College Football's No. 1, No. 2 Teams Fall 6 Times in 2026

Six. That is how many times a team ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in the AP poll has lost this season, with four weeks left in the regular schedule, according to an ESPN analysis published Nov. 5, 2026, ahead of Week 10's top games.

How does six losses compare with recent seasons?

From 2014 through 2025, teams ranked No. 1 or No. 2 carried an .888 winning percentage in the regular season, ESPN reported. Last season, the top two teams combined for only two losses all year, according to the same analysis. This season's six losses, spread across five different programs, mark a sharp break from that twelve-year baseline, per ESPN's figures.

Which teams have cycled through the top two spots?

Indiana, the defending national champion, opened the season at No. 1 and lost at home, then needed late escapes against unranked opponents in back-to-back weeks, ESPN reported Nov. 5. Ohio State, the preseason No. 1, has taken two losses, nearly lost a third to Indiana, and will likely finish the season without its starting quarterback, according to the same ESPN report.

Texas took over the No. 1 ranking after beating Ohio State, then dropped consecutive games to unranked opponents, ESPN reported. Georgia moved into the top tier next and lost at home to unranked Auburn, per the analysis. Miami has held a top spot more recently, needing overtime to beat Florida State and later escaping North Carolina by a narrow margin, ESPN reported.

What happened in the Miami-Florida State game specifically?

Miami's overtime win over Florida State came the week before Florida State fired head coach Mike Norvell amid an ACC losing skid, according to HTT News. ESPN's Nov. 5 report cited that same Miami-Florida State game as one of three near-losses by top-ranked teams against unranked competition inside a two-week stretch.

Why is Florida ranked again despite Texas's collapse?

ESPN's report noted, with evident humor rather than hard data, that Florida has climbed back into the Top 25 "on the strength of the edible arrangements the SEC sent to every CFP committee member" — a line attributed to ESPN reporter David Hale rather than any official statement, and offered as commentary rather than a factual claim about committee behavior.

What does the six-loss pattern mean for Week 10?

ESPN framed Week 10 as a turning point: either another round of upsets at the top of the rankings, or the week the leading teams begin separating from the pack, according to the Nov. 5 preview. With four weeks remaining in the regular season and six losses already logged by teams holding the top two spots, ESPN's data suggest the sport's hierarchy remains unsettled heading into the stretch run toward the College Football Playoff.

No updated loss total for Week 10 itself was available in the cited reporting; the six-loss figure reflects results through ESPN's Nov. 5 publication.

Smorgi Challenge — A live iOS party game. Random alarms drop dares. Not a wake-up alarm.