2026 SP+ Rankings: Top College Football Teams Revealed
The 2026 college football season is in full swing, and fans are eagerly studying the latest SP+ rankings to gauge the performance and potential of their favorite teams. SP+, a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency, offers a forward-looking, predictive analysis rather than a résumé ranking.
Developed by Bill Connelly, the system has become a go-to resource for understanding the most sustainable and predictable parts of football. As of September 13, 2026, the updated SP+ rankings cover all 138 FBS teams, factoring in preseason projections and early-season results.
Understanding SP+ Rankings
The SP+ rankings are designed to be predictive and forward-looking, with an emphasis on the most sustainable elements of football performance. Unlike traditional rankings, SP+ doesn’t automatically reward teams for big wins or difficult schedules.
Instead, it adjusts for tempo and opponent quality to provide a more accurate measure of a team’s efficiency.
What is SP+?
Bill Connelly created the SP+ system in 2008, and it has been a staple of the college football analytics community ever since. The system aims to predict future performance by analyzing factors such as scoring margins and opponent strength.
Early in the season, the rankings rely heavily on preseason projections. Those numbers are gradually phased out as more games are played.
Why SP+ Matters
SP+ is more than a tool for ranking teams. It offers insight into how sustainable a team’s performance might be. A team can win a game and still see its SP+ rating fall if the victory is unimpressive.
On the other hand, a team that loses but plays well could see its rating improve. That makes SP+ a useful resource for fans, analysts, and even the teams themselves.
Components of SP+ Rankings
The SP+ rankings are built from several key components, each offering a different view of team performance. These include the main SP+ rating, the SP+ strength of schedule, and the résumé SP+ ratings.
Together, they provide insight into different parts of a team’s season.
Main SP+ Rating
The main SP+ rating is a composite measure that adjusts for both tempo and opponent quality. It offers a forward-looking assessment of team efficiency, which makes it useful for predicting future performance.
The rating is especially helpful early in the season, when it still relies on preseason projections. As more games are played, it becomes increasingly grounded in current results.
SP+ Strength of Schedule
The SP+ strength of schedule (SOS) rating is based on the expected win percentage an average top-five team would generate against each team’s schedule. For example, an SOS rating of .850 means a top-five team would be expected to win 85% of its games against that schedule.
A lower expected win percentage points to a more challenging schedule. That makes this component important when evaluating the difficulty of a team’s path.
Résumé SP+ Ratings
The résumé SP+ ratings compare each team’s scoring margin with what an average top-five team would be expected to produce against the same opponents. For instance, if a top-five team is projected to win a game by 10 points and another team wins by 15, that team would receive a +5.0 rating for the game.
A seven-point penalty is applied for each loss, so maintaining a positive rating by the end of the season is extremely difficult.
The Importance of Early-Season Rankings
Early in the season, the SP+ rankings are based mainly on preseason projections. That may seem limiting, but it provides a stable foundation while the system waits for enough new information.
The rankings become more accurate as the season progresses, allowing SP+ to offer meaningful insight even during the first few weeks.
Preseason Projections
Preseason projections are an important part of the early-season SP+ rankings. They draw on factors such as returning starters, past performance, and recruiting classes.
As the season moves along, those projections are gradually replaced by actual game data. The rankings then become more reflective of current performance.
Adjustments Over Time
One of the SP+ system’s strengths is its ability to adjust over time. As more games are played, preseason projections are phased out and the rankings rely more heavily on performance data.
That gives SP+ a dynamic way to track team efficiency as the season develops.
Using SP+ for Playoff Predictions
As the race for College Football Playoff spots heats up, the SP+ rankings become more relevant. Traditional rankings may emphasize win-loss records and big wins, but SP+ provides a more nuanced view of the teams in contention.
That broader perspective can offer useful clues when evaluating potential playoff contenders.
Strength of Schedule and Playoff Contenders
The SP+ strength of schedule component is particularly useful for evaluating playoff contenders. Teams with a lower SOS rating have faced more challenging schedules, which can make their performance more impressive.
Teams with a higher SOS rating may have had an easier path. That difference could affect how their playoff chances are viewed.
Résumé SP+ and Playoff Predictions
The résumé SP+ ratings provide another layer of insight for playoff predictions. By comparing each team’s scoring margin with what an average top-five team would be expected to produce, the ratings offer a clearer measure of a team’s actual strength.
This can be especially useful for identifying teams that traditional rankings may be underrating.
Conclusion
The updated 2026 SP+ rankings offer a detailed, forward-looking look at college football efficiency. By focusing on the parts of the game that tend to be more sustainable and predictable, the system gives fans, analysts, and teams useful context.
As the season moves along, the rankings will keep changing and should provide a clearer picture of team performance and playoff potential. For the latest SP+ rankings, check out the full article on ESPN.
