Coach opens the two-hour show by pointing out that seven of the top 16 teams lost last weekend. That’s why he suggests dropping the word “upset” for the 2026 season. Only UCLA, Miami and Utah are still undefeated among Power Four teams, and by his count about 30 teams remain in the playoff hunt. Tony Barnhart is off for his yearly Georgia–Florida trip, so Dennis Dodd fills in for the first hour. Dodd explains why Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark is leaving: league presidents rejected his ideas, including a private equity deal and adding Gonzaga for basketball only, and he was frustrated that the SEC and Big Ten took control of the playoff format. Dodd also covers Missouri running back Ahmad Hardy, who is cleared to return against Arkansas after being shot in the offseason. Ohio State’s quarterback injury going into USC and Utah’s trip to Cincinnati get attention too. The two then go conference by conference. Kentucky surprisingly leads the SEC, and Dodd predicts a 9-3 SEC team gets in the playoff while another deserving 9-3 SEC team gets left out. Northwestern and Chip Kelly are the Big Ten’s big surprise. Dodd picks BYU and Oklahoma State to play for the Big 12 title, and says the SMU–Wake Forest game will likely decide who faces Miami for the ACC title. Matthews’ stat of the week is that SEC schools have paid $2.6 million in field-storming fines so far this year. Dodd’s is that 32 different teams have been ranked in the top 10 since USC was last there. They finish the hour on the Big Ten’s plan to cap athlete pay, a possible separate Group of Six playoff, and Florida State vs. Clemson as a once-big matchup almost nobody is noticing.

In the second hour, officiating consultant Tom Ritter goes through the end of the BYU–UCF game. Replay wrongly applied a 10-second runoff that ended regulation, even though the rules stop the clock after a kick. Matthews says UCF’s coaches should have known that rule and spoken up. Ritter also explains why full-time college officials aren’t realistic, though a national pool of officials may be coming. Kevin Steele, who has coached under seven national-championship head coaches, grades the SEC’s new coaches, including Will Stein at Kentucky, Jon Sumrall at Florida and Lane Kiffin at LSU. He calls LSU the team peaking right now and doesn’t expect Georgia to lose two games in a row. He and Matthews agree that the many two-loss SEC teams playing each other will sort the race out quickly, and a few may end up with four losses. Charles Davis closes the show by arguing that the old order of college football is gone and that conference titles will matter less once the playoff grows to 24 teams. He breaks down Indiana’s offensive slump and its tough defense ahead of Minnesota. He also talks about the wave of quarterback injuries: almost a third of FBS programs are missing their starter, so backup quarterbacks now decide seasons. He finishes with Boise State, Oregon State and New Mexico as the Group of Six teams to watch.