Back Porch Sports’ Scott Hamilton is one of 69 voters in the Associated Press Top 25 college football poll. Here’s how his Week 7 ballot shook out:
Art Edition
Surrealism: Show your friendly neighborhood AP Top 25 voter some grace this week. What happened during Week 7 was unparalleled in the poll’s 100-year history, as five of the top-seven teams lost on the same day for the first time ever.
It was also the first time Nos. 1 and 2 each lost since 2012. Need more? The top-ranked team was defeated by an unranked opponent for the second straight week, something that hasn’t happened since 1990.
This wasn’t a bunch of nouveau riche teams being put in their place, either. Georgia, Alabama and Texas each lost during Week 7, something that last happened on Oct. 26, 1996. Notre Dame and defending national champion also suffered their first defeats of 2026 during Week 7, meaning the carnage was incriminatory.
Fun fact: Georgia’s 27-24 loss to Auburn ended a string of 93 straight home wins by the nation’s No. 1 team over unranked opponents.
Abstract art: A crazy takeaway from the pandemonium? It’s almost Halloween and there’s no telling who’ll be playing in the SEC Championship.
The SEC no longer has any undefeated teams after its three highest-ranked teams all lost. It now has four teams with one loss each, while eight others have suffered two defeats apiece.
Kentucky is in that one-loss mix. The Wildcats have started off 6-1 (4-1 SEC) under new coach Will Stein. Kentucky has won five straight, most recently a 21-13 win at Oklahoma. Its remaining league schedule has them playing Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Florida and Missouri. None of those teams have played flawless football throughout 2026, presumably creating a manageable path for Kentucky to Atlanta.
Then again, that thinking could apply to three-fourths of the SEC.
Sculptures: Even in arguably the most chaotic weekend in college football history, some teams held serve and remained in place. And, fittingly, they did so through varying circumstances.
Indiana is still seventh even after losing to Ohio State, 19-15. The competitiveness of that game – the Hoosiers were one out-of-bounds foot away from winning – and the calamity ahead of them made it hard to justify dropping them. Indiana (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten) next plays at Michigan.
Kentucky didn’t budge from 12th despite securing that road win at Oklahoma. Once more, the car wrecks ahead of the Wildcats complicated moving them upward.
Iowa didn’t win, nor did it lose. The Hawkeyes (5-1, 2-1 Big Ten) were off during Week 7, and remain 15th.
Performance art: Wake Forest just keeps climbing.
The Demon Deacons got an ACC After Dark win during Week 7, beating Cal 41-7. Wake Forest is now 6-1, 4-1 ACC and have steadily risen up these rankings to now occupy the No. 17 position. The Deacons – whose only loss was 33-20 to Miami on Sept. 19 – have Week 8 off before going on a seemingly manageable run. They finished the season against Virginia, SMU, Georgia Tech and Duke with a non-conference game against Merrimack sandwiched in that span.
Art nouveau: There are two new teams in these rankings.
Florida ended an awful two-week stretch during which it was outscored 83-38 with a 28-24 win at then-No. 4 Texas. The Gators are 19th.
Northwestern has also crashed the party, coming in at No. 25. The Wildcats won at Michigan State, 24-21, to improve to 5-1 (2-1 Big Ten). Their only loss came 29-23 during Week 3 at Indiana.
Cave drawings: Mississippi State and Oklahoma State are gone.
The Bulldogs (4-2, 2-2 SEC) were without quarterback Kamario Taylor and running back Fluff Bothwell when they took one on the chin at LSU, 31-0. Still, that kind of lopsided defeat was enough to drop them from 13th to completely out of these rankings.
Oklahoma State (4-2, 2-1 Big 12) was already trying to keep dusting off that awful season-opening loss to Tulsa, and was doing a nice job by winning four straight. But that defeat is hard to unsee even all these weeks later, and the Cowboys’ 35-32 loss to Houston was enough to boot them.
Curated collection: The SEC again had the most teams in these rankings with nine, three more than any other conference. The Big Ten has six with the addition of Northwestern. Five teams from the Big 12 made the cut, while the ACC landed three. Boise State of the Pac-12 is only Group of 6 team included.
Notre Dame, as usual, is the lone independent.
Hamilton’s rankings (last week):
1. BYU (8)
2. Miami (3)
3. Ohio State (5)
4. Georgia (1)
5. Notre Dame (2)
6. Ole Miss (9)
7. Indiana (7)
8. Texas Tech (10)
9. Tennessee (15)
10. Utah (11)
11. Alabama (6)
12. Kentucky (12)
13. UCLA (16)
14. Houston (21)
15. Iowa (15)
16. Southern Cal (18)
17. Wake Forest (19)
18. Missouri (14)
19. Florida (NR)
20. Texas (4)
21. SMU (22)
22. LSU (24)
23. Boise State (23)
24. Arizona (25)
25. Northwestern (NR)
Follow Scott Hamilton on X @ScottHsports
