Rankings · by Who's Starting Staff · Oct 5, 2026
Why WS still has Alabama Crimson Tide at No. 1: Week 6 power rankings, the movers, and the why
WS's model keeps Alabama Crimson Tide on top of the Week 6 power rankings even with the AP's No. 1 Texas Longhorns leading the poll: the top 10, who moved, and the why.
As of 2026-10-05T17:14:17.112Z, built from 1652 completed games this season. Full 138-team list and methodology: How it's calculated.
Who moved up
No. 12 Missouri Tigers rose from No. 27 last week, after it beat Florida 45-17. No. 11 Mississippi State Bulldogs rose from No. 20 last week, after it lost to Alabama 23-56. No. 14 Texas Tech Red Raiders rose from No. 19 last week, after it beat Colorado 29-7 on the road.
Who moved down
No. 20 Mississippi fell from No. 13 last week, after it lost to Florida 28-52 on the road. No. 13 Florida Gators fell from No. 7 last week, after it lost to Missouri 17-45 on the road. No. 17 Utah Utes fell from No. 12 last week, after it beat Iowa State 31-17 on the road.
Why the top is where it is
WS's model keeps Alabama Crimson Tide (OVR 99) at No. 1 even though the AP's own No. 1 is Texas Longhorns: the model weighs full-season efficiency and roster strength over any single result, so one game doesn't automatically flip the top spot. No. 2 Texas Longhorns, matching No. 1 on OVR (99 apiece): the gap between the top two comes from résumé and head-to-head results, not raw rating.
About the order
Alabama Crimson Tide, Texas Longhorns, Georgia Bulldogs all rate the same OVR this week; WS rank breaks a tie like this using each team's season résumé and a head-to-head pass, not alphabetical order. Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Oregon Ducks all rate the same OVR this week; WS rank breaks a tie like this using each team's season résumé and a head-to-head pass, not alphabetical order. Miami Hurricanes, Ohio State Buckeyes all rate the same OVR this week; WS rank breaks a tie like this using each team's season résumé and a head-to-head pass, not alphabetical order. See the methodology for how it's calculated.
Where this comes from
The full 25 and the 138-team table live on WS Power Rankings. Every team's own rating breakdown is one tap from its page: see why Alabama Crimson Tide rates where it does.
Newsletter
Get our articles by email
One email a week, Sunday morning, with whatever we published. No scores, no spam, nothing else.