College football’s 2026 season has turned into one of the most unpredictable in decades through Week 8, with two No. 1 teams falling to unranked opponents in back-to-back weeks and only three Football Bowl Subdivision teams still unbeaten.

Ranked teams have lost 41 times through eight weeks, including 17 top-10 teams, and Miami, UCLA and Utah are the last unbeatens standing, the fewest through Oct. 24 since Division I split into I-A and I-AA in 1978.

8. Texas Tech falls at Cincinnati

Wk. 8 | Oct. 24 | No. 8 Texas Tech 24 vs. Cincinnati 37

Texas Tech brought a 6-0 record and one of the nation’s stingiest run defenses to Nippert Stadium, and Cincinnati gashed that defense on the ground. The Bearcats scored 21 second-quarter points for a 24-6 halftime lead, quarterback JC French IV threw a career-high four touchdown passes and running back Cole Tabb piled up a career-best 173 rushing yards.

“Cole Tabb had a Cole Tabb day,” Cincinnati coach Scott Satterfield said. “He’s been doing it week in and week out.”

The Red Raiders drew double-digit penalties and didn’t score an offensive touchdown until the final minute. The Bearcats’ first home win over a top-10 team since 2006 ended with a field storming that left the Big 12 facing a punishment decision.

7. Longhorns lose at home against Florida

Wk. 7 | Oct. 17 | Florida 27 at No. 7 Texas 24

Florida arrived in Austin off consecutive blowout losses, with the SEC’s last-ranked defense and a quarterback making his first career start. Tramell Jones Jr., filling in for the injured Aaron Philo, threw two touchdown passes to tight end Lacota Dippre as the Gators erased a 17-3 deficit with 24 straight points and held the ball for more than 38 minutes.

“I didn’t take it any bigger than it was,” Jones said.

Florida’s defense sacked Texas quarterback Arch Manning five times and held the Longhorns to 272 yards, giving the Gators their first road win over a top-10 opponent since 2012. The second straight 27-24 loss led analyst Paul Finebaum to say Texas coach Steve Sarkisian had the bull’s-eye on his back heading into the Ole Miss game.

6. UMass ends 16-game skid at Rutgers

Wk. 1 | Sept. 3 | UMass 37 vs. Rutgers 21

UMass opened the season riding a 16-game losing streak, the longest active run in the Football Bowl Subdivision, after going 0-12 in 2025. On a Thursday night in Piscataway, the Minutemen answered an opening Rutgers touchdown with 30 consecutive points.

Quarterback Pop Watson III completed 19 of 22 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns, while the defense forced four turnovers, recorded five sacks and held Rutgers to 27 rushing yards.

“We got out-licked, outplayed and out-coached,” Rutgers coach Greg Schiano said.

UMass coach Joe Harasymiak, the Scarlet Knights’ defensive coordinator from 2022-24, beat his former employer for the program’s first win over a power-conference team since 1978.

5. Wildcats win over Aggies

Wk. 3 | Sept. 19 | Kentucky 31 vs. No. 9 Texas A&M 21

Kentucky walked into Kyle Field in front of 105,186 fans with first-year coach Will Stein making his first road trip. Tied 7-7 at halftime, the Wildcats scored 21 unanswered points in the third quarter behind Notre Dame transfer Kenny Minchey, who completed 14 of 18 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns.

Defensive coordinator Jay Bateman, who held the same job at Texas A&M the previous two seasons, limited the Aggies to 4.8 yards per pass attempt, and safety Jordan Castell posted 13 tackles and a late interception. The loss snapped Texas A&M’s 19-game home winning streak against unranked opponents.

“Kentucky came in here and they whooped us, and so that should be the story of the game,” Texas A&M coach Mike Elko said.

Stein, 36, became the third first-year Kentucky coach to beat a top-10 team and the first since Joker Phillips in 2010.

4. Oklahoma topples No. 1 Texas

Wk. 6 | Oct. 10 | No. 1 Texas 24 vs. Oklahoma 27 (Dallas)

Oklahoma limped into the Cotton Bowl at 2-2 and unranked after a loss at Michigan and a blowout at Georgia, while Texas brought a 4-0 record and a seven-game winning streak. The Longhorns outgained the Sooners 382-238, but Oklahoma scored on a blocked punt and took its first lead on a 42-yard interception return by Peyton Bowen.

After Texas kicker Gianni Spetic missed a 53-yard try, Oklahoma’s Courtland Guillory picked off Manning with 19 seconds left and Tate Sandell hit a 47-yard field goal as time expired.

“People questioning the commitment and the coaches can’t coach and the players stink, it comes with the arena,” Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said.

The win was Oklahoma’s first over a No. 1 team since beating Missouri in 2007 and its first ever against a top-ranked Texas team after going 0-4-1 in those matchups.

3. UCF takes down BYU at home

Wk. 8 | Oct. 24 | No. 2 BYU 31 vs. UCF 39 (2OT)

BYU flew to Orlando at 6-0 and ranked No. 2 one week after beating No. 2 Notre Dame, while UCF sat at 3-3 coming off a bye. The Cougars stopped UCF quarterback Keyone Jenkins on a sneak at the 1 and blocked a late field goal to force overtime.

BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier opened the first extra period with a 28-yard touchdown pass to Legend Glasker. Jenkins answered on the Knights’ first snap with a 25-yard strike to Josh Derry.

In the second overtime, a roughing-the-kicker penalty kept UCF’s drive alive, Jenkins found Grayson Brousseau for the go-ahead score and Bachmeier’s fourth-and-goal throw from the 4 fell incomplete. The officiating around the finish drew scrutiny, and UCF coach Scott Frost said, “That’s the weirdest end of a game I’ve ever seen.”

The result gave UCF its first win over an AP top-five team and handed BYU a loss that made history not seen in college football since 2007.

2. Auburn stuns No. 1 Georgia

Wk. 7 | Oct. 17 | Auburn 27 vs. No. 1 Georgia 24

Georgia lasted one week at No. 1 before Auburn wiped out a 14-0 deficit at Sanford Stadium with 24 straight points. Quarterback Byrum Brown ran for 115 yards and a touchdown as the Tigers outrushed the Bulldogs 192-113.

Georgia tied the game with 2:58 left, but quarterback Gunner Stockton lost a fumble at the Auburn 46 with 58 seconds remaining for the Bulldogs’ third turnover. A roughing-the-passer penalty on Gabe Harris Jr. moved Auburn into range for Alex McPherson’s 34-yard field goal as time expired.

“We helped them,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said.

The loss ended Georgia’s nine-game winning streak against Auburn and its run of 53 consecutive wins over unranked opponents, giving first-year Auburn coach Alex Golesh the biggest win of his tenure.

1. How did Oklahoma State beat Oregon?

Wk. 2 | Sept. 12 | No. 6 Oregon 31 vs. Oklahoma State 39

No team on this list entered in worse shape than Oklahoma State, which carried a 21-game losing streak against Football Bowl Subdivision opponents, a 1-11 record from 2025 and a 24-10 opening loss at Tulsa. Oregon, the preseason No. 2 team, had beaten the Cowboys 69-3 a year earlier.

Quarterback Drew Mestemaker, who followed coach Eric Morris from North Texas, threw for 317 yards and two touchdowns and scored the go-ahead 10-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. The Cowboys outgained the Ducks 554-281 and became the first team on a 10-game losing streak to beat a top-10 opponent, according to ESPN.

“I don’t know if I can top this,” Morris said. “I’m not going to retire, but I might think about it tonight.”

The Ducks have since fallen to 4-3 with additional losses to UCLA and Illinois.

Honorable mentions

• Wk. 2 | No. 11 Oklahoma 10 vs. Michigan 17
• Wk. 4 | Wisconsin 24 vs. No. 13 Penn State 20
• Wk. 4 | Wake Forest 30 vs. No. 16 Louisville 27
• Wk. 6 | No. 10 LSU 34 vs. Kentucky 35
• Wk. 8 | No. 16 USC 7 vs. Wisconsin 24