Ranking the 2025-26 College Football Playoff Field by Blended Power Ratings

Now that the field for this year's College Football Playoff is set -- and hopefully all of the consternation about snubs subsiding -- it's time to stack 'em up.

The committee handed out their seeds for the field, but as we saw last year, the best teams aren't always seeded highest. The Ohio State Buckeyes won it all despite being the 8 seed entering the playoffs.

They were clearly better than that. In fact, when we looked at a blended power rating model entering the playoff, they were the best team in the nation.

Given that process worked well last year, let's run it back for Round 2. Below are the rankings of the 12 teams in the playoffs based on blended power ratings from SP+, The Power Rank, numberFire, ESPN FPI, and PFF. The power rating shows by how many points each team would be expected to be favored against an average team on a neutral site. The odds are each team's College Football Playoff National Championship betting odds at FanDuel Sportsbook.

College Football Playoff Blended Power Ratings

1. Ohio State Buckeyes

Power Rating: 31.48

Highest Ranking: 1st

Lowest Ranking: 2nd

Just like last year, Ohio State enters the playoff off a game where the offense was inept. And once again, they're still top in the blended power ratings despite that loss.

This time around, though, the market aligns with the data as the Buckeyes are the clear favorites to win it all at +220. They were +500 last year, both due to not having a bye and a brutal path to the championship. You'll just have to decide for yourself if +220 is long enough to justify a bet on what the models believe to be the best team in the country.

2. Indiana Hoosiers

Power Rating: 30.1

Highest Ranking: 1st

Lowest Ranking: 4th

The Indiana Hoosiers are ahead of Ohio State in two of our five models and second in two others. The fourth-place ranking drags them down, but even including that outlier, they're only 1.3 points behind the Buckeyes in the blended power rating.

Basically, the models are saying they're in Ohio State's tier, and the betting markets largely agree with Indiana being the final team before we see a clear step down to the next contender.

3. Oregon Ducks

Power Rating: 27.6

Highest Ranking: 2nd

Lowest Ranking: 4th

The Oregon Ducks are the highest-ranked team without a bye and will face the James Madison Dukes in the first round.

Although JMU is a good team, the blended power ratings would make Oregon a 14.3-point favorite on a neutral field. As it stands, that actual spread is 21.5 with the game in Eugene and Oregon having an extra week of rest. If Oregon wins, they'd face the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the second round, and as we'll discuss in a second, that one shapes up to be a super fun battle.

4. Texas Tech Red Raiders

Power Rating: 26.6

Highest Ranking: 3rd

Lowest Ranking: 7th

Texas Tech is in the same tier as Oregon before we have another dip to the next crop of teams. They were ranked fourth or higher in all but one of the models, so their bye was well-deserved.

As discussed, that won't help them in the second round against a stout Oregon team, but at least the Red Raiders will have the rest advantage in that one.

5. Georgia Bulldogs

Power Rating: 23.0

Highest Ranking: 3rd

Lowest Ranking: 7th

The Georgia Bulldogs are the lowest-ranked of the four bye teams but were a tough team for the models to peg down. They were third in one, fifth in two, sixth in one, and seventh in the final.

They should, though, be in a good spot for the second round. They're ahead of the Mississippi Rebels in these rankings, will have extra rest, and still have their head coach. So, even in an underwhelming season for Georgia, they are still in a good spot to at least make it to the semifinals.

6. Miami Hurricanes

Power Rating: 22.6

Highest Ranking: 5th

Lowest Ranking: 10th

Although the Miami (FL) Hurricanes weren't a lock to get in, they're a good football team. Unfortunately for them, their ranking as the 10 seed gets them a tough setup right out of the gate.

They'll face the Texas A&M Aggies, who are right behind them in the rankings (though 1.6 points lower in the ratings). With the game in College Station, A&M is a 3.5-point favorite, so the Hurricanes still have a tough path despite sitting sixth on this list.

7. Texas A&M Aggies

Power Rating: 21.0

Highest Ranking: 6th

Lowest Ranking: 9th

A&M's loss to the Texas Longhorns cost them dearly, depriving them of a trip to the SEC Championship and -- likely -- a first-round bye. And as outlined above, their matchup in the first round with Miami is pretty tough.

Still, A&M does get homefield. The winner of this one will face Ohio State, so overall, neither A&M nor Miami really came out smelling like roses with the bracket reveal.

8. Ole Miss Rebels

Power Rating: 20.2

Highest Ranking: 5th

Lowest Ranking: 9th

Ole Miss was polarizing in the rankings, sitting top six in two of the models and ninth in the other three. The net result has them near the bottom of this third tier.

The benefit of their seeding, though, is a matchup with the Tulane Green Wave in the first round. Tulane is easily the lowest-ranked team in the playoff, and the blended power ratings would have Ole Miss favored by 13.7 on a neutral field. The actual spread in Oxford is 17.5, so the Rebels should get a one-week cushion to figure out their coaching situation before potentially facing a tougher task in Georgia in the second round.

9. Alabama Crimson Tide

Power Rating: 20.1

Highest Ranking: 6th

Lowest Ranking: 10th

After the loss to Georgia last week, Alabama fell all the way to 10th in one model and 9th in the blended power rankings. They were high enough elsewhere to remain at the back end of this tier, but they're far from the final boss they've looked like across the past two decades.

Luckily for them, their first-round matchup is with the only Power 4 playoff team ranked below them in the blended power ratings, the Oklahoma Sooners. That game's currently a toss-up with the moneyline at -110 on both sides, but the winner would be in a tough spot against Indiana in the second round.

10. Oklahoma Sooners

Power Rating: 18.0

Highest Ranking: 9th

Lowest Ranking: 10th

As mentioned, Oklahoma is a full two points behind any other Power 4 playoff team, and only one model had them higher than 10th.

The aid here is John Mateer. He finally has had time to get his hand healthy, and if he can regain his early-season form, maybe OU can make some noise. They just haven't shown enough signs of life yet to convince the models they're a true threat.

11. James Madison Dukes

Power Rating: 13.3

Highest Ranking: 11th

Lowest Ranking: 11th

JMU is 4.7 points behind the pack, occupying a tier of its own in these rankings. To their credit, they're easily clear of Tulane, but it's a tough draw.

The plus side is that the change to the way byes are awarded saved us from a repeat of last year. There, Arizona State and Boise State had byes despite being 11th and 12th, respectively, in the blended power rankings. That's good for us as viewers as it gets more elite teams into the second weekend; it's bad for JMU, who now has to go to Eugene in the opener.

12. Tulane Green Wave

Power Rating: 6.5

Highest Ranking: 12th

Lowest Ranking: 12th

Tulane was the lowest-ranked team across the board, sitting only 6.5 points better than a nationwide-average team.

Hats off to them for a great year that saw them finish on a high note and win the American Conference. And, as outlined above, they're not facing one of the playoff's juggernauts in the opening match. It'll be fun to see what they can do as they're playing with house money at +75000 to win the Natty.

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