ESPN’s computer model, the Football Power Index, updated its Top 25 rankings on Sunday morning, following an eventful Week 7 in the college football world.
The rankings are controversial, to be sure.
ESPN’s computer model, which is a projections-based model, is not meant to be a resume-based rankings system.
“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 states.

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Still, a lot of fans will have problems with this Top 25.
ESPN’s computer’s new Top 25 rankings Sunday
- Ohio State
- Notre Dame
- Georgia
- Miami
- Indiana
- Alabama
- Texas
- LSU
- Texas Tech
- Oregon
- Ole Miss
- Tennessee
- BYU
- Utah
- Nebraska
- Wake Forest
- USC
- Houston
- Florida
- Texas A&M
- Auburn
- Oklahoma
- Louisville
- Northwestern
- Iowa
College football fans are ripping the rankings on Sunday morning
College football fans are ripping the computer-based rankings on Sunday morning.
“This ain’t real 😂,” Dave Portnoy shared on X.
“FPI to BYU: “Congratulations on your victory over our #1 team! For your reward, we won’t move you down from your #14 ranking at ALL! Really impressed!”🤷♂️ FPI is going from “broke” to “joke” mighty quickly🤦♂️,” one fan added.
“What a joke!” another fan wrote.
“This is how the SEC will argue that all their 9-3 and 8-4 teams deserve a playoff bid. ESPN isn’t slick,” one fan added.
“Kentucky is 3-1 against the FPI top 25 and isn’t ranked in the top 25. Incredible model!” one fan added.
Ultimately, the FPI doesn’t mean anything, but that’s not going to stop fans from debating and arguing.
