College football's Week 7 schedule produced several results that significantly altered the
projected playoff field and bowl projections
following Saturday's action. Ohio State remains the No. 1 seed after its win at Illinois, but Indiana is on the move to No. 3 thanks to a road victory at Oregon. Miami ranks a spot ahead of the Hoosiers at No. 2. Alabama continues its rise in the playoff projections after beating Missouri to earn another top-25 win. The SEC features six teams in this week's projected field, but Georgia Tech, USC, and Notre Dame are rising among contenders for a spot in the playoff.
Week 7 results also impacted bowl games outside of the College Football Playoff. Oklahoma's loss to Texas drops coach Brent Venables' team to the Reliaquest Bowl, while the Longhorns are projected to the Citrus Bowl. After its third consecutive loss, Penn State drops out of the bowl projections.
Just missing the bowl projections after Week 7: Penn State, Rutgers, Michigan State, Kennesaw State, Syracuse, UCF, Washington State, San Jose State, Central Michigan, Rice, Florida Atlantic, New Mexico, Kansas State, Colorado, New Mexico State, Liberty, ULM, Wyoming, and Louisiana.
How will the postseason matchups look by December? Below are Athlon Sports' preseason predictions for every bowl and playoff game in 2025-26 after Week 7:
Location:SoFi Bowl in Inglewood, Calif.
Tie-In:Mountain West vs. Pac-12
Projection:Boise State vs. Washington
Location:Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Ala.
Tie-In:MAC vs. Sun Belt
Projection:Jacksonville State* vs. Western Michigan
Location:Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
Tie-In:Sun Belt vs. AAC/CUSA/MAC
Projection:James Madison vs. Toledo
Location:Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala.
Tie-In: Sun Belt/AAC/CUSA/MAC
Projection:Temple vs. Troy
Location:Brooks Stadium in Conway, S.C.
Tie-In: Sun Belt vs. AAC/CUSA/MAC
Projection:Georgia Southern vs. UConn
Location:Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
Tie-In:ACC vs. SEC
Projection:Louisville vs. Memphis
Location:Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho
Tie-In:MAC vs. Mountain West
Projection:Buffalo vs. Utah State
Location:Flagler Credit Union Stadium in Boca Raton, Fla.
Tie-In:AAC/CUSA/MAC/Sun Belt
Projection:North Texas vs. Old Dominion
Location:Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La.
Tie-In:Conference USA vs. Sun Belt
Projection:Western Kentucky vs. Southern Miss
Location:TBD in Frisco, Texas
Tie-In:AAC/CUSA/MAC/Sun Belt
Projection:UTSA vs. Appalachian State
Location:Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex in Honolulu, Hawaii
Tie-In:American vs. Mountain West
Projection:East Carolina vs. Hawaii
Location:Ford Field in Detroit, Mich.
Tie-In:Big Ten vs. MAC
Projection:Northwestern vs. Ohio
Location:Chase Field in Phoenix, Ariz.
Tie-In:Big 12 vs. Big Ten
Projection:Baylor vs. Maryland
Location:Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas
Tie-In:Big 12/AAC/CUSA/ACC
Projection:Wake Forest vs. Fresno State
Location:Navy-Marine Corps Stadium in Annapolis, Md.
Tie-In:ACC vs. American
Projection:Duke vs. Navy
Location:Yankee Stadium in Bronx, N.Y.
Tie-In:ACC vs. Big Ten
Projection:Virginia vs. Iowa
Location:Fenway Park in Boston, Mass.
Tie-In:ACC vs. American
Projection:Pitt vs. Tulane
Location:Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
Tie-In:ACC vs. Big 12
Projection:Notre Dame vs. BYU
Location:Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Ariz.
Tie-In:MAC vs. Mountain West
Projection:Bowling Green vs. San Diego State
Location:University Stadium in Albuquerque, N.M.
Tie-In:Conference USA vs. Mountain West
Projection:Texas State* vs. UNLV
Location:EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla.
Tie-In:ACC vs. SEC
Projection:Clemson vs. Missouri
Location:NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas
Tie-In:Big 12 vs. SEC
Projection:TCU vs. Auburn
Location:Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Ala.
Tie-In:ACC/American vs. SEC
Projection:NC State vs. Mississippi State
Location: Independence Stadium in Shreveport, La.
Tie-In:American vs. Pac-12/Big 12
Projection:California vs. Kansas
Location:Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn.
Tie-In:Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection:Minnesota vs. Florida
Location:Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas
Tie-In:Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Projection:Iowa State vs. USC
Location:Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
Tie-In:Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection:Nebraska vs. Oklahoma
Location:Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas
Tie-In:ACC vs. Pac-12
Projection:SMU vs. Arizona
Location:Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
Tie-In:Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection:Michigan vs. Texas
Location:Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev.
Tie-In:Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Projection:Illinois vs. Arizona State
Location:Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas
Tie-In:Big 12 vs. AAC/CUSA
Projection:Houston vs. Army
Location:Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis, Tenn.
Tie-In:Big 12 vs. SEC
Projection:Cincinnati vs. South Carolina
Location:Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.
Tie-In:ACC vs. SEC
Projection:Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt
Location:Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, Calif.
Tie-In:ACC vs. Pac-12
Projection:Florida State vs. Utah
Location:TBD
Tie-In:Conference USA vs. MAC
Projection: Louisiana Tech vs. Miami (Ohio)
Games to be played on Dec. 19 and Dec. 20. Contests will be played at home site of higher-ranked team.
No. 5 Texas A&M vs. No. 12 South Florida
No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 11 TennesseeNo. 7 Texas Tech vs. No. 10 LSU
No. 8 Oregon vs. No. 9 Georgia
Location:AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas
Projection:No. 3 Indiana vs. No. 6 Ole Miss
Location:Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Projection:No. 2 Miami vs. No. 7 Texas Tech
Location:Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif.
Projection:No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 8 Oregon
Location:Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La.
Projection:No. 4 Alabama vs. No. 5 Texas A&M
Location:State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
Projection:No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 4 Alabama
Location:Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga.
Projection:No. 2 Miami vs. No. 3 Indiana
Date:Jan. 19, 2026
Location:Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Projection:Ohio State over Miami
*Indicates conference not projected to fulfill all of its bowl tie-ins. An at-large team will be selected to fill those spots.
Related: Nebraska Turns Corner in Comeback Win at Maryland
Related: College Football Rankings: Predicting the AP Top 25 Poll After Week 7
Related: What Drew Allar's Season-Ending Injury Means for His NFL Draft Stock
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Oct 12, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
