Every Five and a Fade Top 10 from here on follows one rule: résumé over reputation. Here it is in 26 seconds.

The rule

• Who you beat matters most. Wins over good teams count more than anything else.
• Preseason hype has expired. By late October, you are what your wins say you are.
• Same record? Head-to-head decides it. That’s what the game is for.
• Bad losses cost more than good ones. Losing close to a top team isn’t the same as getting blown out by a middling one.

What it means for this week

Texas is No. 4 with two losses. Nobody has better wins: Ohio State, Ole Miss and Tennessee. Two losses and that résumé beats a pile of unbeatens who haven’t played anybody.

Tennessee is in at No. 9, and Alabama is out. Same record, and Tennessee won the game 26-10. The AP poll still has Alabama 10th and Tennessee 16th. Under our rule, that’s not close.

Notre Dame is out. The best win on the résumé is Wisconsin. Who have they beaten?

See the whole list, 10 through 1: the new Five and a Fade Top 10.

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Jeremy Durham is a sports columnist for TriStar Daily and the founder of Five and a Fade.