There’s no official halfway point of the 2026 college football season, as some programs will play 12 games while others with deep postseason runs could play 16.
But Week 14 marks Conference Championship Weekend, making Week 7 the unofficial midpoint. And with Week 7 in the books, it’s a good time to look back at what’s transpired and look ahead to the second half.
Coaching Staff Stability
Exactly one year ago, there had been nine FBS coaches who were fired midseason prior to Week 8. This year? There’s just one, and he was fired on the day this article was published. Mike Locksley, formerly of the University of Maryland, got his walking papers on Oct. 21, eight years into the job. He went 3-0 in bowl games but never had a winning record in conference play.
What’s sparked this change from athletic directors? It’s hard to pinpoint, but perhaps the growing buyout numbers for coaches have something to do with it.
The Undefeated
Six teams enter Week 8 undefeated, which shows how much parity there’s been this season because there were 11 such squads at this point last year. The six squads, along with their rankings, are 1. Miami, 2. BYU, 8. Texas Tech, 9. UCLA, 10. Utah, and unranked James Madison.
Notable is the absence of an SEC program. This is the first time in 19 years that no SEC schools are undefeated through seven weeks. Of those six, only two will face off in the regular season—BYU vs. Utah on Nov. 7—so it’s conceivable that five of them could be undefeated come the conference title games.
The Winless
Of the 138 FBS schools, two remain without a victory. Louisiana-Monroe, of the Sun Belt Conference, and Northern Illinois, of the Mountain West, are both 0-6. ULM also lost its last eight games of 2025, and the Warhawks’ 14-game losing streak is the longest active in the sport. Louisiana-Monroe’s best shot at ending this skid will likely come in Week 9 when it hosts a 1-5 Southern Miss squad. As for NIU, it likely has two games circled to pick up its first win—this Saturday versus Hawaii, and the season finale versus UTEP. Both are home games for the Huskies, and each is against a squad currently with a single victory.
Season-Altering Injuries
The season began with a notable injury to a star player and will end with a pair of star quarterbacks sidelined. The former, Missouri RB Ahmad Hardy, suffered a gunshot wound prior to the season and has not suited up all year. He led the SEC in rushing yards in 2025 en route to being an All-American, and Mizzou is trying to stay afloat in the rugged Southeastern Conference without him.
Then a pair of Big Ten teams lost their starting quarterbacks in back-to-back weeks. First was UCLA’s Nico Iamaleava, who suffered a torn ACL on Oct. 10, which has the undefeated Bruins turning the reins over to senior Ty Dieffenbach. A week later, Ohio State saw Julian Sayin, who finished fourth in Heisman voting last year, go down with a shoulder ailment. He’s out for the rest of the regular season and could miss the postseason as well, as the Buckeyes are turning to true freshman Luke Fahey.
Manning’s Downturn
It’s fitting that Arch Manning has the name that he has, as his college career has resembled the curved structure. It started off at a low point when he became starter in 2025 and lost the season opener to Ohio State, despite Texas being ranked No. 1. He then had more struggles in falling to unranked Florida—a game in which Manning threw two picks—and suffering a 25-point loss to Georgia.
However, that arch then began to ascend as he finished 2025 strong with 11 touchdowns versus zero interceptions over his last three games. The arch peaked at the start of 2026 as he avenged the defeat to Ohio State to make the Longhorns the new No. 1 in the land. But we’ve since reached the descent of the arch as Texas has lost its last two games, and Manning has as many turnovers (four) as touchdowns over his last three games. That has Texas coach Steve Sarkisian taking some first-team practice reps from Manning and giving them to his backup, as Manning is facing the possibility of getting benched if his play doesn’t improve.
The G6 Race for the CFP
Whether 12 teams now or 24 teams in the future, just one Group of Six team is guaranteed a spot in the College Football Playoff. For this season, the Boise State Broncos are on the pole as the only G6 team that’s ranked. Boise State has just one more opponent that’s currently above .500, but there is a trio of teams waiting to grab that G6 spot if the Broncos do suffer a loss.
The aforementioned, and undefeated, James Madison Dukes are one of those, as are the Oregon State Beavers. OSU is the only team above .500 scheduled to play Boise, as that matchup on Nov. 14 could be a de facto playoff game. Meanwhile, a longshot to land the G6 bid is New Mexico, which has the No. 1 defense in the nation in points allowed, giving up just 10.5 points per game.
