RADIO
Mike's grades for every top 25 college football team in Week 4, 2025. His Week 3 recap and grades for Texas, Indiana, Miami, LSU, Texas, and more.
College Football Report Card: Top 25 Teams
Each week, we are going to take a look at how each AP top 25 fared every week. We’ll also take a look at how the teams that I had ranked, which the AP did not, performed as well. Not all wins are created equal. Most teams are now in conference play, so the grading will be leveled out. A team will be graded a little more harshly if they struggle against a Group of 5 or FCS opponent.
Not Ranked: South Carolina
This week: L 20-29 at (23) Missouri
I still had South Carolina at 25th in my rankings after a loss at home to Vanderbilt. I took the injury to Sellers into account. Not all pollsters did, but the Gamecocks were still at 28th in the AP Poll. There was a lot to like about LaNorris Sellers in this one. He completed 18 out of 28 passes for 302 yards and a pair of touchdowns without a turnover. South Carolina’s inability to run the ball hindered the offense, and the inability to stop Missouri’s run game finally doomed them. The Tigers ran for 285 yards on the ground.
Grade: C. If it weren’t for Sellers, it would be a D.
Not Ranked: California
This week: L 0-34 at San Diego State
I had the Bears at 23rd in my poll after starting 3-0 for the third straight season. Beating a Power 4 team still means something at this point in the season. It appears that was the wrong decision. The Bears couldn’t do much of anything right. Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele had by far his worst game. He only completed 17 of 38 passes for 208 yards and two interceptions. The Aztecs racked up four sacks and scored two defensive touchdowns. The only bright spot for Cal was punter Michael Kern.
Grade: F
Not Ranked: Nebraska
This week: L 27-30 vs. (21) Michigan
I have had Nebraska in my rankings for the last couple of weeks. The Cornhuskers held their own against Michigan for much of the game, but their inability to stop the run or protect Dylan Raiola cost them the game. The offensive line didn’t play well. The defensive line was solid, and the secondary was excellent in coverage. Tackling was another story. Missed tackles resulted in long Michigan gains several times.
Dylan Raiola only made one mistake, and Jacory Barney Jr. was amazing. We knew it was going to be tough sledding against the Michigan defense. All things considered, the offense played well enough to win the game.
Grade: B-
Not Ranked: Tulane
This week: L 10-45 at (13) Mississippi
The Green Wave snuck into my top 20 thanks to wins over two Power 4 programs. They ran into a buzzsaw in Oxford this week. Trinidad Chambliss continued his meteoric rise against the Wave. The Tulane secondary did a solid job. Considering the talent discrepancies, Tulane did rather well…until they didn’t. The wheels fell off in the second half. The Wave couldn’t move the ball at all and has no answer for the Mississippi offense. Hero ball from Jake Retzlaff couldn’t save them this week. Retzlaff even got benched to try and give Tulane a spark, to no avail.
Grade: D
Not Ranked: South Florida
This week: W 63-14 vs. South Carolina State
I still had the Bulls ranked 12th in my rankings. Losing to Miami on the road is not a bad loss. The Bulls finally got a reprieve from the tough early schedule with a date against South Carolina State. This game was never in question. Bryum Brown only threw 20 passes. Four of them went for touchdowns. Chas Nimrod caught two more touchdowns and topped 100 receiving yards. On defense, Mac Harris returned an interception 93 yards for a touchdown.
Grade: A
Not Ranked: Mississippi State
This week: W 38-10 vs. Northern Illinois
I still had the Bulldogs ranked thanks to a win over Arizona State. They looked the part here, too. Blake Shapen had a pedestrian stat line, but he only threw 20 times. The Huskies are notorious for not giving up anything deep. We can give Shapen a pass since he didn’t make a mistake. I love South Alabama transfer Fluff Bothwell in this offense. He ran for 101 yards. The Bulldogs as a whole racked up 292 rushing yards. The defense held the Huskies to 268 yards of offense.
Grade: A-
25. USC
This week: W 45-31 vs. Michigan State
The USC offense was once again strong. Lincoln Riley’s best offenses at Oklahoma were built on a strong running game. He has finally done that at USC with Waymond Jordan and Eli Sanders. The duo ran for 247 yards on a good Michigan State defense. Jayden Maiava ran for two more touchdowns. Star receiver Makai Lemon also scored a rushing touchdown. Maiava threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns.
The defense was a bit of a sore spot. Aidan Chiles played very well in his homecoming (212 yards and three passing touchdowns). The USC run defense did a good job, but Chiles and Omari Kelly burned the USC defense deep a couple of times. Take it from an Oklahoma fan. This was the worst part about Lincoln Riley’s defenses. They take a lot of risks, which leads to a lot of long touchdowns for opposing teams.
Grade: B+
24. Notre Dame
This week: W 56-30 vs. Purdue
The Irish chewed up Purdue on the ground, running for 254 yards and five touchdowns. Jeremiyah Love had 157 yards and two touchdowns. Jadarian Price has nine carries for 74 yards and three scores. CJ Carr completed 10 of 12 passes for 223 yards and two scores. Even backup Kenny Minchey was stellar, completing seven of his eight passes. The defense? That was a differente story. Purdue scored 23 points by halftime. The second-string Notre Dame defense provided more resistance. The offense get an A+. The defense left something to be desired.
Grade: B+
23. Missouri
This week: W 29-20 vs. South Carolina
The running game was once again excellent. The Tigers completely shut down the South Carolina run game, including LaNorris Sellers. The Tigers were going to stop the run at all costs and force Sellers to beat them through the air. It was a valiant effort, but he and the Gamecocks fell short. Missouri ran for 285 yards, with Ahmad Hardy collecting 138 of those and a touchdown. Jamal Roberts added 76 more and a touchdown. It was a solid day for Beau Pribula, who threw for 171 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He also added 72 yards on the ground. WR Marquis Johnson made spectacular catches all game. The Missouri offense looked very good in this one.
Grade: A-
21. Auburn
This week: L 17-24 at (11) Oklahoma
Auburn’s offensive line couldn’t keep Oklahoma transfer Jackson Arnold upright. Arnold had a solid day in his return to Norman, throwing for 220 yards and a touchdown, but he was sacked 10 times in this one. Auburn only ran 13 times with their running backs, which is peculiar because they had some success doing so. Jeremiah Cobb ran six times for 61 yards. Damari Alston picked up 25 yards on seven carries.
The Auburn run defense was excellent. Oklahoma had just 32 yards on 26 carries. John Mateer was only sacked once, so it wasn’t sack yardage dragging down the rushing totals. The secondary got beaten a couple of times, but overall, the defense kept Auburn in the game despite its struggles on offense.
Grade: B- The grade would be higher if it weren’t for the offensive line.
21. Michigan
This week: W 30-27 at Nebraska
Justice Haynes truly is a man among boys. Haynes ran for 149 yards in 17 carries with another long touchdown run. He has at least 100 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown in all four of his games as a Wolverine. Bryce Underwood was held to just 105 passing yards by Nebraska, but he ran for 61 yards and a touchdown. The Michigan defense sacked Dylan Raiola seven times and forced two turnovers. They came up with the big plays when they had to.
Grade: B+
20. Vanderbilt
This week: W 70-21 vs. Georgia State
This was a statement. Vanderbilt hadn’t scored 70 points in a game since 1918, when they beat the Tennessee Athletic Council team 76-0. The Commodores only threw for one passing touchdown. Vandy scored one defensive touchdown and eight rushing touchdowns. I think even the ballboy got involved. Georgia State had some success through the air, but the Panthers were held to 32 yards rushing.
Grade: A
19. Indiana
This week: W 63-10 vs. (9) Illinois
Last year was not a fluke. Indiana is even better with Fernando Mendoza leading the offense. Mendoza completed 21 of 23 passes for 267 yards and five touchdowns. The Hoosiers racked up 312 rushing yards. The defense was dominant, holding Illinois to just two yards rushing on 20 carries. D’Angelo Ponds returned a punt for a touchdown. There is nothing that the Hoosiers couldn’t do against a supposed top 10 team. Total domination!
Grade: A+
18. Georgia Tech
This week: W 45-24 vs. Temple
Haynes King was efficient in the win. The Wreck ran for 307 yards and four touchdowns on 30 carries. The best part about the Georgia Tech offense was that it was able to rest King for contests when they’ll need him more. Evan Simon completed just 13 of his 32 pass attempts for 127 yards. Temple did gain some traction on the ground. It wasn’t a great defensive performance for Tech, but the offense made up for it.
Grade: A-
17. Texas Tech
This week: W 34-10 at (16) Utah
The Texas Tech defense was excellent in this game. They harassed Devon Dampier the entire game. He only threw for 162 yards and was picked off twice. The Red Raiders also recovered two fumbles. Behren Morton left the game with a concussion early in the second half. Backup Will Hammond came in, and that’s when the Texas Tech offense really took off! Hammond threw for 169 yards with only three incompletions. He threw for a pair of touchdowns and picked up 61 yards rushing. Morton threw for 142 yards and two picks.
Grade: A+
16. Utah
This week: L 10-34 vs. (17) Texas Tech
The Utah defense was strong as usual, but the offense was discombobulated throughout the day due to the Texas Tech defense. Tech abused the offensive line. Devon Dampier didn’t account for a touchdown and was picked off twice. You could tell that the Utah defense planned for Behren Morton. They did a very good job on him. Backup Will Hammond cracked the code of the Utah defense.
Grade: C-
15. Tennessee
This week: W 56-24 vs. UAB
Joey Aguilar threw for 218 yards and three touchdowns, but he was picked off once. Tennessee used the run game to control this. Jalen Kitna threw for 364 yards and two touchdowns in a losing effort. The Tennessee defense again left something to be desired. The offense was very solid, but UAB is not a good team on either side of the ball.
Grade: B+
14. Alabama
This week: BYE
Whoever is in charge of scheduling for Alabama is a genius. Scheduling a bye the week before the Georgia game is a good move. We know that Florida State is a stout team, so we can’t really treat that as a bad loss. The Tide have looked the part since.
Grade: A, for scheduling the bye the week before Georgia
13. Mississippi
This week: W 45-10 vs. Tulane
There was a lot of hype around Austin Simmons, but he’s not getting the job back. This offense was explosive once again under Trinidad Chambliss. Chambliss completed 17 of 27 passes for 307 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also led the team with 112 rushing yards. And most importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over again. Simmons turned the ball over four times in two games.
The Land Sharks defense got redemption here. They held Jake Retzlaff to just 56 yards passing on 17 attempts. Backup Brendan Sullivan wasn’t much better, only throwing for 48 yards on 12 attempts, but he did throw a touchdown. Tulane had the ground game going because this game didn’t get out of hand until the fourth quarter. The Wave ran for 178 yards, which was the only blemish on an otherwise exceptional day.
Grade: A
12. Iowa State
This week: BYE
The Cyclones must have felt like Carmen Sandiego. They went from Dublin to Ames, to Jonesboro, Arkansas, then back to Ames…all in less than a month. If anyone needed a rest, it was Iowa State.
Grade: B
11. Oklahoma
This week: W 24-17 vs. (22) Auburn
The Oklahoma defense put on a clinic. They set a school record by sacking former Sooner Jackson Arnold 10 times. Auburn was also held to 67 yards rushing. The lack of a run game is going to hurt the Sooners at some point, but Isaiah Sategna III burst onto the scene with 127 yards on nine receptions. The receiving corps has been solid all season. John Mateer was kept mostly under wraps by Auburn, but he still threw for 271 yards and ran for the game-winning touchdown with about five minutes left. The defense was excellent. The offense did a good job of taking care of the ball, but the offensive line had trouble with Auburn.
Grade: A-
10. Texas A&M
This week: BYE
The Aggies start conference play by hosting Auburn this week.
9. Illinois
This week: L 10-63 at Indiana
Illinois only ran for two yards, but Luke Altmyer was solid. His only touchdown came on the opening drive, then the wheels came completely off. Illinois allowed 579 yards of offense and even allowed a touchdown on a punt return. The Illini couldn’t stop anything, and did absolutely nothing on the Hoosier defense after the first drive. This was an ugly, ugly game for Illinois.
Grade: F
8. Texas
This week: W 55-0 vs. Sam Houston
This is where Arch got his groove back. Then again, Sam Houston is one of the worst offensive and defensive teams in FBS. Still, after Arch Manning’s terrible game last week, this was a welcome sight for Texas fans. Manning completed 18 of 21 passes for three touchdowns and ran for two more. Texas racked up 607 yards of offense while allowing just 113 to Sam Houston. The only thing Texas did wrong in this game was Manning taunting a defensive player after he ran for a touchdown.
Grade: A+
7. Florida State
This week: W 66-10 vs. Kent State
We all know that Kent is awful, but Florida State made sure everyone knew it. The Seminoles set a school record with 498 rushing yards on Kent…and no single player had over 100 yards. Thomas Castellanos left the game in the second quarter after rolling his ankle and didn’t return, but he is expected to play against Virginia on Friday. Backup Kevin Sperry played pretty well. The only blemish was the Seminoles giving up a touchdown to Kent in the first quarter. That’s okay…they scored five of their own in said quarter.
Grade: A+
6. Oregon
This week: W 41-7 vs. Oregon State
The Ducks held Maalik Murphy to just 68 passing yards as he completed just five of his 18 passes. The Beavers only mustered 67 rushing yards. Oregon held its little brother to 147 yards of total offense. Meanwhile, Dante Moore threw for 305 yards and four touchdowns. This was domination.
Grade: A+
5. Georgia
This week: BYE
What’s good for the Bama is good for the Georgia. The Bulldogs also get a bye before welcoming Alabama on Saturday night.
Grade: A
4. Miami (FL)
This week: W 26-7 vs. Florida
The Gators hung around for a while thanks to defense, but the Miami defense dominated the Florida offense. DJ Lagway didn’t throw an interception, but he was held to 61 yards passing on 12-for-23 passing. The Gators only managed 80 yards rushing. The normally stout Florida defense did a good job on Carson Beck, holding him to 160 passing yards and no touchdowns with one interception. However, Mark Fletcher Jr. racked up 116 rushing yards, and North Dakota State transfer CharMar Brown ran for 80 yards. The two combined for three touchdowns.
Grade: A
3. LSU
This week: W 56-10 vs. Southeast Louisiana
We didn’t learn much about LSU here. Garrett Nussmeier threw 31 times, completing 25 of them for 273 yards and three touchdowns. Backup Michael Van Buren Jr. completed 10 of 12 passes for 122 yards and a score. Still. LSU only managed 135 rushing yards on 35 carries. The defense held the Lions to 204 yards of offense, but the lack of a running game is a bit concerning and lowers the grade.
Grade: B+
2. Penn State
This week: BYE
Hey, uh, hasn’t Penn State been on a bye all season? Their non-conference schedule would make 2004 Auburn blush. Scheduling a bye before Oregon was brilliant, but it may not matter.
Grade: A
1. Ohio State
This week: BYE
The Buckeyes will at least be well-rested when they head to Seattle for some sailgating on Saturday afternoon.
