Ranking the 10 Biggest College Football Winners of September

With the first month of the college football season behind us, the landscape across the nation is beginning to take shape. Between top contenders, College Football Playoff hopefuls, and teams just looking to clinch a bowl game, here’s a look at the top winners from September.

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1) Oregon Ducks

The Oregon Ducks fell short of a perfect season last year after finishing 13-1. Despite losing both their starting quarterback and running back to the NFL Draft, Dan Lanning has demonstrated that Oregon is a team that will continue to contend in the Big Ten moving forward. He will also pose a real threat to bring the National Championships back to Eugene, Oregon. The Ducks finished September with a perfect 5-0 record, including a massive overtime win over Penn State in Week 5. As of now, Oregon appears to be one of, if not the biggest, winners from September.

2) Ole Miss Rebels

Another team that entered the season with something to prove after losing their starting quarterback to the NFL Draft was the Ole Miss Rebels. Lane Kiffin proved to be aggressive in the transfer portal this offseason, and so far, his roster construction has paid huge dividends. The Rebels look like a top contender, and following their statement win against No. 4 LSU in Week 5, Ole Miss may be the team to beat in the SEC moving forward.

3) Joey Aguilar/Tennessee Volunteers

Everyone knows about the offseason saga between Nico Iamaleava and the Tennessee Volunteers. A sour relationship led the former five-star quarterback to enter the transfer portal, forcing the Vols to pivot and find a new starting quarterback just before the season. Iamaleava opted to transfer to UCLA, where his arrival undoubtedly put the writing on the wall for Joey Aguilar to re-enter the portal after landing with the Bruins earlier in the offseason. Aguilar’s misfortune quickly turned into a blessing after he landed with Josh Heupel in Tennessee. Fast forward to now, Aguilar leads one of the most dynamic offenses in football, while UCLA and Iamaleava have yet to win a game.

4) SEC Conference

There’s no denying that nearly every season, the SEC conference puts forth some of the most talented teams. Looking back at last year’s College Football Playoff, three of the 12 teams in the bracket were SEC squads, with several teams on the bubble also coming from the same conference. Now, with the new rule change, there could be even more in the mix this season. Following September, five of the top ten teams in the AP Top 25 are from the SEC, and nine are in the top 20 alone. That said, it’s safe to say the SEC conference has a strong month.

5) Big Ten Conference

Similar to the SEC, the Big Ten is another top conference that boasts the luxury of being represented by some of the nation’s top teams. With Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, and Indiana, the Big Ten has four squads in the top ten of the AP Top 25, including the No. 1 and No. 2 teams. Following a strong month of December, it’s pretty evident that the teams to beat are located in the Big Ten conference, even if they don’t share the same number of Top 25 squads as the SEC.

6) American Conference

Courtesy of the College Football Playoff rules requiring the highest-ranked conference champion from the Group of Six to be involved in the College Football Playoff, at least one non-Power Four team is guaranteed the chance to compete in the postseason. Last year, the Mountain West was represented by Boise State, giving other squads the motivation to play with more purpose moving forward. So far this season, the G6 conference that stands out the most is the American Conference. Looking at squads like Navy, Memphis, North Texas, Tulane, and South Florida, who share a combined record of 21-2, the American Conference is making noise and providing a real threat to be considered for a spot in the CFP if they continue playing at a high level.

7) Texas Tech Red Raiders

Texas Tech is arguably the team that has proven to be the most aggressive in the transfer portal this offseason. Head coach Joey McGuire opened up the checkbook and made it clear from the jump that his primary goal was turning his team into a contender in not only the Big 12, but the nation. Through five weeks, TTU has proven itself with a 4-0 record, sitting as the front-runner at No. 11 overall in the AP Top 25 and representing the conference in the postseason as of today.

8) Oklahoma Sooners

Oklahoma needed to make significant changes after its disastrous last season in the Sooners’ first year in the SEC conference. Brent Venables’s seat was growing hotter by the minute, and a significant reason for this was the team’s lack of direction offensively, with no consistency at quarterback and underwhelming play on defense. However, through the transfer portal and a strong recruiting class, OU has seemingly turned things around through September, sitting in the top five with a 4-0 record. Star quarterback John Mateer is a big reason why, but Venables’s ability to rebuild the roster can’t be overlooked.

9) Coaching Agents

Head coaches getting fired early in the season is never a good thing, unless you’re a coaching candidate looking for a new gig or a coaching agent looking for new clients. So far, through September, we’ve seen three (!!) Power Four coaches have been fired, with DeShaun Foster, Mike Gundy, and, most recently, Sam Pittman being terminated over the last few weeks. For agents, the recent additions to the coaching pool, huge names like Gundy, are a huge win.

10) Kalen DeBoer 

Kalen DeBoer had an immense amount of weight on his shoulders entering the season, and following the Week 1 loss for Alabama, it seemed like the head coach could be on the verge of getting canned. However, the offensive guru didn’t waver and instead stayed the course, coaching in the way he felt could win games. Now, the Crimson Tide looks like one of the hottest teams in the nation with DeBoer’s guys finally coming around and proving that he can build a contending roster in the SEC, at least considering what recent weeks have shown. That said, through September, DeBoer has to be one of the biggest winners.

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