Given all the confusion caused by last weekend, there’s basically a consensus that Miami is the No. 1 team in the college football rankings as we head into the second half of the 2026 season.
But one pollster has bucked the trend and christened a Big Ten contender as the best team in the country right now over the Hurricanes.
Always in the mood for some controversy, the College Football Power Index projection model powered by the ESPN algorithm did just that this week, overlooking Miami and naming another hopeful as the No. 1 team.
Who Earned the No. 1 Spot?
This week, that honor goes not to Miami, but to Ohio State, which emerged as the top ranked team in the latest iteration of that poll entering the second half of the season.
What’s more, the Hurricanes not only didn’t get the No. 1 ranking, but fell a few more places, landing at No. 4 in the country, behind No. 2 Notre Dame and third ranked Georgia. Indiana rounds out the top five.
Ohio State’s jump was fueled by an important 19-15 win at Indiana, snapping the reigning champs’ 22-game win streak, but also losing quarterback Julian Sayin to a shoulder injury. That alone could reshape the rankings once again in the future.
How the Power Index Works
College Football Power Index brands itself as a predictive model designed to measure team strength and forecast future performance rather than simply reward past results like other polls do.
It rates teams based on expected points added on offense, defense, and special teams, adjusted for opponent quality. Those ratings feed into 20,000 simulations of the remaining schedule to project wins, playoff odds, and national title chances.
Unlike human polls that weigh résumé and style points heavily, the power index emphasizes efficiency and predictive value into the future.
Why Ohio State Moved Ahead
According to the model’s perspective, the Buckeyes have looked like the most complete team in the country through seven games, blending an efficient offense with a defense that has been strong against its competition.
Ohio State’s performance up to now and its remaining schedule was rewarded by the algorithm more than Texas’ head-to-head edge over the Buckeyes or even how dominant Miami has looked against its own competition.
Notre Dame’s consistent dominance, ranking first nationally with a 27 point per game winning margin on average, has also elevated the Irish above both Miami and the Buckeyes in the model’s eyes.
Are the Computers Right?
Human polls still have Miami firmly at No. 1, reflecting the Hurricanes’ résumé and an average margin of victory that ranks second in FBS.
But the ESPN model’s preference for Ohio State is still defensible given the Buckeyes’ efficiency metrics, eye test, and overall profile, but it’s still early and the Sayin injury complicates matters.
Right now, we still believe Georgia is the single most efficient and best overall team in college football. The loss at home to Auburn casts a shadow over its résumé, but its roster depth, physicality on both lines, and the win at Alabama are all tough to beat.
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