The first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2026 season dropped Tuesday night, and Alabama landed at No. 5.
That puts the Tide four spots ahead of where they sat in Sunday’s latest coaches poll and Associated Press poll, which had Alabama at No. 9.
The committee’s opening statement also sets up a big one this weekend, with Alabama headed to LSU on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers checked in at No. 14 in the first CFP rankings, one spot ahead of their No. 15 placement in the AP and coaches polls.
Alabama’s resume already includes a 2-2 mark against teams in the CFP top 25. The Tide beat No.
6 Kentucky and No. 21 South Carolina, while falling to No.
2 Georgia and No. 13 Tennessee.
Committee chairman and Arkansas athletics director Hunter Yurachek explained the placement to ESPN by pointing to Alabama’s road wins and overall body of work.
"I think you look first at Alabama went on the road and beat the team we have ranked 6th this week in Kentucky. They also beat South Carolina, who is ranked in the top 25.
I think many forget they went on the road and beat Mississippi State when Mississippi State was undefeated and at full strength. We really valued that as a strong win for Alabama back there in the early part of the season when Mississippi [State] was, again, they had that quarterback in Kamario Taylor who was very, very good and Mississippi State was on a roll at that time.
We see those as three quality wins.
"Yes, they had a loss to Tennessee. But Tennessee doesn't have the same level of quality wins. They do have the win against Alabama, but you have to go a little deeper to see Tennessee with another quality win on their schedule."
The 13-member committee also includes former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn, who is in his first season on the panel.
This year’s rankings are being shaped by the CFP’s emphasis on strength of conference enhancement, along with the familiar factors of schedule strength, head-to-head results and common opponents. The committee said earlier this year that strength of conference enhancement is “an enhancement, not a new metric,” while noting that it carries more weight when comparing schedule strength inside the same league.
The CFP also said last year it adjusted its schedule strength metric “to apply greater weight to games against strong opponents. An additional metric, record strength, [was] added to the selection committee’s analysis to go beyond a team’s schedule strength to assess how a team performed against that schedule.
This metric rewards teams defeating high-quality opponents while minimizing the penalty for losing to such a team. Conversely, these changes will provide minimal reward for defeating a lower-quality opponent while imposing a greater penalty for losing to such a team.”
The committee will keep unveiling rankings every Tuesday until its final selections on Sunday, Dec. 6.
Here is the full first CFP top 25:
- Miami
- Georgia
- Utah
- Indiana
- Alabama
- Kentucky
- Texas
- UCLA
- BYU
- Ole Miss
- Notre Dame
- Ohio State
- Tennessee
- LSU
- Texas Tech
- Wake Forest
- Houston
- Missouri
- Iowa
- USC
- South Carolina
- Arizona
- Oregon
- Florida
- Boise State
In Other News...
Alabama Heads To LSU With One Big Availability Question
With the Southeastern Conference now requiring injury reports for football, basketball and baseball conference games starting in 2024, Alabamas weekly availability picture has become part of the conversation as much as the matchup itself. Heading into its seventh SEC game of the 2026 season against LSU, the Crimson Tide is still sorting through a roster that has been hit by injuries, even as head coach Kalen DeBoer said several previously sidelined players are making progress in their recoveries.
There is still no shortage of uncertainty around the depth chart, though, and Alabama is carrying some season-ending absences into this stretch, including Jeremiah Beaman and Cayden Jones. For a team entering one of the SECs biggest rivalry games, the question is less about who is already ruled out and more about which of the recovering players can actually make it back in time to matter against LSU. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Heads Into LSU Week With One Big Availability Problem
Alabamas first availability report for LSU week brought a familiar kind of late-season concern, with five starters and one key running back listed as questionable because of injuries. There is some optimism around several of those names, including Ryan Coleman-Williams, Terrance Green and Racin Delgatty, but the list also leaves room for real uncertainty as the Crimson Tide work through the week.
Zabien Brown, Will Sanders and EJ Crowell are among the players whose status remains less clear, and that is where the issue starts to matter beyond just the injury report itself. How much depth Alabama has to lean on, and how effective it can be if a few of those pieces are limited or unavailable, could shape the way this matchup with LSU unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Faces A Brutal LSU Warning Ahead Of Playoff Test
The buildup to Alabamas next test has turned into a warning label, and Joel Klatt is not sugarcoating it. In previewing the matchup with LSU, the Fox Sports analyst pointed to the Tigers pass rush and overall defensive play as the kind of pressure that can expose some of Alabamas recent issues on the ground, a concern that matters even more with the playoff picture tightening.
Klatt also leaned into LSUs recent momentum at quarterback, noting Sam Leavitts strong play, while the injury situation for both teams adds another layer to a game that already feels like a measuring stick. He went as far as to pick LSU to win, projecting a 30-17 final, which only sharpens the stakes for Alabama as it heads into a matchup where the margin for error looks thin. [Read more 🡒]