CFB rankings: September's top 15 teams

Conference play is heating up across the country as the calendar flips to October, and Week 6 is already upon us.

With the AP poll dropping weekly, voters are often beholden to how they ranked teams in the preseason for the first month of the schedule. We are under no such restrictions, free to put teams wherever we like based solely on how they have played thus far.

Without further delay, here's how we see the rankings through the September portion of the 2025 calendar.

1. Ohio State (4-0)

The Buckeyes have played four games and allowed a total of two touchdowns. Julian Sayin looked like a seasoned veteran in his first road start and it appears a new standout running back has emerged in Bo Jackson. The rest of the nation should be afraid - very afraid.

2. Oregon (5-0)

The Ducks now have the best win of the season - on the road in front of over 100,000 screaming fans in the "White Out" at Penn State. Dante Moore appears to be a full-blown star, and Oregon's on a collision course with Ohio State in the Big Ten title game.

3. Miami (4-0)

The season-opening win over Notre Dame looks better by the week for Miami, and the South Florida blowout should age well as the Bulls enter conference play. A major test awaits with the first road trip of the season taking the Hurricanes to Florida State on Saturday for a rivalry game.

4. Ole Miss (5-0)

The Lane train is rolling after an impressive home win over LSU on Saturday. That pushes the Rebels to 5-0 with three conference victories already on the resume. Trinidad Chambliss looks like a star in the making - something he will need to be for back-to-back road games at Georgia and Oklahoma in a few weeks.

5. Texas A&M (4-0)

Will Texas A&M be the fifth-best team in the country at the end of season? No, probably not. But that road win at Notre Dame carries a ton of weight as one of the best in the season's first month. The Aggies need to pile up the wins now with four of their last five SEC games on the road.

6. Oklahoma (4-0)

The uncertainty around John Mateer's injury keeps Oklahoma out of the top five for this set of rankings. However, even without Mateer in the lineup, a dominant defense gives the Sooners a chance against Texas in the Red River Rivalry two weeks from now.

7. Alabama (3-1)

Rumours of Alabama's demise may have been premature. The Crimson Tide rebounded in style from a season-opening loss at Florida State with back-to-back blowout victories before ending Georgia's 33-game home winning streak last weekend.

8. Indiana (5-0)

Indiana almost got Iowa'd on Saturday, but Curt Cignetti's outfit is now 2-0 in Big Ten play with a 53-point win over ranked Illinois on the resume. The Hoosiers won't be here long, with a trip to Oregon waiting after their bye week. Win that one and they might just be No. 1.

9. Florida State (3-1)

Yes, Florida State is behind Alabama despite beating the Tide in Week 1 and holding the same record. However, Alabama just ended the nation's longest home winning streak with an impressive win at Georgia while the Seminoles fell to Virginia. That gives the nod to the Tide, but a home win over Miami this weekend could move Florida State back ahead.

10. Georgia (3-1)

The three-point loss at home to Alabama actually flattered Georgia, as the Crimson Tide dominated most of that contest. The Bulldogs still have the road win at Tennessee on their resume, enough to keep them in the No. 10 slot.

11. LSU (4-1)

LSU has a lights-out defense that is strong enough to win the SEC with an offense that remains a question mark weekly. The Clemson and Florida wins didn't prop up the Tigers' resume as we would've expected, but they remain much stronger victories than a number of teams on this list possess.

12. Texas Tech (4-0)

Three home wins over teams outside the power conferences don't move the needle much for Texas Tech, but a 24-point victory on the road at Utah sure does. Don't look now, but there's a very real chance the Red Raiders end the season undefeated, with No. 23 BYU and No. 25 Arizona State the only ranked opponents remaining on their schedule.

13. Vanderbilt (5-0)

Vanderbilt ahead of Texas and Penn State? We have a rule in our rankings: Good losses don't outweigh zero power conference wins. The Longhorns and Nittany Lions have yet to beat a team in a major conference this season. The Commodores have two such wins and are 5-0 on the season with every victory by at least 20 points. All of this could change Saturday at Alabama, but right now, Vanderbilt's resume is worth the No. 13 slot.

14. Texas (3-1)

Have we reached the point where we feel comfortable about the Texas offense? No. Is the defense good enough on its own to make the playoff? Yes. The Longhorns face their toughest test since Week 1 with Florida this weekend. How Arch Manning and the offense produces will tell us if they are serious SEC contenders.

15. Penn State (3-1)

Penn State was highly ranked to start the season and will likely be there again at the end of the season. However, right now, it's a 3-1 team with zero wins over power conference opponents and an overtime home loss to Oregon. The Nittany Lions could have easily won that contest over the Ducks, but the loss drops them well back ... for now.