Predicting College Football Playoff after historic, upset-filled Week 7

The college football world was flipped on its head in Week 7 as there were several upsets.

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Entering the week, using the AP Top-25 rankings, the No. 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7-ranked teams all lost, while No. 3, the Miami Hurricanes, went into double overtime and barely edged out Florida State.

After all the crazy upsets, the playoff landscape is much different, especially with how competitive the SEC is, as there could be several 9-3 teams.

Following Week 7, here is Lindy’s Sports’ predicted college football playoff bracket.

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College Football Playoff Bracket After Week 7

The 2026 college football season is truly wide open, as I don’t believe there is one team that is that much better than everyone else.

There are still plenty of games that will shake up the playoff outlook, while injuries, unfortunately, will have an impact. The Ohio State Buckeyes lost starting quarterback Julian Sayin, and that could impact them making the playoff.

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Ahead of Week 8 of the college football season, here is what I believe the 12-team playoff will look like.

12 Playoff teams:

1. Miami Hurricanes (ACC Champion)
2. Georgia Bulldogs (SEC Champion)
3. BYU Cougars (Big 12 Champion)
4. UCLA Bruins (Big Ten Champion)
5. Ohio State Buckeyes
6. Ole Miss Rebels
7. Texas Tech Red Raiders
8. Indiana Hoosiers
9. Tennessee Volunteers
10. Kentucky Wildcats
11. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
12. Boise State Broncos (Group of Six, highest-ranked team)

The most notable prediction is the UCLA Bruins winning the Big Ten. UCLA has an easy schedule, as there is a legit chance they go to the Big Ten championship game against a beat-up Ohio State team that survived without Sayin.

I also have Notre Dame getting in at No. 11, which, even if they lose to Miami, they still will likely be ranked in the top-12, meaning they have to be in, whether it’s fair or not.

Kentucky and Tennessee, meanwhile, are the dark horse teams, and although they play one another, both have an easier schedule to get in.

Off these rankings, here is what the playoff schedule would look like:

First round (Dec. 18/19 on campus):

• No. 12 Boise State at No. 5 Ohio State
• No. 11 Notre Dame at No. 6 Ole Miss
• No. 10 Kentucky at No. 7 Texas Tech
• No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Indiana

Quarterfinal (Dec. 30, Jan. 1):

• No. 1 Miami vs. Tennessee/Indiana winner
• No. 2 Georgia vs. Texas Tech/ Kentucky winner
• No. 3 BYU vs. No. 6 Ole Miss/Notre Dame winner
• No. 4 UCLA vs. No. 5 Ohio State/Boise State winner

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More College Football News

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• Big 12 admits replay error that cost Notre Dame one play
• ESPN’s College GameDay picks intriguing location for week 8
• How Jim Knowles made Tennessee Volunteers a national title contender

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This story was originally published October 20, 2026 at 3:33 PM.