College football’s top-25 résumé ranking entering Week 5

The AP Poll stinks.

Let’s just be real about that for a moment.

It’s built on the premise that we know who these teams are before they play a football game, and then those teams are judged by who we think they can be relative to who they’ve actually shown themselves to be. A 2-loss Notre Dame team is still ranked in the AP Top 25 for beating *checks notes* Purdue at home. LSU is in the top 5 for beating a 1-3 team from the fourth-toughest power conference and a Florida team that will probably be firing its coach soon.

When the voters who create the poll come out and say it doesn’t really matter if they make a mistake, there’s more than just a fly in the ointment. At least the College Football Playoff rankings wait until we have more than enough data points to know who these teams are, but even that ranking system is biased toward brands.

So, we’re debuting something new this week. Or, at least, I am. Some of my colleagues might disagree with the way I’ve chosen to lay out a Top 25 ranking. This isn’t a power ranking, nor is it a prediction of which teams will be the best at the end of the year. It’s a résumé ranking. What have you actually done on the football field this season? I don’t care how many 5-star recruits you have or how much you spent on your transfer class or how large your trophy case is.

What have you done for me lately?

25. BYU (3-0)

BEST WIN: 34-13 at East Carolina

BYU lost its starting quarterback in the summer and has outscored its first 3 opponents a combined 130-16. According to Game on Paper, the Cougars are fifth nationally in net EPA per play. The defense leads the nation after 4 weeks, allowing just 3.5 yards per play. The offense is also top-25 in per-play efficiency.

24. Michigan (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten)

BEST WIN: 30-27 at Nebraska

Michigan lost by 11 in Norman but the game was tighter than that margin would otherwise indicate. The Wolverines have responded to that defeat by pummeling Central Michigan and holding off a much-improved Nebraska team in Lincoln. CMU and New Mexico are both terrible, but Michigan has played 4 FBS opponents to start and 2 of those games were on the road against SP+ top-20 teams.

23. Alabama (2-1)

BEST WIN: 38-14 vs. Wisconsin

Alabama looked horrid against Florida State, but in the weeks since, it has beaten a Big Ten team by 24 points and won a game against another FBS team 73-0.

22. South Florida (3-1)

BEST WIN: 18-16 at Florida

The Gators have looked like hot garbage for weeks, but this is the same team that Miami coach Mario Cristobal just said was one of the most talented teams he has faced in 4 years with the Hurricanes. Florida ranks 12th in the 247Sports Talent Composite while USF ranks 61st. In no universe should the Bulls — a week after an upset of a top-25 team — walk into The Swamp and go toe-to-toe with Florida. But they did. And they responded to a deflating loss to Miami by hammering a South Carolina State team the Gamecocks struggled with.

21. TCU (3-0)

BEST WIN: 35-24 vs. SMU

The Horned Frogs are 20th in Kelley Ford’s “most deserving” ranking and 21st in Bill Connelly’s SP+ résumé ranking. Quarterback Josh Hoover is eighth nationally in Total QBR and 13th in yards per pass attempt. This team is a player in the Big 12 title race.

20. Memphis (4-0)

BEST WIN: 32-31 vs. Arkansas

The Tigers trailed 28-17 at the half against Arkansas and came back to win. The victory was the Tigers’ fourth consecutive win over a power conference opponent. The Memphis offense is 13th nationally in opponent-adjusted EPA per play.

19. Tennessee (3-1, 0-1 SEC)

BEST WIN: 45-26 vs. Syracuse

The Vols get the distinction as the highest-ranked team with a loss. Tennessee is above 3 unbeaten teams. Why? The Vols pounded a 3-1 Syracuse team on a neutral field, and the only loss came in overtime to Georgia in a game where UT missed a field goal at the end of regulation that would have won the game. Tennessee is off to a historic offensive start.

18. Penn State (3-0)

BEST WIN: 46-11 win vs. Nevada

Penn State has played 3 games, all of them at home. The 2 FBS opponents rank 120th and 123rd in SP+. The FCS opponent is 1-2 and has given up 50 points in its last 2 games. Penn State is 14th in game control, according to ESPN’s FPI, but it’s hard to care too much about what we’ve seen.

17. Mississippi State (4-0)

BEST WIN: 24-20 vs. Arizona State

Mississippi State is 4-0 for the first time since 2014. Since upsetting Arizona State in Week 2, the Bulldogs have hit the accelerator, outscoring their last 2 opponents 101-10 while averaging 7.8 yards per play.

16. Georgia Tech (4-0, 1-0 ACC)

BEST WIN: 24-21 vs. Clemson

Georgia Tech has a road win over another power conference team in its opener and a win over Clemson. I’m still not sure what to make of Clemson; the Tigers have been horrible to open the season, but this was a unanimous top-10 team in the preseason because of the talent on the roster. One could make the argument that, judging off what the Tigers have been, the home win for Georgia Tech isn’t all that more impressive than the road win at Colorado.

15. USC (4-0, 2-0 B1G)

BEST WIN: 45-31 vs. Michigan State

USC is unbeaten, already has a conference win on the road, and has absolutely demolished its opponents. Per Game on Paper, only Oregon has been better against its schedule. The Trojans are second nationally in schedule-adjusted net EPA per play. USC is also seventh nationally in net success rate. Though Purdue and Michigan State are lower-level Big Ten teams, USC gets marks for statistically dominating games. It also has the best quarterback in the country by QBR.

14. Iowa State (4-0, 1-0 Big 12)

BEST WIN: 16-13 vs. Iowa

If you fly overseas to play in Week 0, then return home and play 3 straight weeks, I’m going to value a 4-0 record regardless of who those wins were against. Now, if the overseas game is against a conference opponent, I’m going to value the win regardless of how it looked. And that 24-21 win over Kansas State isn’t even the Cyclones’ best victory.

13. Texas Tech (4-0, 1-0 Big 12)

BEST WIN: 34-10 at Utah

The Red Raiders have certainly gotten their money’s worth. Texas Tech is No. 5 in net success rate, per Game on Paper. It leads the nation in game control, a metric created by ESPN. It has outscored its opposition 208-45. Tech was in a different class from Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Kent State. The resounding victory in Salt Lake City validated the start. This team appears to be for real, at least relative to the rest of the Big 12.

12. LSU (4-0, 1-0 SEC)

BEST WIN: 17-10 at Clemson

LSU has a road win in a night environment at Clemson, and it has a home win over Florida. While the offense has been pretty poor against FBS competition, playing 2 high-level power conference opponents in the first 3 weeks of a season doesn’t always lend itself to smooth operations. And if quarterback Garrett Nussmeier has been limited by an injury, LSU isn’t anywhere close to the peak of its power. We’ll see if the win over Clemson looks better as the season goes on. As things stand, LSU is significantly over-ranked in the AP Poll based on what we’ve seen.

11. Indiana (4-0, 1-0 B1G)

BEST WIN: 63-10 vs. Illinois

The Hoosiers are plus-186 on the scoreboard this season. The 3 nonconference opponents were pushovers. The Big Ten opener against Illinois was eye-opening. People liked the Illini. Don’t let them off the hook now if they’re switching up on that. This year’s Indiana team might be better than last year’s. A 53-point win over a top-10 team in conference play is wild. That was just the second time since 2000 a top-10 team lost by 50 in a regular-season game.

10. Mizzou (4-0, 1-0 SEC)

BEST WIN: 42-31 vs. Kansas

The Tigers are ninth in net success rate and ninth in schedule-adjusted net EPA per play. There was not a more impressive team anywhere in college football through the first 2 weeks of the season. Mizzou opened conference play with a win over South Carolina and now the CFP looks very much within reach.

9. Vanderbilt (4-0, 1-0 SEC)

BEST WIN: 31-7 at South Carolina

Vandy has faced 2 power conference opponents and 2 cupcakes. Against Charleston Southern and Georgia State, Vanderbilt has outscored the competition 115-24 and outgained the competition nearly 5 yards per play (8.6-3.7). Against Virginia Tech and South Carolina, Vandy is plus-48 on the scoreboard and plus-2.1 yards per play in net efficiency (6.8-4.7). The ‘Dores look awesome. They get a bump over Mizzou because Vandy has played both power conference opponents on the road and Mizzou hasn’t yet left home.

8. Ole Miss (4-0, 2-0 SEC)

BEST WIN: 41-35 vs. Arkansas

Arkansas is really good. The Razorbacks are 22nd in SP+ through Week 4. It feels important to make that distinction right off the bat. Though not really expected to contend for the SEC title, that’s a great win for Ole Miss to pick up this early in the season. The Rebels also have a road SEC win and a bludgeoning of Tulane. They also appear to have stumbled into a remarkable quarterback in Trinidad Chambliss.

7. Texas A&M (3-0)

BEST WIN: 41-40 at Notre Dame

Notre Dame is probably fine, but it opened the season with its 2 hardest games right off the bat. Even though the Irish are 1-2 on the season and not in this Top 25, winning in South Bend is still a massive achievement for Texas A&M. Notre Dame had a rest advantage and an extra week to prepare. Notre Dame had a lead at the end of the first quarter and led twice in the fourth quarter. Still, the Aggies won. Mike Elko gets his flowers for that.

6. Ohio State (3-0)

BEST WIN: 14-7 vs. Texas

Quarterback Julian Sayin made his first career start against one of the best defenses in college football, if not the best. Texas has its issues on offense, but the defense currently ranks second in the FBS in schedule-adjusted EPA per play faced. Even if Texas was overrated as the preseason No. 1, winning that game boosts an otherwise mediocre résumé. Texas had a month to prepare for the Buckeye offense. Ohio State won the duel with a magnificent defensive gameplan and a fourth-quarter touchdown toss from Sayin.

5. Oklahoma (4-0, 1-0 SEC)

BEST WIN: 24-13 vs. Michigan

The injury to quarterback John Mateer is devastating. The Sooners were trending toward what might have been a special season. But it’s not time to knock OU yet. Oklahoma has beaten Michigan and Auburn at home in a pair of grind-it-out battles. Oklahoma is the only team in the country with multiple wins over SP+ Top 25 teams. The Sooners have an elite defense and had an elite quarterback.

4. Florida State (3-0)

BEST WIN: 31-17 vs. Alabama

The Seminoles lead the country in scoring, averaging 58 points a game. A year ago, this 2-10 team managed 20 touchdowns all season. Through the first 3 games of the 2025 campaign, FSU has scored 24 touchdowns. The start — even against 2 truly horrible teams — has been outstanding. Beating the Crimson Tide handily in Tallahassee was a fabulous way to open the season. Following up that win with a 77-3 victory and a 66-10 victory solidified FSU as an offense to be reckoned with. FSU ranks third in schedule-adjusted net EPA per play, and fourth in net success rate.

3. Oregon (4-0, 1-0 B1G)

BEST WIN: 69-3 vs. Oklahoma State

Is Oklahoma State horrible? Probably. After losing at home to Tulsa and slipping to 83rd in SP+, the Cowboys fired their head coach. Is Oregon’s 69-3 win over Oklahoma State still hard to comprehend? You bet. Oregon had a 59-yard run and a 65-yard pass for touchdowns in the first 2 minutes of the game. It scored 28 points in the third quarter — 14 of them on pick-sixes — before calling off the onslaught in the fourth. Still, the result was the most lopsided defeat an Oklahoma State team had suffered in a century. You expect a team like Oregon to make mincemeat of bad teams outside the power conferences. Beating a Big 12 team, regardless of the context, by 66 points is absurd. And say what you will about the rest of the résumé; Oregon leads the nation in schedule-adjusted net EPA per play.

2. Georgia (3-0)

BEST WIN: 44-41 at Tennessee

Georgia did what it was supposed to in a 45-7 win over Marshall. Georgia won, though not as thoroughly as fans would have liked, against Austin Peay. The Bulldogs didn’t really shift out of neutral until the second quarter got rolling on Rocky Top. But once they did, wow. Georgia’s overtime win over Tennessee in Knoxville is the most impressive win any team has had through the first 4 weeks of the new season, given the circumstances. Georgia beat a top-flight SEC team in one of the toughest road environments to play in. The Dawgs looked like they were dead in the water, and they managed to turn things around on the fly.

1. Miami (4-0)

BEST WIN: 27-24 vs. Notre Dame

Since beating Notre Dame 27-24 in the rain to open the season, Miami has given up 2 defensive touchdowns in its last 3 games. The numbers don’t really bear this out (yet), but here’s a hot take: Miami has the best defensive front in college football. The Hurricanes have the second-best team pass-rushing grade from PFF, as well as the third-best run defense grade. Miami has given up some explosives, but very few have made it past the front 7. The Notre Dame win was impressive. The comprehensiveness of the South Florida win was impressive. The stranglehold of the Gators’ offense in the Florida win was impressive. The Gators managed only 141 yards of offense — their worst performance since 1999. They also went 0-of-13 on third down — the worst performance by any FBS team since 2022. Through 4 weeks, no one has shown more than Miami.