It seems you are have having trouble with a simple concept as well. Colorado is not effectively #26, they are just a team who got votes on some AP voters top 25 lists. Individual voters votes are tallied, there can be no #26 ranked team when the voters only voted for a top 25. If they voted for a top 30, there can be no 31st rank team. If they voted for a top 50, there can be no 51st rank team.
Why do you people think the AP doesn't say that Colorado is #26, Boise St. is #27, etc? Well because that isn't the case, and they aren't dumb enough to push something that isn't true. Colorado and Iowa aren't #26 and #32 right now, they are just teams that got votes.