BYU, 8. Kentucky, 9. Alabama, 10. Texas, 11. Ohio State, 12. Ole Miss, 13. Texas Tech, 14. Wake Forest, 15. LSU, 16. Tennessee, 17. Houston, 18. USC, 19. Missouri, 20. Boise State, 21. Iowa, 22. New Mexico, 23. South Carolina, 24. Arizona and 25. Florida.
Miami's hold on the top spot was tested in Chapel Hill, where the Tar Heels pushed the Hurricanes to the final minutes before Miami escaped 38-35. It was the third straight week at No. 1 for Miami, and the extra first-place votes suggest voters credited the win on the road rather than punishing the closeness of the margin. The Hurricanes now head to South Bend to face No. 4 Notre Dame on Saturday night, a game that will either strengthen their claim to the top seed in the playoff race or open the door for Georgia and Utah.
Georgia's rise to No. 2 came after one of the weekend's most complete performances, a 27-8 demolition of Florida in Atlanta that left the Bulldogs at 7-1 and, in the eyes of voters, ahead of every one-loss team except none. Utah's jump was just as emphatic: the Utes went to Cincinnati and won 49-25, improving to 8-0 and earning the week's biggest climb inside the top 10, from No. 6 to No. 3. Notre Dame, 7-1, moved up one spot to No. 4 after rallying from a rough first half to beat Navy 35-13.
The biggest fall belonged to Ohio State. The Buckeyes dropped nine places, from No. 2 to No. 11, after their upset loss, the steepest slide in this week's poll and one that pushes them outside the top 10 for the first time this season. Indiana also slipped, falling two spots to No. 6 despite beating Minnesota in overtime, a result that extended the Hoosiers' run in the AP top 10 to 22 consecutive weeks, the longest streak in programme history, but cost them ground as Utah and UCLA passed them.
The AP Top 25, voted on by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters, has been the sport's most familiar weekly barometer since 1936, and in the playoff era it still shapes the conversation even though it does not decide the bracket. That distinction matters this week more than most: the College Football Playoff selection committee releases its first rankings on Tuesday, and while the committee says it does not use the AP poll, the two lists rarely diverge wildly in November. A team sitting at No. 1 in the AP poll in early November has historically been in a strong position, though not a guaranteed one, to earn a first-round bye or a home playoff game.
Miami's season has been built on close wins and a defence that has bent without breaking. The Hurricanes survived North Carolina 38-35 after earlier scares, and their 8-0 record includes wins that have kept them ahead of a chasing pack of one-loss teams. Georgia, meanwhile, has rebuilt its case after an early defeat, and the Florida win was its most convincing of the season. Utah's unbeaten run has been quieter nationally but no less impressive: the Utes have now won eight straight, and their win at Cincinnati was their most lopsided road performance of the year.
Further down the poll, the story is one of new faces and returning ones. New Mexico, 7-1, enters at No. 22 for the first ranking in school history, a milestone that caps a remarkable turnaround. South Carolina, 5-3, jumps back in at No. 23 after beating a ranked opponent, while Florida, despite losing 27-8 to Georgia, clings to the final spot at No. 25, down eight places from a week ago. Northwestern, Oregon, UTSA, SMU, Virginia Tech, Duke, Minnesota, Liberty, Oklahoma State and Louisville were the leading teams among those receiving votes but outside the top 25.
The top five tell the story of the season so far: two unbeaten teams from outside the traditional power centres, Miami and Utah, sandwiching Georgia, Notre Dame and UCLA. Miami holds 62 of the available first-place votes, Georgia holds seven and Utah holds one, a distribution that underlines how clear the top tier now looks to voters. Behind them, Indiana at No. 6 and BYU at No. 7 both remain firmly in playoff contention, with Kentucky, Alabama and Texas completing the top 10.
Ohio State's fall to No. 11 is the poll's headline mover in the other direction. The Buckeyes, who began the week at No. 2, now sit behind Texas and ahead of Ole Miss, and face a November schedule that includes a home game against Oregon that they can ill afford to lose if they want to climb back into the top 10 before the committee's later rankings. Ole Miss stayed at No. 12 in both major polls after its win over Auburn, Texas Tech held at No. 13, and Wake Forest, LSU, Tennessee, Houston, USC, Missouri and Boise State filled out the middle of the ranking.
The bottom of the poll is where the week's surprises live. Iowa moved up to No. 21, New Mexico debuted at No. 22, South Carolina re-entered at No. 23, Arizona held at No. 24 and Florida dropped to No. 25. For New Mexico, the ranking is historic: no Lobos team had ever cracked the AP Top 25 before, and the programme's 7-1 start is now recognised nationally. For Florida, survival at No. 25, even after an eight-spot fall, keeps the Gators in the conversation for at least another week.
College football's weekly poll always produces debate, and this one was no exception, with the focus on Ohio State's nine-spot fall and Utah's rise. Analysts noted that the Buckeyes' drop reflected both the margin and the opponent in their loss, while Utah's jump rewarded a road win by 24 points against a Cincinnati team that had been competitive all season. Miami's growing first-place vote total was read as a sign that voters are increasingly comfortable with the Hurricanes as the team to beat, even if their wins have rarely been comfortable.
The schedule makers, meanwhile, will have noticed what Saturday holds. The AP's own account of the poll pointed out that the top four teams all face ranked opposition on November 7, with No. 1 Miami at No. 4 Notre Dame in prime time, No. 7 BYU at No. 3 Utah at noon, and a host of other ranked-versus-ranked games across the day. In total, 40 percent of the top 25 will meet each other head-to-head on Saturday, a slate that could reorder the poll again within a week.
The Week 10 poll matters because it is the last AP snapshot before the playoff committee speaks. Tuesday's CFP rankings will set the real bracket conversation, but the AP poll frames it: Miami, Georgia, Utah, Notre Dame and UCLA enter the week as the five teams voters trust most, and any committee ranking that deviates sharply from that order will itself become a story. For Ohio State, the fall to No. 11 is a warning that the margin for error is now gone; for New Mexico, the debut at No. 22 is proof that a season can change a programme's national standing in a single autumn.
It also matters for the games themselves. Miami at Notre Dame is now a top-five showdown with direct playoff implications, BYU at Utah is a rivalry game with a top-10 place on the line, and Kentucky at Tennessee, Alabama at LSU and Texas at Missouri all pit ranked teams against each other. The poll, in other words, is not just a list: it is a preview of the most consequential Saturday of the regular season so far.
The first College Football Playoff rankings arrive on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET, and they will immediately be compared with this AP poll. Then comes Saturday, November 7, when No. 1 Miami visits No. 4 Notre Dame at 7:30 p.m. on NBC, No. 7 BYU visits No. 3 Utah at noon on ABC, No. 8 Kentucky visits No. 16 Tennessee, No. 9 Alabama visits No. 15 LSU and No. 10 Texas visits No. 19 Missouri. No. 5 UCLA travels to Minnesota, and No. 11 Ohio State hosts Oregon in a game the Buckeyes need to win to restart their climb.
Beyond Saturday, the regular season enters its final stretch, with conference championship races tightening and the 12-team playoff field beginning to take shape. Miami, if it beats Notre Dame, would strengthen its grip on the top seed; a loss would throw the top of the poll open just as the committee's rankings begin to harden. Either way, the Week 10 poll has set the terms for the argument.
Miami is No. 1 in the Week 10 AP Top 25, with a record of 8-0 and 62 first-place votes, after beating North Carolina 38-35 on the road.
The top 10 is: 1. Miami, 2. Georgia, 3. Utah, 4. Notre Dame, 5. UCLA, 6. Indiana, 7. BYU, 8. Kentucky, 9. Alabama and 10. Texas.
Ohio State fell from No. 2 to No. 11 after its upset loss, the largest drop in this week's poll, pushing the Buckeyes out of the top 10.
New Mexico entered the AP Top 25 for the first time in school history, debuting at No. 22 with a 7-1 record.
The first College Football Playoff rankings of the season are released on Tuesday, November 3, at 7 p.m. ET, two days after the Week 10 AP poll.
Read more on US News Pulse: USC stuns No. 2 Ohio State 30-18 as Maiava and Mosley ignite Coliseum upset and Utah beats Cincinnati 49-25 to stay unbeaten and set up Holy War vs BYU.
Sources: Associated Press Top 25 poll, November 1, 2026, via Canes Warning, Saturday Down South, 247Sports and DawgNation. The featured image is an illustrative generated stadium scene, not a photograph of a specific game.
Leave a Comment
| Today's Date:
