10 Most Overrated Teams in College Football Right Now
TJ Inman
Host · Writer
We have reached mid-November, and the end of the regular season is sadly in sight. There is still much to unfold, but we can already make several observations about which teams are overhyped and overrated.
1. No. 6 Oregon Ducks
The Oregon Ducks survived a trip to Kinnick Stadium and survived some very adverse conditions, escaping with a last-second field goal victory and improving to 8-1. It was a game that reminded everyone of the best and worst of the Big Ten West “glory days,” and Oregon found a way to win. The Ducks followed that up with a blowout win over Minnesota, another former Big Ten West squad. They still have to play USC and Washington, so a College Football Playoff bid is not guaranteed, but the Ducks are in a great position to make the field and secure a home game. The reason Oregon might currently be overrated is that a vicious injury bug is ravaging the roster. If some of the injured players are limited or unable to return, the Ducks are not a top ten team.
Week 13: USC at Oregon (-9.5)
2. No. 9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Notre Dame keeps winning and, as a result, keeps rising in the rankings. The Irish have an excellent win over USC, 34-24 in South Bend, but what is their second-best victory? Is it North Carolina State at home? Navy with the backup quarterback, again in South Bend? Arkansas before they fired Sam Pittman? At a Pittsburgh team that still has not beaten a quality opponent? There’s not much meat on the resume, and the loss to Miami doesn’t look great either. Notre Dame is good, particularly on offense, but its resume is not that of a top-ten team.
Week 13: Syracuse at Notre Dame (-35.5)
3. No. 11 BYU Cougars
The BYU Cougars were being propped up by their undefeated record, but the lone impressive victory of any sort was against the Utah Utes in Provo. Beyond that, the Cougars had no ranked wins, and the Texas Tech defense thoroughly dismantled them as the Red Raiders hammered them 29-7. Now with one loss, BYU does not have a resume that should have them anywhere near the top ten. Beating a TCU team in free-fall mode does nothing to change that, but they should get another chance to take on Texas Tech in the Big 12 Championship Game as a “prove it" game with the College Football Playoff on the line.
Week 13: BYU (-2.5) at Cincinnati
4. No. 12 Vanderbilt Commodores
The Vanderbilt Commodores enjoyed a bye week this past Saturday and climbed in the rankings to No. 12. Examining the 8-2 record is interesting because they have three wins over ranked teams but those three wins have come against South Carolina (a team that is now at the bottom of the SEC), LSU (before they fired Brian Kelly) and Missouri (no longer ranked). They lost to Alabama by 16 points and lost at Texas, a team that just got humbled by Georgia. However, if the Commodores can beat Kentucky and then win at Tennessee, they are likely to make the College Football Playoff.
Week 13: Kentucky at Vanderbilt (-9.5)
5. No. 14 Miami Hurricanes
Miami is creeping back up the rankings thanks to the losses of others, but outside of the win over Notre Dame, what do the Hurricanes have on their resume? Mario Cristobal’s acumen as a head coach continues to be questioned. Miami probably will not be playing in the ACC Championship Game, and they’ll need some help to sniff the playoff. The win over Notre Dame is really the only thing propping up their resume. That said, if they can take care of business down the stretch, they will have a shot to sneak in and probably be a road team that no one wants to see.
6. No. 15 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are 9-1 and in the driver’s seat to take on Virginia in the ACC Championship Game, but have been far from impressive, and there is a distinctive lack of quality wins on the resume. The Yellow Jackets lost to North Carolina State, allowing 48 points, and needed a late rally to get past last-place Boston College, prevailing 36-34. If Georgia Tech is “for real”, they’ll prove it in the next two weeks with a game against Pitt and then the rivalry contest with Georgia to close the regular season.
Week 13: Pittsburgh at Georgia Tech (-2.5)
7. No. 17 Texas Longhorns
The Texas Longhorns are 7-3 and still ranked in the top 20 after getting obliterated by the Georgia Bulldogs in the second half in Athens. Texas has the neutral-field win over Oklahoma with a banged-up quarterback, a three-point home victory over Vanderbilt, plus losses at Ohio State and Georgia, and an ugly road defeat to the Florida Gators. If the Longhorns beat Arkansas and Texas A&M, do they make the playoff field at 9-3?
Week 13: Arkansas at Texas (-10.5)
8. No. 18 Michigan Wolverines
The Michigan Wolverines improved to 8-2, but goodness gracious, they get absolutely no style points, and the past three games have not been impressive. The Wolverines turned the ball over five times against Northwestern and escaped with a 24-22 win at Wrigley Field. That followed an ugly 21-16 victory over Purdue and an unconvincing 31-20 win over Michigan State. Those final two opponents have a combined Big Ten record of 0-15. Michigan really needs to sharpen its form before battling Ohio State on November 29.
9. No. 20 Tennessee Volunteers
Why is Tennessee ranked? Beyond being in the SEC and having three “quality losses”, the Volunteers do not have any impressive victories. The wins are over Syracuse, ETSU, UAB (before firing Trent Dilfer), Mississippi State, Arkansas (before firing Sam Pittman), and Kentucky. None of those teams is going to a bowl game.
Week 13: Tennessee (-3.5) at Florida
10. No. 23 Missouri Tigers
The Missouri Tigers climbed back into the rankings after beating the Mississippi State Bulldogs. They have zero wins over ranked opponents this season, and the best victory is probably a six-point win at Auburn before the Tigers fired Hugh Freeze and changed quarterbacks. It’s possible that Missouri has not beaten a single team that will end up in a bowl game this season. They now try to play spoiler as they take on Oklahoma in Norman this Saturday.
Week 13: Missouri at Oklahoma (-8.5)
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