Halfway Through: Does College Football Still Have a Quality Problem?
Three seasons of data. One important question. Are ranked teams playing enough quality competition?
College football has reached approximately the halfway point of the 2026 regular season, making this a good time to revisit a question we raised earlier this year:
Does college football have a quality problem?
In our original Insights article, we reviewed the 2024 and 2025 seasons and found that only 19.9% of games played by Top 25 teams were against Top 25 opponents.
That means approximately 80% of their games were against teams outside the Top 25.
Now, with three seasons of halfway-point rankings available, let's take another look.
1. Three Years of Data: 2024–2026
We compared the ResumeCFR Top 25 rankings from Week 8 in 2024, Week 7 in 2025, and Week 7 in 2026.
For each season, we measured the percentage of games played by ranked teams against opponents in that week's Consensus Top 25.
| Metric | 2024 W8 | 2025 W7 | 2026 W7 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top 25 Games | 22 | 28 | 24 |
| Total Games Played | 150 | 151 | 140 |
| Quality Game % | 14.7% | 18.5% | 17.1% |
Quality Game % = Top 25 Games divided by Total Games Played. Figures represent the 25 teams in each selected week's ResumeCFR rankings.
Although the percentages vary from year to year, one finding stands out: relatively few games played by ranked teams are against other ranked opponents.
2. The Number That Stands Out: 16.8%
Across the three halfway-season snapshots, the average Quality Game Percentage is approximately 16.8%.
Approximately 1 out of every 6 games played by ranked teams
Only about 1 out of every 6 games played by Top 25 teams is against a Top 25 opponent.
Put another way, approximately 83% of their games are against teams outside the Top 25.
Think about that.
At the halfway point of the college football season, the overwhelming majority of games played by the nation's ranked teams have not been against ranked competition.
Yet these same teams are being compared, evaluated, and ranked against one another.
3. How Does This Compare to Our Original Findings?
Earlier this season, our article Does College Football Have a Quality Problem? examined the completed 2024 and 2025 regular seasons.
The results showed a combined average Quality Game Percentage of 19.9%.
Our new halfway-season analysis shows an average of 16.8% across 2024, 2025, and 2026.
| Comparison | Quality Game % |
|---|---|
| 2024–2025 Completed Seasons | 19.9% |
| 2024–2026 Halfway Point | 16.8% |
The halfway-season percentage is lower, but there is an important distinction.
As conference schedules progress, ranked teams often face additional quality opponents. Therefore, the percentage can increase during the second half of the season.
The three halfway-season results also do not establish a consistent downward trend.
What they do demonstrate is how limited ranked competition has been at the halfway point across three consecutive seasons.
4. Why Quality Games Matter
Winning games is important. But winning games against quality opponents should matter more.
Consider two teams with similar records.
One has played multiple Top 25 opponents, while the other has yet to face a ranked team.
Should their resumes be evaluated equally?
At ResumeCFR, we don't believe so.
That's why our methodology places significant importance on Top 25 Wins (Criterion #1) and Top 25 Games (Criterion #3).
Teams deserve credit for beating quality opponents, but they should also receive recognition for challenging themselves against quality competition.
A team's record tells us how many games it has won.
Its resume tells us who it has played and beaten.
5. Coach Q Summary
Three seasons of halfway-point rankings tell a compelling story.
Only about 17% of games played by Top 25 teams have been against other Top 25 opponents.
That means approximately 83% of their games have been against teams outside the Top 25.
I believe that's a number college football fans should pay attention to.
But my bigger concern is what happens in the future.
Why risk a loss against a quality opponent when an easier win may provide a better path to the playoffs?
My prediction: Unless the incentives change, teams will have less incentive to challenge themselves against quality opponents, and the percentage of quality games will unfortunately decline.
The current three-year data does not yet demonstrate that decline. But it does establish an important benchmark to monitor in the years ahead.
College football should reward teams for playing and beating quality competition, not simply for avoiding losses.
Quality Wins Matter.