No polls. No preseason bias by default. We rank this season only. Ordering is loss buckets → in-bucket head-to-head → a BCS-style composite of résumé metrics. (If enabled, polls add a small nudge and never override results.)
1) Who’s in?
- Only FBS programs are ranked.
- The record (wins–losses) shows every game an FBS team played (even if the opponent was FCS) so it matches what fans see elsewhere.
- The résumé math (strength of schedule, etc.) uses only FBS vs FBS for fairness.
2) Loss buckets come first
Teams are grouped by total losses. Fewer losses rank ahead by default.
3) Head-to-head inside buckets
If two teams in the same loss bucket played each other, the winner goes ahead of the loser.
4) Composite (orders ties inside buckets)
- Winning percentage — the most important factor.
- SOS1 (Opponent strength) — average FBS opponent win rate; >0.50 = tougher than average.
- SOS2 (Opponent’s opponent strength) — how tough your opponents’ schedules were.
- Average scoring margin — capped so blowouts don’t dominate.
- Quality wins — small bonus for beating roughly Top-40 teams.
- Bad losses — small penalty for losing to ~80+ teams.
- Location adjustment — road/neutral wins get a nudge; home losses get dinged.
- Tiny efficiency nudge — two per-play ideas:
- Offensive/Defensive Efficiency (PPA): how much each play changes expected points. Offense up is good; defense more negative is good.
- Drive Consistency (Success Rate): how often plays gain the yards needed. Higher on offense, lower allowed on defense is better.
- Conference championship — small bonus if you won one (when those games exist).
- Optional polls — if enabled, a tiny nudge from AP/Coaches to break ties, never decisive.
5) Quick translation
Win a lot, versus good teams, avoid bad losses, and perform steadily. If equal losses and you played head-to-head, the winner sits higher. That’s it.