AP releases Week 5 college football Top 25; Texas Tech back in projected CFP bracket
Version 2: The new week's AP Top 25 leaves Florida out of the projected 12-team College Football Playoff bracket and brings Texas Tech back in, with Missouri the biggest mover in the poll.
In short
The Associated Press released its Week 5 Top 25 college football poll on Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026. Based on the new rankings, ABC News projected that Texas Tech would return to the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket after a one-week absence and Florida would drop out. Fox News reported that Missouri made the biggest jump in the poll after beating Florida 45-17, while Alabama rose one spot to No. 6 and passed Indiana, which fell a place despite a road win at Rutgers.
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The Associated Press released its Week 5 Top 25 college football poll on Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026. Based on the new rankings, Texas Tech would return to the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket after a one-week absence and Florida would drop out, ABC News reported. [ 1 , 2 ]
ABC News projected that Texas, Georgia, Notre Dame and Miami would remain the top four seeds, with Ohio State, Alabama, Indiana and BYU hosting first-round games. Florida's drop allowed BYU to move up two spots in the AP poll and take the final home-field slot for the first round, the outlet said. The projected first-round pairings it listed were Mississippi at BYU, Boise State at Ohio State, LSU at Indiana and Texas Tech at Alabama. Utah, Oregon and Missouri were the first three teams outside the bracket, ABC News said, with Utah ranked No. 12 by AP but bumped by Boise State as the highest-ranked Group of Six team. [ 2 ]
The five highest-ranked conference champions qualify for the playoff and seven other spots go to the next highest-ranked teams, ABC News reported. It said the Southeastern Conference would have five teams in the bracket, the Big Ten and Big 12 two each and the ACC and Pac-12 one each, with Notre Dame in as an independent and Boise State representing the Pac-12 as the top Group of Six champion. First-round games are Dec. 18 and 19, quarterfinals Dec. 30 and Jan. 1, and semifinals Jan. 14 and 15, according to the outlet. [ 2 ]
Fox News reported that Missouri made the biggest leap in the new poll after beating Florida 45-17, a week after the Gators beat Ole Miss. Alabama moved up one spot to No. 6 and passed Indiana, which dropped a place despite a road win at Rutgers, Fox News said. It called the top eight teams essentially inarguable and said the rest of the poll, especially among SEC teams, was messier. Week 5 featured only three matchups between ranked opponents, according to Fox News. [ 3 ]
The readable portion of the AP article lists the teams outside the Top 25 that received votes: Kentucky 160, Wake Forest 142, Wisconsin 88, Duke 83, Northwestern 59, Nebraska 48, Minnesota 19, Arizona 19, James Madison 12 and North Dakota State 7. [ 1 ]
Why it matters
The AP Top 25 is the reference ranking for US college football and the basis for the bracket projections that outlets publish each week, so its movement shapes how teams, conferences and broadcasters frame the rest of the season. The documents give no basis for significance beyond that domestic sports readership, and the bracket described is a projection from the poll rather than an official playoff ranking.
Key facts
- The Associated Press released its Week 5 Top 25 college football poll on Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Based on the new AP poll, Texas Tech would return to the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket after a one-week absence and Florida would drop out, according to ABC News. [ 2 ]
- ABC News projected Texas, Georgia, Notre Dame and Miami as the top four seeds, with Ohio State, Alabama, Indiana and BYU hosting first-round games. [ 2 ]
- Fox News reported that Missouri made the biggest leap in the poll after a 45-17 win over Florida. [ 3 ]
- Alabama moved up one spot to No. 6 and passed Indiana, which dropped a place despite a road win at Rutgers, Fox News said. [ 3 ]
- Teams outside the Top 25 receiving votes, per the readable AP list, were Kentucky 160, Wake Forest 142, Wisconsin 88, Duke 83, Northwestern 59, Nebraska 48, Minnesota 19, Arizona 19, James Madison 12 and North Dakota State 7. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- The full order of the Top 25, and Missouri's exact position in it. The readable text of the AP article lists only the teams outside the poll that received votes, and Fox News describes Missouri as making the biggest leap without giving its ranking.
- The identity of the No. 1 team and the other teams in the top five. Neither document names them; Fox News refers only to the top five being untouched from a week earlier.
- The game results cited by Fox News — Missouri's 45-17 win over Florida, Alabama's win over Mississippi State and Indiana's road win at Rutgers. These are reported only by Fox News; the readable AP text does not include game results.
- The date of the College Football Playoff championship game. The ABC News article text ends before naming it.
- Whether the projected bracket matches the official College Football Playoff selection committee ranking. ABC News presents the bracket as its own projection based on the AP Top 25; no official ranking is cited in the documents.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Week 5 games are played, including Missouri's 45-17 win over Florida at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Missouri, and Alabama's win over Mississippi State at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville, Mississippi, according to Fox News. [ 3 ]
- The Associated Press publishes its Week 5 Top 25 poll. [ 1 ]
- ABC News publishes its projection of the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket based on the new AP poll. [ 2 ]
- Fox News publishes its breakdown of movement in the Week 5 poll. [ 3 ]