ESPN's Computer Model Releases Its Preseason Top 12

ESPN's Computer Model Releases Its Preseason Top 12

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ESPN's Computer Model Releases Its Preseason Top 12

ESPN's computer model, the Football Power Index, has named the top conference in the country for the 2026 college football regular season. And it's not the Big Ten.

Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti believes that the Big Ten Conference is the country's best heading into the 2026 college football regular season. The Big Ten, after all, has won three straight College Football Playoff national championships. Indiana won it last season, Ohio State won it the year before that and Michigan won it the year before that.

"The Big Ten is the best league in football," Cignetti said at Big Ten media days. "We don't run a hype machine up here in the Midwest. We believe everything's earned, not given. And when we fall short, we say we fell short. We don't cry a river, whine and complain. And that's why we're the best."

"It's hard to win on the road. Very physical football teams, very well-coached. It definitely prepares you for the playoff," Cignetti said. "No doubt about it, the numbers speak for themselves."

Kirk Herbstreit speaks on the set of ESPN College GameDay prior to the NCAA football game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Texas Longhorns at Ohio Stadium on Aug. 30, 2025.© Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

ESPN's Football Power Index disagrees, though.

The Football Power Index has the SEC, not the Big Ten, as the country's No. 1 conference right now.

The SEC dominates the FPI's Top 12 teams:

  1. Ohio State
  2. Texas
  3. Notre Dame
  4. Oregon
  5. Georgia
  6. Indiana
  7. Miami
  8. Alabama
  9. LSU
  10. Texas Tech
  11. Texas A&M
  12. Oklahoma

That's six of the country's top 12 teams, according to the ESPN computer model.

How does ESPN's FPI work?

The FPI is a projection-based model.

"The Football Power Index (FPI) is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team's performance going forward for the rest of the season. FPI represents how many points above or below average a team is. Projected results are based on 20,000 simulations of the rest of the season using FPI, results to date, and the remaining schedule. Ratings and projections update daily. FPI data from seasons prior to 2019 may not be complete," ESPN writes.

This story was originally published by The Spun on Aug 2, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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