​Florida football was on a bye during Week 8, getting its only breather of the 2026 campaign. Despite the inactivity, the Gators gained ground in ESPN’s Football Power Index rankings, and many other metrics improved as well. The FPI measures team strength and is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance for the rest of the season; it shows how many points above or below average a team is. Each team is assigned a rating that measures its true strength on a net-points scale, as well as its expected point margin against an average opponent on a neutral field.Projected results are based on 20,000 season simulations using FPI and the schedule. Take a look at how Florida’s numbers shake out after Week 8’s gridiron action.Where Florida football ranks in ESPN’s FPI after Week 8Florida rose two spots to No. 17 in ESPN’s FPI rankings after the Week 8 bye, and its rating dropped by 0.2 points to 14.5. Sumrall and Co. now sit between No. 16 Wake Forest (15.1) and No. 18 Houston (14.4) in the standings.The FPI still projects the Gators to finish this fall’s regular-season schedule with a 7.7-4.3 record and a 1.3% chance of winning out. Florida’s chances of finishing with six wins remain at a near-certain 98.8%, while the odds of winning the conference rose by 0.5% to 2.5%.The Gators’ chance of making the College Football Playoff improved from 13.3% to 16.6%, along with a 0.9% chance of reaching the national championship game (up 0.2%) and a 0.3% chance of bringing home the title (up 0.1%).Football Power Index top 25 rankings after Week 8Ohio State BuckeyesNotre Dame Fighting IrishMiami HurricanesGeorgia BulldogsAlabama Crimson TideIndiana HoosiersLSU TigersTexas LonghornsOle Miss RebelsUtah UtesOregon DucksTennessee VolunteersNebraska CornhuskersTexas Tech Red RaidersBYU CougarsWake Forest Demon DeaconsFlorida GatorsHouston CougarsOklahoma SoonersNorthwestern WildcatsLouisville CardinalsTexas A&M AggiesArizona WildcatsKentucky WildcatsUSC TrojansFollow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida moves up in ESPN’s FPI after Week 8 bye, plus other data