10 Most Overrated Teams in College Football Right Now

The calendar now reads mid-October, and almost every team has played half of the college football season. There is still much to unfold, but we can already make several observations about which teams are overhyped and overrated.

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1. No. 5 Ole Miss Rebels

The Ole Miss Rebels are unbeaten, and they deserve to be in the top ten. However, their resume does have some holes. Lane Kiffin’s team beat Kentucky by seven points, Arkansas by six points, and LSU by five points in a close game at home. The big red flag emerged last Saturday as Ole Miss struggled mightily against a pedestrian Washington State team and managed to survive with a 24-21 victory. We’ll find out a whole lot more in the next two weeks as they travel to Georgia and Oklahoma for back-to-back games that will probably define this campaign for the Rebels.

Week 8: Ole Miss at Georgia (-6.5)

2. No. 9 Georgia Bulldogs

The Georgia Bulldogs beat the Auburn Tigers on the road in a very controversial contest that featured some truly head-scratching officiating decisions. The 20-10 victory counts as a win, but the performance was far from impressive, and the Bulldogs continue to have issues pressuring the quarterback. The bigger problem is probably that it becomes clearer with each passing week that quarterback Gunner Stockton is not a true difference-maker at the game’s most crucial position. Without a truly dominant defense, Stockton needs to elevate the offense, which is not happening. Credit to Georgia for surviving in Auburn, but the Bulldogs don’t look like a top ten team.

Week 8: Ole Miss at Georgia (-6.5)

3. No. 10 LSU Tigers

What is propping up the LSU Tigers’ resume as a top ten team? They beat South Carolina 20-10 in a lackluster affair in Baton Rouge, and the defense continues to shine. However, the offense is not showing improvement. Without a healthy Garrett Nussmeier, this team is not a contender. LSU’s best win continues to be the road win at Clemson, but they were thoroughly outplayed at Ole Miss. They will get a chance to prove this list wrong in the next three games as they take on Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, and Alabama.

Week 8: LSU at Vanderbilt (-2.5)

4. No. 12 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are not going to be able to prove themselves until the regular-season finale against the Georgia Bulldogs. That’s not the fault of Brent Key and the Yellow Jackets, but it is a reality. They have a narrow win against Colorado, a three-point escape at home against Clemson, a very fortunate win at Wake Forest, and now a 15-point win over Virginia Tech. So, the best win is a victory on a last-second field goal over a .500 Clemson team. There are teams below them that have proven more, and if you don’t believe me, look at the line for their game at Duke.

Week 8: Georgia Tech at Duke (-2.5)

5. No. 13 Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Everyone knew how this was going to play out. Notre Dame fell to 0-2 with losses to Miami and Texas A&M (at home) and slipped out of the top 25. The remainder of the schedule offered ample opportunities to right the ship against subpar competition, and the Fighting Irish have enough brand credibility to climb back up as other teams fall. Lo and behold, that is precisely what has happened. Notre Dame struggled against North Carolina State before pulling away, and they improved to 4-2 ahead of an intriguing clash against USC. That’s the only real opportunity Notre Dame has to get a quasi-quality win this season and hope that 10-2 is good enough to get them into the College Football Playoff.

Week 8: USC at Notre Dame (-7.5)

6. No. 14 Oklahoma Sooners

Last week, I included Oklahoma on the list of overrated teams with the caveat that it only applied if quarterback John Mateer was not 100% healthy. After watching the Oklahoma Sooners get dismantled by rival Texas and dropping to No. 14, I repeat that mantra. The Sooners are overrated if Mateer continues looking unhealthy. Don’t look now, but the Sooners are now entering the stretch of schedule that could prove fatal to their College Football Playoff hopes and could thrust Brent Venables right back onto the hot seat. Five of the last six games are against top 16 teams, and the one game not included in that is this Saturday at South Carolina.

Week 8: Oklahoma (-4.5) at South Carolina

7. No. 15 BYU Cougars

I understand why BYU is rising in the rankings. They are unbeaten, and that deserves some respect, but the Cougars would not be favored against at least 30 other teams on a neutral field and that makes them decidedly overrated at No. 15. The Cougars are 3-0 in Big 12 play but the wins are over Colorado 24-21, West Virginia 38-24 and then Arizona 33-27 in overtime. They might not have a single victory over a bowl team yet. The good news for BYU? They get a chance to prove themselves starting right now against Utah at home, with a trip to Texas Tech looming.

Week 8: Utah at BYU (+3.5)

8. No. 20 USC Trojans

How quickly we forget. The USC Trojans are 5-1 after an impressive win over Michigan, and they should absolutely be ranked. However, the one loss came at the hands of Illinois. The Illini committed the sin of playing No. 3 Indiana and No. 1 Ohio State, resulting in two losses, but they are now unranked, while USC remains at No. 20. Illinois beat USC just two weeks ago. Why are the Trojans now significantly ahead of Illinois?

Week 8: USC (+7.5) at Notre Dame

9. No. 24 Cincinnati Bearcats

The Cincinnati Bearcats deserve a lot of credit for rebounding after an opening week defeat. They have won five games in a row and are 5-1 with wins over Kansas, Iowa State, and UCF included. The Bearcats have climbed to No. 24, one spot ahead of another 5-1 team, the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Do you remember who Cincinnati’s loss was to? Apparently, most voters do not. Cincinnati lost to Nebraska on a neutral field in Kansas City; both teams are 5-1 with no signature victories, and yet Cincinnati is one spot ahead of Nebraska.

Week 8: Cincinnati (-21.5) at Oklahoma State

10. Receiving Votes – Michigan Wolverines

The Michigan Wolverines are 4-2 with losses to Oklahoma and USC. The problem is that we are supposed to know at least one constant for the Wolverines: they would be the tougher team at the line of scrimmage and control the ground game. Against USC, the Wolverines were dominated up front, and the Trojans ran all over them. If Michigan cannot control the running game, its receivers are nowhere near good enough to make up the difference against good opposition, so where does Michigan turn? They had no answers in the 31-13 defeat, and the pressure is mounting on Sherrone Moore.

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