Update at 11:30 p.m. ET on Saturday
College football, what a sport. What a weekend.
Image telling someone last Saturday that the No. 1 team in the country would blow a 20-point, fourth-quarter lead. Or that the blueblood which needed a miracle to beat a MAC team managed to secure a fairly convincing win over another blueblood in a throwback to the 1970s. Or that LSU would be struggling for a good long while against an in-state rival who had zero yards at halftime.
And, let’s just pause to think about it some more, the program which has 92 new players and just lost convincingly to Tulsa would beat a national title favorite in their coach’s first home game.
Yes, it really was one of those weekends in the sport where the conventional wisdom was upended and sent to the sideline for a few minutes to cool off. As a result though, the College Football Playoff needs plenty of updating as the postseason picture looks much different at the end of Saturday in Week 2 than it did going in.
Update at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday
While the College Football Playoff bracket didn’t change much during Week 1’s lackluster slate, that doesn’t portend to be the case in Week 2 given some of the marquee nonconference games we’ll be treated to throughout Saturday.
Top of mind has to be the two blueblood meetings pitting the SEC and Big Ten, both in Austin between top-ranked Ohio State and No. 4 Texas, along with a must-win game for both Michigan and Oklahoma at the Big House. As usual though, something says we’ll get a few surprising results that lead to some additional chaos here or there as well.
Live Week 2 College Football Playoff Bracket
- Texas
- Notre Dame
- Miami
- LSU
- Ohio State
- Georgia
- Indiana
- Mississippi
- Texas A&M
- BYU
- USC
- Boise State
First Round
- No. 12 Boise State at No. 5 Ohio State
- No. 11 USC at No. 6 Georgia
- No. 10 BYU at No. 7 Indiana
- No. 9 Texas A&M at No. 8 Mississippi
Quarterfinals
- Fiesta Bowl: No. 4 LSU vs. winner of No. 12 Boise State vs. No. 5 Ohio State
- Peach Bowl: No. 3 Miami vs. winner of No. 11 USC vs. No. 6 Georgia
- Rose Bowl: No. 2 Notre Dame vs. winner of No. 10 BYU vs. No. 7 Indiana
- Cotton Bowl: No. 1 Texas vs. winner of No. 9 Texas A&M vs. No. 8 Mississippi
No. 12 Boise State at No. 5 Ohio State
We’re all convinced the Ohio State fan base will take the Buckeyes blowing that double-digit lead late very calmly and rationally, right? No? O.K. Well the good news for the Buckeyes is that they have plenty more opportunities to solidify a top-four seed in the CFP during Big Ten play, but their margin for error is reduced after losing in Austin. The Broncos, meanwhile, have an early death grip on the Group of 6 bid at this point after thumping Memphis on the blue turf. If they can make it past Western Michigan in a few weeks, it’s not unthinkable that they could get a home game in the playoff, too.
No. 11 USC at No. 6 Georgia
Is it time for Gunner Stockton’s Heisman campaign to get underway? No, but the Bulldogs offense looking sharp against mediocre competition still remains a good sign as they move into what are hopefully better tests in the near future. The Trojans also have not quite been tested yet this season, but they’ve put together a team which certainly passes the eye test—and might have a better shot at doing damage in the Big Ten than everybody thought two weeks ago.
No. 10 BYU at No. 7 Indiana
We won’t learn anything about Indiana until after its nonconference slate wraps up, though perhaps Curt Cignetti can start running the clock in the second half next week if things look like they did against Howard on Saturday. The Cougars won’t mind where they’re at in the playoff as long as they’re in it, which a dramatic win over Arizona in Week 2 helped cement.
No. 9 Texas A&M at No. 8 Mississippi
Mike Elko seems to have quite the defense at his disposal, even with all those new faces in College Station, Texas. The way the Aggies overwhelmed Arizona State to make a close game a blowout figures to be a nice point on the résumé moving forward. Ole Miss might have been better off scrimmaging against itself instead of playing lowly Charlotte like they did on Saturday night, but at least the home opener serves as a rare respite: the first game of the Pete Golding era which wasn’t against a ranked team as LSU awaits next week.
Fiesta Bowl: No. 4 LSU
There was always going to be a natural letdown for the Tigers after blowing out Clemson last week, but Lane Kiffin probably didn’t expect the red zone struggles he saw against Louisiana Tech. Perhaps it was a lookahead situation, but everyone in Baton Rouge knows that won’t be tolerated in a hostile environment next week.
Peach Bowl: No. 3 Miami
Poor Florida A&M, which got whacked on Thursday night in a game that was probably less competitive than a Hurricanes practice is. The good news for Mario Cristobal is that his team still managed to look sharp despite a short week of prep after returning from the West Coast and they have not one, but two legitimate Heisman candidates in Malachi Toney and Darian Mensah.
Rose Bowl: No. 2 Notre Dame
Fairly effortless afternoon for the Irish in rolling over Rice, but head coach Marcus Freeman has to really enjoy the way his defense has played the last six quarters. This isn’t a team that needs to peak right now, but they’ll take a 2–0 start which is miles away from what it experienced at the beginning of last season.
Cotton Bowl: No. 1 Texas
Arch Madness, it’s finally here. Steve Sarkisian is right that the Longhorns need to start better going into SEC play but until that is the case, they at least get to savor a remarkable comeback and the best win just about anybody will have in the 2026 season.
MORE COLLEGE FOOTBALL FROM SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
- Projecting AP Top 25 After College Football Week 2: Texas Stuns Ohio State, and There’s a New No. 1
- Arch Manning Finally Answered the Biggest Question About His Career
- College Football Week 2 Winners and Losers: Oregon’s Dan Lanning Leads a Saturday of Overthinking
- College Football Week 2 Takeaways: Arch Manning Erases Ohio State Nightmares With 20-Point Fourth-Quarter Comeback
