Where is Texas Tech Football Ranked in the 138 FBS Team Preseason Rankings
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Here is a closer look at where Texas Tech is ranked among the 138 FBS college football teams and the positives and negatives of these preseason rankings.
Every summer, prominent sites like Athlon Sports, CBS Sports, and ESPN produce full rankings of all 138 FBS teams ahead of the upcoming college football season. They rank every team from #1 (Ohio State or Oregon) to #138; these 1–138 listings have structural value but also have certain constraints.
There are a number of studies that demonstrate consensus human preseason rankings are remarkably indicative of overall team strength and playoff bowl outcomes. Roster retention, transfer portal additions, and recruiting classes combine to provide a pretty good snapshot of baseline talent.
The most important thing in the 12-team College Football Playoff era is schedule strength. With complete 1-138 listings, analysts may accurately assess nonconference games (e.g., is a nonconference opponent a midtier Group of 6 program at No. 60 or a bottom-tier team at No. 130.
The media perspective causes an "anchoring bias” early in the year. Teams that were projected favorably in the preseason often maintain their benefit-of-the-doubt standing in official polls following early-season falls against teams with identical records that were unranked in the preseason.
There’s more turnover in college football in 2026 than ever in the transfer portal and coaching carousels. Preseason rankings frequently hinge on old feelings about chemistry, strategies, and depth charts that take weeks of real games to actually pan out.
Media publications’ summer rankings bear no formal weight in playoff selection or bowl tie-ins. Injuries, single-play variation, and slight schedule variances often render mid-to-bottom tier rankings moot once games start. In a season that runs from 12 to 16 games, the roster dynamics shift dramatically, making top-tier ranks susceptible relatively early in September.
Here now is a look at where the Red Raiders are ranked among the 138 FBS college football teams this preseason.
CBS Sports has the Red Raiders ranked high in their preseason 138 FBS college football rankings. They have Texas Tech ranked No. 8.
The NYTimes/The Athletic have the Red Raiders ranked in their top 10 of their ranking of all 138 FBS teams.
ESPN has Texas Tech ranked No. 10 according to their Power Index 2026 rankings. Commonly referred to as FPI, the Red Raiders are not ranked as high as in other national publications but not as low either.
Paul Myerberg and USA TODAY have the Texas Tech Red Raiders ranked No. 12 in their 138 FBS rankings.
Many college football fans have pointed out that this ranking is the most outlandish, so Red Raiders fans should not take it seriously.
The effort ranking non-P4 teams is like a college paper you did in the 5 minutes before the deadline.
— Miles McQuiggan (@MilesMcQuiggan) August 19, 2026
65-72: 6 of 8 are CUSA
75-83: 8 of 9 are MAC
92-98: 6 of 7 are AAC
103-117: 13 of 15 are Sun Belt
If someone turned in this article to me, it would be the last one they write. https://t.co/toLjAApeBh
Regardless, RJ Young of Fox Sports ranks Texas Tech No. 14 in his preseason ranking of all 138 FBS college football teams.
TeamRankings uses predictive power ratings and simulations of each team's games. According to their site, they use a "vast repository of sports stats and data, publish it all on the site, and use it to power proprietary power ratings systems and algorithmic models."
The numbers suggest, according to them, that Texas Tech will do well this season and is a preseason top eight team among the 138 FBS teams.
College Football News was one of the first national publications to release their preseason rankings of all FBS teams online. They have the Red Raiders ranked outside the top 10 at No. 12, which is lower than most national publications.
Athlon Sports has been publishing their college football preseason magazine annually since the mid-1990s. They also have the Red Raiders ranked lower than most national publications, as they have Texas Tech ranked No. 12 in their preseason college football rankings of all 138 FBS teams.
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Ryan Kay is a journalist who graduated from Michigan State in 2003 and is passionate about covering college sports and enjoys writing features and articles covering various collegiate teams. He has worked as an editor at Go Joe Bruin and has been a contributor for Longhorns Wire and Busting Brackets. He is a contributor for Texas Tech On SI.