5 College Football Programs That Should Be Worried After Week 9
TJ Inman
Host · Writer
The season is more than half over, and clear trends and narratives have emerged. Which five teams should be worried after eight weeks of the 2025 college football season?
1. South Florida Bulls
The South Florida Bulls have a veteran team, and most of the regular contributors are seniors who will be moving on after this season. The shot at the College Football Playoff was right in front of them as they led 31-17 at Memphis with the game entering the fourth quarter. According to ESPN’s Win Probability statistic, the Bulls were 92% likely to win the contest and improve to 7-1 with an unbeaten record in the American Athletic Conference. If the story ended there, USF would not be on this list. Memphis scored the game’s final 17 points and won 34-31, making USF’s bid for the CFP a real long shot. Worse yet, there are many jobs open, and head coach Alex Golesh is almost certainly going to leave for another school, along with several players. South Florida is likely headed for a major rebuild after the crushing loss.
2. Oklahoma Sooners
The bottom might be falling out in Norman. Entering the 2025 season, there was hope and optimism surrounding the Oklahoma Sooners program, as quarterback John Mateer arrived alongside new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle. There was a concern: the schedule looked brutally difficult. The Sooners got off to a roaring start at 5-0, and they climbed into the top ten, but Mateer got hurt, and Oklahoma lost to bitter rival Texas. Oklahoma rebounded with a win at South Carolina, but the loss on Saturday afternoon at home against Ole Miss puts OU’s back against the wall with three games remaining against ranked teams. It is conceivable that they’d go from top ten to firing their head coach in the span of a month.
Week 10: Oklahoma at Tennessee (-3.5)
3. Illinois Fighting Illini
This was supposed to be the breakthrough year for the Illinois Fighting Illini. The bulk of the team that nearly made the College Football Playoff in 2024 and knocked off South Carolina to close the season with all kinds of momentum returned to Champaign, and Bret Bielema was not shy about the expectations he had for his team in this campaign. Illinois was in the top ten when they went to Bloomington, but the Hoosiers bludgeoned them. The Illini rebounded to knock off USC and won at Purdue before facing another elite test as No. 1 Ohio State came to town. The Buckeyes handled Illinois with ease, but losses to the No. 2 and No. 1 teams in the country were nothing to be too upset about, as the schedule lightened up following this past weekend’s trip to Seattle. The Fighting Illini failed another test against a good team as the defense cratered in the 42-25 defeat at Washington. Illinois has a veteran team with a multi-year starter at quarterback that will be gone after this season, and the best they can do now is win nine games. The campaign will certainly end as a disappointment, and a reset is on the way. This might be the best shot Bielema had at Illinois.
Week 10: Rutgers at Illinois (-12.5)
4. Mississippi State Bulldogs
The Mississippi State Bulldogs are undoubtedly moving in the right direction. After an awful season in 2024, Jeff Lebby’s first with the program, the Bulldogs have improved significantly in 2025 and are battling and competitive. The concern now is whether or not this team and coaching staff can figure out how to close out games. They lost close against Tennessee, had the Florida Gators beat before blowing it and losing 23-21, and then this past Saturday was the toughest to take of them all as they surrendered a three-score lead in the game’s final ten minutes and fell to Texas in overtime. Mississippi State scored 38 points against the vaunted Texas defense and still lost. Lebby is still looking for his first SEC win as a head coach, and they finish the year with games at Arkansas and Missouri and at home against Georgia and Ole Miss. If they don’t beat the Hogs in Fayetteville, when will that win come?
Week 10: Mississippi State at Arkansas (-4.5)
5. Missouri Tigers
The Missouri Tigers finish this list of concerned teams for multiple reasons. First and foremost, the Tigers failed to get going on offense and lost 17-10 to Vanderbilt. The game was a pivotal swing game in the College Football Playoff race, and Missouri is now a long shot to make the field. Second, Missouri starting quarterback Beau Pribula exited the game on a cart and is likely to miss the bulk of the remaining games this season. Finally, there are several intriguing jobs available, and head coach Eli Drinkwitz is appearing as a potential candidate for seemingly each one. Missouri will either need to increase Drinkwitz’s salary with a huge raise as they also try to rebound from what could be a disappointing season (they still play Texas A&M and Oklahoma) or likely find themselves a new head coach.
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