It's October now, no matter what the weather outside tells you. That means we are now late enough in the season that my rankings start to stabilize a bit more. There will still be some big swings for individual teams, but for the most part, improvement and regression will be more incremental.
We're also at the point of the season where I once again hammer you over the head with what makes The Bottom 25 Championship so much more difficult to win than the College Football Playoff. After five weeks of football, there are 18 undefeated teams remaining. Do you know how many winless teams are left?
Three. That's it. There are six times as many undefeated teams as there are winless teams right now. You tell me which one is the more difficult accomplishment.
Let's find out where those three winless teams rank in this week's Bottom 25.
| Team | Name | Status | News |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 25. Tennessee | 1-3 | I love when fanbases that aren't accustomed to seeing their teams in The Bottom 25 jump on board the idea rather than yell at me for DISRESPECTING their horrible team. When the Vols fell out of the rankings after beating Chattanooga, fans told me they didn't deserve to and expressed disappointment at seeing their creamsicles fall out of the rankings. Well, guess who's back, and just in time to play Georgia! (Last Week: NR) |
 | 24. Texas State | 2-3 | Don't look now, but the Bobcats are on fire. They've won two straight after beating Nicholls 24-3 and now get a week off to think about what they've done, and maybe see if they can sneak out of The Bottom 25 in the process. (14) |
 | 23. UCLA | 1-4 | Just when you think the Bruins may have figured it out, they go on the road and lose to an Arizona team without its starting QB. At least they covered the spread. This week UCLA welcomes an Oregon State team that suddenly looks a lot more competent in the Rose Bowl. (NR) |
 | 22. Ohio | 1-3 | Ohio had a bye this week, and it's now getting ready to take on Buffalo in its MAC opener. As I've said already, I won't start worrying about this team until it is losing conference games. (21) |
 | 21. Ball State | 1-3 | Ball State had the weekend off as well, and like Ohio, the Cardinals are hitting the road for their MAC opener this week. They head to DeKalb to face No. 15 Northern Illinois. (20) |
 | 20. Rutgers | 1-3 | Rutgers lost to Michigan 52-0 and then fired Chris Ash. I don't know if he was given a "beat Michigan or else" ultimatum, but I wrote about Rutgers quite a bit already this week. Go read that if you haven't yet. (NR) |
 | 19. South Florida | 1-3 | I also wrote about South Florida, and Charlie Strong being on the hot seat, in The Monday After after yet another loss. I spend a lot of time writing about bad teams! (NR) |
 | 18. Old Dominion | 1-3 | That Virginia Tech loss looks worse by the week, and now you're losing to East Carolina? Western Kentucky is up this week. (23) |
 | 17. Colorado State | 1-4 | The Rams haven't looked outmatched in their past two losses to Toledo and Utah State, but at the same time, they haven't looked all that dangerous either. San Diego State comes to town this week. (13) |
 | 16. UNLV | 1-3 | The Rebels got off to a quick start in Laramie on Saturday, but things fell apart quickly from there. The 53-17 loss brings them into The Bottom 25 for the first time this season, and a game against Boise State this week will likely keep them here. (NR) |
 | 15. Northern Illinois | 1-3 | The Huskies are 1-3 and ranked No. 15, but I feel it's important to point out the three losses have come on the road to Utah, Nebraska and Vanderbilt. That's a difficult road trip for anybody. We'll get a better idea of who the Huskies are when they host No. 21 Ball State. (17) |
 | 14. UConn | 1-3 | My CBSSports.com colleague Chip Patterson appreciates that the Huskies covered the spread against UCF, even if The Bottom 25 doesn't. The Huskies get No. 19 South Florida at home this week. (18) |
 | 13. Middle Tennessee | 1-3 | The Blue Raiders take a big jump this week after losing to Iowa 48-3. The Raiders have now played three Power Five opponents (Iowa, Duke, Michigan), and lost all three by a combined score of 129-42. (24) |
 | 12. Vanderbilt | 1-3 | The Commodores picked up their first win of the season against Northern Illinois to climb out of The Bottom 10. Ole Miss and UNLV are up next on the schedule, and those are two winnable games for the Commodores. (4) |
 | 11. Georgia Southern | 1-3 | I had been working under the assumption that Georgia Southern would get its act together in Sun Belt play. A 13-point loss at home against Louisiana has me less convinced this is the case. A road trip to No. 8 South Alabama awaits Thursday night. (12) |
 | 10. Georgia Tech | 1-3 | Listen, we all knew the transition from option team to not-an-option team was going to be rough, but hoo boy. Following a loss to The Citadel with a 24-2 loss against Temple is not a good look for anybody. (15) |
 | 9. FIU | 1-3 | The Panthers had last week off, but have a big game against UMass awaiting them this week. (8) |
 | 8. South Alabama | 1-4 | The Jaguars looked a little feisty in a 30-17 loss to UL-Monroe over the weekend. Now the world will get to watch them Thursday night against No. 11 Georgia Southern in a spotlight game. (11) |
 | 7. UTEP | 1-3 | The Miners lost to Southern Miss 31-13 over the weekend. Our two-time defending champs are following the same path as Clemson right now. Will they finally flip the switch against UTSA this week? (10) |
 | 6. Rice | 0-5 | I was legitimately saddened to see Rice lost to Louisiana Tech 23-20 in overtime Saturday. But this team won't be winless for long. They have two road games coming up, though, starting this week with UAB. Will the Owls shock the world? OK, maybe not the world, but the county? (7) |
 | 5. UTSA | 1-3 | The Roadrunners had the week off. Will that extra time to prepare give them the advantage in The Bottom 25 Game of the Century of the Week against No. 7 UTEP on Saturday night? To be the best, you gotta beat the best! (6) |
 | 4. Bowling Green | 1-3 | The Falcons needed last week off after getting crushed 62-20 by Kent State. This week they head to South Bend as 45.5-point underdogs against Notre Dame. Will the Falcons cover in The Brian VanGorder Revenge Game? (5) |
 | 3. UMass | 1-4 | The Minutemen suspended a bunch of starters before last week's epic showdown against Akron, and then won 37-29. I don't know if that says more about the starters themselves or the coaches for naming them starters. Either way, victory, baby! (1) |
 | 2. New Mexico State | 0-5 | After being blown out of the water in their first three losses, the Aggies' past two losses have come by a total of 16 points. I wouldn't be shocked if they get in the win column against Liberty this weekend. (3) |
 | 1. Akron | 0-5 | The Zips gave it a valiant effort, but it was too little too late in their 37-29 loss to No. 3 UMass. The loss bumps the Zips up to No. 1 in The Bottom 25 this week. They're on a bye this week, so there's a good chance they'll remain here at least one more week. (2) |
No Longer Ranked: Miami (OH) (9), UL-Monroe (16), Houston (19), Western Kentucky (22), Stanford (25)
Week 5 Superlatives
As many of you know, I rank all 130 teams using a mathematical formula I created. That system is how I compile the Bottom 25, but for those of you interested in how the rest of the rankings look, you can see them all right here (it's updated weekly after The Bottom 25 is published). I will also be sharing some weekly superlatives from the rankings here in The Bottom 25.
Highest Climber: This week's honor goes to Western Kentucky. The Hilltoppers not only escaped The Bottom 25, but they also climbed 29 spots from No. 109 to No. 80 after beating UAB. More importantly, they're 2-0 in conference play and atop their division.
Biggest Faller: A few weeks ago, Maryland was at No. 2 in my rankings. Now, after losing to Penn State 59-0, it's down to No. 57. That's a full 40 spots lower than it was last week.
Most Fraudulent Undefeated Team: It's still Minnesota, and that's still going to make Minnesota fans mad at me. The good news is that the Gophers are steadily climbing. They moved up from No. 58 to No. 39 this week. The bad news is that the closest undefeated team is Wake Forest at No. 18.
Most Average Team: The most average team in the land is the Miami Hurricanes. The Canes are 2-2, and their score is 0.326 percent better than average.
Best 1-Loss Team: It's Notre Dame, which checks in at No. 16 in the rankings.
Best 2-Loss Team: That would be USC, which fell from No. 26 to No. 48 following a loss to Washington.
Best 2-3 Team: We were asked if North Carolina was the best 2-3 team in the country on The Cover 3 Podcast this week, and I answered that it was without having updated my rankings. Well, I was right. I'm very smart, as the Heels are the highest-ranked 2-3 team in the country at No. 72.
