The first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2026 season are out, and the backlash started immediately. Miami sits at No. 1, Georgia at No. 2, and from there the committee’s choices have fans and analysts calling foul.
The biggest complaint: Alabama, a team with two losses, is ranked No. 5 in the country. Tennessee, also with two losses, beat Alabama a few weeks ago and is ranked lower. Critics say there is no clear justification for putting the team that lost head-to-head above the team that won.
The ranking has reignited long-running accusations that the committee and ESPN favor the SEC. Alabama at No. 5 only adds fuel to that argument, and it’s not isolated to the SEC either — Utah and Indiana’s rankings near the top five are drawing the same skepticism from other corners of the sport.
Wake Forest Gets Buried
While Alabama’s ranking is getting the most attention, Wake Forest’s placement at No. 16 is arguably the bigger injustice. The Demon Deacons have beaten every team they’ve played this season except Miami — and they nearly beat Miami too, in a game that was closer than the final score suggested.
Wake Forest has won its last four games by a combined 156 points. Its signature win is over Louisville, a team that nearly upset Ole Miss to open the season but has since faded.
Compare that to LSU, ranked two spots ahead of Wake Forest despite having one more loss and zero notable wins. LSU has lost to Kentucky and Ole Miss, with wins over Clemson, Mississippi State and a weak Texas A&M team.
Even Miami’s own resume leans on beating Wake Forest. Outside of that win, the undefeated Hurricanes don’t have another marquee victory — and by most accounts should have lost to Florida State, and possibly North Carolina.
The pattern raises a fair question for a committee whose job is supposed to be objective evaluation: if undefeated Miami’s case for No. 1 rests heavily on beating Wake Forest, why does that same win count for so little when ranking Wake Forest itself?
It’s not the first time the committee has faced criticism for inconsistent reasoning, and with rankings like these in week one, it likely won’t be the last.
