5 College Football Programs That Should Be Worried After Week 4

The calendar is beginning to inch towards October, and most teams have now played four games, with narratives starting to emerge. Which five teams should be worried after four weeks of the 2025 college football season?

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1. Wisconsin Badgers

The Wisconsin Badgers are a repeat offender on this list, and things are not getting any better in Madison after a disastrous 27-10 home loss to the Maryland Terrapins. Camp Randall Stadium was mostly empty during the second half, and “Fire Fickell” chants rang out from the student section. The Wisconsin athletic director offered support for Luke Fickell after the game, and it’s not difficult to see why: Fickell has a massive buyout (reportedly $38 million) that makes it incredibly difficult for the school to move on from him. The offense has not shown any signs of progress during Fickell’s tenure, and Wisconsin still has games against five ranked teams left on the schedule.

2. South Carolina Gamecocks

This was supposed to be a season that saw Shane Beamer’s South Carolina squad compete for a College Football Playoff bid and quarterback LaNorris Sellers be a contender for the Heisman Trophy. After just four weeks, the Gamecocks are last-place in the SEC at 0-2, and they have scored a total of 27 points against conference foes Missouri and Vanderbilt. South Carolina cannot run the ball at all, and the offensive line appears to have taken a step back. It’s fair to call Sellers’ campaign a disappointment thus far as well. The Gamecocks get Kentucky this week, but they follow that with five straight games against ranked foes. The season-ending Palmetto Bowl looks like a sad affair this season.

3. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Nebraska is not in nearly as bad a spot as the first two teams on this list, and they still should have a nice season. Still, the Cornhuskers missed a golden opportunity at home, and lingering issues about the toughness and lines of scrimmage cropped up against Michigan as the Wolverines ran for 290 yards and 9.4 yards per rush in Lincoln. Nebraska was only 2-13 on third down, and they lost in front of a charged-up crowd that was starved for a win despite gaining 203 yards more than Michigan did through the air. Nebraska has a very manageable schedule, but they really needed to beat Michigan to have a chance at an at-large bid to the College Football Playoff. The Huskers will be fine under Matt Rhule, but this was a significant missed opportunity.

4. Arkansas Razorbacks

Arkansas has a fantastic talent at quarterback in Taylen Green, but he is being wasted with a porous defense and rotten late-game luck. The Razorbacks were driving for a game-winning touchdown against the Ole Miss Rebels before a lost fumble cost them a chance for the win. They followed that up by blowing a lead against the Memphis Tigers, and they fell to 2-2 despite gaining 500 yards! Arkansas has the talent to be a pretty good team, but it continues to shoot itself in the foot, and Sam Pittman’s tenure is on life support. 

5. Michigan State Spartans

The Michigan State Spartans are 3-1, but concern about their defense in Jonathan Smith’s second season is warranted. The Spartans gave up 40 points to Boston College, and the Eagles threw for 390 yards, but have been poor since. They then went on the road to Los Angeles, and the USC Trojans ran for 289 yards and a total of 523 yards. The Trojans had 11 penalties for 82 yards and still handled the Spartans with relative ease. MSU still has games remaining at Nebraska, IU, Iowa, and Minnesota, plus home games with Michigan and Penn State. If the defense doesn’t improve quickly, Michigan State will struggle to go bowling.

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