Five of the Top Eight Teams Lose in One Saturday, a First Since the AP Poll Began in 1936
Auburn won in Athens on a last-second field goal, BYU stopped Notre Dame at the goal line and a 156-1 parlay on Auburn, Florida and Tennessee paid, in the wildest Saturday of the season.
Sunday, October 18, 2026/2 min read
College football has had wild Saturdays before, but not like this. Five teams ranked in the AP top eight lost on the same day, the first time that has happened since the poll began in 1936, according to ESPN Research, as reported by ESPN.
The week before, Oklahoma had beaten then-No. 1 Texas on the final play, the first time in the poll era that the top team lost on the last play in consecutive weeks. This Saturday made that look tame.
Which top teams lost in Week 7?
No. 1 Georgia fell at home to Auburn, 27-24. Auburn was an 18.5-point underdog, and kicker Alex McPherson won it with a 34-yard field goal as time expired, according to NCAA.com's scoreboard. Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton had lost a fumble on a quarterback draw late in the game.
No. 2 Notre Dame lost 28-24 to No. 8 BYU. Quarterback Bear Bachmeier threw a six-yard touchdown pass with 1:47 left, and the BYU defence then held at the goal line. No. 7 Texas lost 27-24 to Florida, which scored 24 unanswered points after trailing 17-3. Texas quarterback Arch Manning fumbled on a sack late, and Florida recovered to help seal it, per NCAA.com.
No. 6 Alabama lost 26-10 to Tennessee, which never trailed, with kicker Cooper Ranvier hitting three early field goals. No. 5 Indiana lost 19-15 to No. 4 Ohio State. Indiana's Josh Hoover threw a fourth-down touchdown to Nick Marsh, but Marsh was ruled out of bounds, and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin left hurt and did not return.
What did bettors make of it?
The books had a rough afternoon, and a few fans had a great one. ESPN reported that a three-team parlay on Auburn, Florida and Tennessee paid about 156-1 at Hard Rock Bet, and the largest $10 ticket won a net $1,565. Alabama drew more moneyline bets than any other team at DraftKings. Circa Sports' Chase Michaelson called Florida's win possibly the biggest result of the season for his book.
What else happened around the country?
The chaos was not confined to the top eight. Miami stayed undefeated by beating Florida State 43-35 in two overtimes, with Malachi Toney catching the go-ahead touchdown in the second extra period. No. 20 Houston beat No. 18 Oklahoma State 35-32, and No. 9 Ole Miss thrashed No. 13 Missouri 31-3. LSU shut out Mississippi State 31-0.
Below the top division, North Dakota beat No. 1 FCS South Dakota State 21-10, and Lehigh's 23-game regular-season win streak ended in a 48-38 loss to Cornell, per NCAA.com.
What does it mean for the playoff race?
It means the committee has a mess. Georgia, Notre Dame, Alabama and Texas each now carry a loss that the rankings will have to absorb, and Texas has lost two in a row. Miami, which beat Florida State in two overtimes, is still unbeaten. Nobody can call the order with confidence, and the only safe prediction is that next Saturday's favourites will be priced a little more nervously than this one's were.
Published in The Outspoken Digest
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