Dan Mullen releases Top 25 college football rankings after Week 4
It was an exciting Week 4 of college football with plenty of top 25 teams falling, causing a major shift in the rankings. Not only does that include the AP and Coaches polls, but also the top 25 of ESPN analyst Dan Mullen.
The former Mississippi State and Florida coach released his rankings Sunday afternoon via X. Although the top four teams from last week remained the same, there was a new No. 5.
Miami claimed that spot after yet another dominant win on the road against USF to improve to 4-0. Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward continues to make a case for himself as a Heisman Trophy candidate as their offense looks like one of the best in college football right now.
Miami moving up to No. 5 bumped Georgia down to No. 6 in Mullen’s rankings just two weeks after the Bulldogs were the No. 1 team. Utah also moved into the top 10 after a 22-19 road win against Oklahoma State, bumping Missouri down to the No. 11 spot.
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You can view the full top 25 from Dan Mullen below.
1. Ohio State
It took a while for the Buckeyes to get going Saturday against Marshall, as they were tied at 7 after one quarter before taking a 28-14 lead into halftime. But they locked in defensively in the second half to hold the Thundering Herd scoreless on their way to a 49-14 victory.
Ole Miss transfer Quinshon Judkins had his best game as a Buckeye as he rushed 14 times for 173 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Together with TreVeyon Henderson, who had 76 yards and two scores of his own, he helps form one of the best backfield duos in the country.
2. Texas
It was a highly anticipated week in Austin as former five-star Arch Manning made his first collegiate start. Filling in for an injured Quinn Ewers, he did not disappoint in leading the Longhorns to a 51-3 win against Louisiana-Monroe.
Manning wasn’t perfect by any means — he threw two interceptions — but he got the job done to finish 15-of-29 passing for 258 yards as well as two touchdowns. Texas opens SEC play next week against Mississippi State, and could be counting on Manning once again if Ewers is still unable to play.
3. Alabama
Alabama had a bye this past week and will return to action Saturday in a rematch of last season’s SEC Championship Game against Georgia. Playing in their first season under Kalen DeBoer following the retirement of Nick Saban, the Crimson Tide have cruised to a 3-0 start.
Alabama has scored at least 40 points in every game thus far, including a dominant 42-10 victory in Week 3 against Wisconsin. Quarterback Jalen Milroe has been outstanding thus far, as he ranks tied for fourth in the country with 14 total touchdowns.
4. Tennessee
Tennessee was more dominant than the final score suggests Saturday in a 25-15 road victory in the SEC opener against Oklahoma. The Vols at one point led 22-3 in the fourth quarter and forced three turnovers before allowing a couple of late touchdowns.
The offense has been among the best in the country this season behind Nico Iamaleava, ranking second in the FBS with 54.0 points per game. SEC play is only getting started, but Mullen believes Tennessee has already proven itself one of the three best teams in the conference.
5. Miami (FL)
The Hurricanes have scored 50 or more points in three of their four games this season and rank third in the country with 52.3 points per game. They again rolled to a 50-15 win against USF this past week in their final nonconference contest before ACC play.
Nobody looks better poised than they do to win the conference at the moment thanks to the stellar play of Ward this past month. The QB currently sits at No. 2 in the country with 1,439 passing yards and No. 1 with 14 passing touchdowns.
6. Georgia
Georgia has yet to lose a game, but is still feeling the effects of a close call against Kentucky in Week 3. The Bulldogs barely survived to pull out a 13-12 win in Lexington and not only dropped in Mullen’s rankings, but fell from No. 1 to No. 2 in the AP poll as well.
They had a bye this past week, which should have given coach Kirby Smart a chance to address some of their issues from that game. All will likely be forgiven and forgotten if they can manage to knock off Alabama this weekend.
7. Ole Miss
The hype was heavy in Oxford this offseason and so far it looks as if it was warranted. Ole Miss has faced a fairly easy schedule thus far, but with an average margin of victory of 49.5 points, it’s hard to argue against the results.
Jaxson Dart is the heartbeat of an offense that ranks No. 1 in scoring offense (55.0 points per game), as he leads the FBS with 1,554 yards passing along with 12 touchdowns to two interceptions. The Rebels play their first SEC game Saturday against Kentucky and figure to continue to put up big numbers.
8. Oregon
The Ducks fell one spot in Dan Mullen’s top 25 this week after they had a bye. They most recently earned a 49-14 victory against Oregon State in Week 3 as they totaled 546 yards of offense.
Transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel has been efficient through the first three games, completing 84% of his passes for 914 yards and six touchdowns to no interceptions. Oregon opens Big Ten play against UCLA next week as it looks to compete for the conference crown in its first season as a member.
9. Utah
The Utes were without starting quarterback Cam Rising on the road against Oklahoma State this past week, but it didn’t matter. Backup QB Isaac Wilson led them to a 22-19 victory in a game they controlled from start to finish.
The final score is a bit deceiving, as Utah held a 22-3 lead with only six minutes remaining before giving up a pair of late touchdowns. The Utes look like the frontrunner to win the Big 12 at the moment and should only get stronger once Rising returns from injury.
10. Penn State
Coming off of a scare against Bowling Green two weeks ago, Penn State used a bye to get right ahead of Week 4. The result was a 56-0 shutout victory against Kent State in which Drew Allar tossed for 309 yards and three scores.
The Nittany Lions have come short of a Big Ten title despite double digit wins in each of the past two seasons, but will look to change that this year. They open conference play against an Illinois team that is off to a surprising 4-0 start.
Dan Mullen’s Top 25: Nos. 11-25
11. Missouri
12. BYU
13. Louisville
14. Iowa State
15. Illinois
16. Pittsburgh
17. UCF
18. UNLV
19. Indiana
20. Washington State
21. James Madison
22. USC
23. Michigan
24. Oklahoma
25. Army
BYU went from unranked last week in Mullen’s top 25 all the way to No. 12 after a dominant 38-9 victory against Kansas State. That’s just one example of how quickly things can change this early in the season, and we’re likely to see plenty more shifts as conference play continues.