Week Eight College Football Resume Rankings

The slate for week eight of the college football season looked like it had the potential to be the best slate of all time, and it absolutely lived up to the hype. We saw half of the top ten teams lose, and we saw the No. 1-ranked team lose for the second week in a row, the first time that has happened since 1990.

After a ton of upsets this week, the rankings are going to change a lot, and my own rankings are going to be flipped upside down. Expect a lot of changes and some significant movement for really good teams. Here are my week eight college football resume rankings.

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Explaining the Ranking

My rankings have been low on Ohio State for most of the season, but that is no longer the case: the Buckeyes are No. 1 this week after beating Indiana (5th in FPI). The Buckeyes have a loss to Texas (7th in FPI), but have more than made up for that loss with wins over Indiana and Iowa (25th in FPI). Ohio State ranks 4th in SOR, but they are 1st in FPI. Other teams have better raw resumes, but power ratings say they aren't nearly as good as Ohio State.

BYU rises to No. 2 after beating Notre Dame (2nd in FPI), giving the Cougars one of the best wins in the nation. BYU now ranks 1st in SOR because they are 6-0 with wins against Notre Dame, Arizona (33rd in FPI), TCU (42nd in FPI), and Iowa State (54th in FPI). The reason why this team isn't No. 1 is because they rank 14th in FPI.

Indiana is at No. 4 because they have a good raw resume (6th in SOR) and they are one of the best teams in the nation (5th in FPI). The loss to Ohio State hurts, but Indiana is still 6-1 with wins against Nebraska (15th in FPI), Northwestern (24th in FPI), and North Texas (59th in FPI). Indiana's raw resume is better than a lot of people realize because Nebraska is better than people give them credit for.

Kentucky gets into the top five this week as the Wildcats are No. 5. It finally happened! Kentucky jumped after winning against Oklahoma (22nd in FPI), which gave them the 2nd-best SOR. What is holding Kentucky back from being ranked even higher is the fact that they rank just 26th in FPI.

Next up, we have a huge riser in Tennessee who leaped into the top ten after beating Alabama (6th in FPI). Tennessee has a strong body of work right now as they rank 7th in SOR and 12th in FPI. The Volunteers have a really nice raw resume with wins against Alabama, Auburn (21st in FPI), and Arkansas (58th in FPI). They do have one loss to Texas, but they have made up for that loss by winning the rest of their games in conference play so far.

Georgia falls from No. 1 to No. 8 after losing to Auburn for their first loss of the season. It was a tough loss that took them to being ranked 10th in SOR and 3rd in FPI. They still have a good body of work with wins against Alabama, Oklahoma, and Arkansas, but the raw resume is not good enough to be top five anymore.

Ole Miss is back in the top ten after dominating Missouri (27th in FPI), and the Rebels have been playing really well since losing to Florida a few weeks ago. Ole Miss has a great resume as they are 5-1 with wins against LSU (8th in FPI), Louisville (23rd in FPI), and Missouri (27th in FPI). They are now 9th in SOR and 11th in FPI and definitely deserve a top-ten ranking.

Alabama and Notre Dame come in at No. 11 and No. 12, respectively, after the Crimson Tide lost to Tennessee and Notre Dame lost to BYU. They are both top ten in FPI but are also both outside the top ten in SOR, which is why they are not in my top ten. This could change if these teams handle their business, but they deserve to be punished for not having great raw resumes.

I wanted to briefly mention Houston real quick because the Cougars picked up a solid win against Oklahoma State (40th in FPI) this week. I think Oklahoma State has been overrated by AP voters but it's a solid win that improved Houston's SOR to being 16th in the nation.

Florida welcomes itself back into my top 25 after beating Texas (7th in FPI) and rising to 17th in SOR. The Gators had a rough couple of weeks in the SEC, but this was a HUGE bounce back win. In fact, this keeps their playoff hopes alive because they are 5-2 with wins against Texas, Ole Miss, and Auburn, and they still play Georgia, Oklahoma, and Kentucky in the next three weeks. The margin for error is slim, but there is a chance this team can get to the postseason.

Florida had a freefall the previous two weeks, and now Texas is experiencing a freefall after losing to Oklahoma and Florida in back-to-back weeks. The Longhorns are No. 19 in my rankings because they rank 21st in SOR and 7th in FPI. They aren't playing well as of late, but keep in mind they have wins against Ohio State and Tennessee. They cannot lose more than one game the rest of the way if they want to make the playoff, though.

My Auburn Tigers sneak into the top 25 at No. 21 after beating Georgia, and this team has an underrated body of work. They are 22nd in SOR and 21st in FPI, and their raw resume is better than you realize. Yes, they have two losses to Florida and Tennessee, but they are 4-2 with wins against Georgia and Baylor (34th in FPI). Being above .500 against the 8th-ranked SOS is impressive and power ratings like this team. Somehow, the Tigers have a path to make the playoff, but they can't have any slip-ups.

Welcome back, LSU and Oregon, to my top 25! LSU and Oregon were both unranked for me a week ago, but LSU picked up a solid win against Mississippi State (38th in FPI), and Oregon beat an underrated Nebraska team. Weirdly, both teams are still outside the top 25 in SOR, but they are both top ten in FPI, and their power ratings are helping them be in my top 25

Teams that fell out of my top 25 include Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin, who all lost in week seven. A few teams that are rising and could sneak into my top 25 soon include James Madison, North Carolina, Louisville, and Michigan.