Another week of college football means another installment of CBS Sports' Bottom 25 rankings, honoring the worst teams in the sport -- worst is meant as a complementary term, in this instance. For the first time this year, there are no Power Four teams in the Bottom 25.
Florida State held it down last week, but the Seminoles decided to finally show (some) signs of life in a 14-9 win against Cal. Was it the type of performance that serves as a catalyst for an inspired turnaround after an abysmal start to the year? Probably not, but it was enough to crawl out of the Bottom 25. For now, at least.
There are four newcomers to this week's rankings, though. None are more surprising than Appalachian State, which has stumbled out of the gates in its sixth year under coach Shawn Clark. The Mountaineers opened Sun Belt Conference play with a whimper in a 48-14 loss to South Alabama.
It snapped Appalachian State's nine-game win streak in Sun Belt openers. It was also the most points that the Mountaineers have allowed in regulation of a conference game since a 52-45 loss at ULM in 2017.
Bottom 25 rankings
The illustrious Tom Fornelli created the formula that we still use to generate the Bottom 25, but he has since passed on his writing duties. To be clear, the rankings are based on a series of calculations, but the quips are entirely man-made.
The Bottom 25
| Team | Rank | Record | Breakdown |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 25. Appalachian State | 2-2 | Appalachian State's 2024 season is like a slow-burn horror movie. Things start out normal with a big win against ETSU, but then the first signs of trouble show when Clemson walks all over the Mountaineers. There's the period of denial the next week in a 2-point win against East Carolina. But that's just a prelude to the moment when the dam finally breaks and the monster reveals itself in a disastrous loss to South Alabama. All this to say, App State is really bad and it's very surprising. (Last week: NR) |
 | 24. UTSA | 2-2 | In all likelihood, UTSA is a very average team that will walk the middle of the road to bowl eligibility. A far cry from what we've come to expect under Jeff Traylor, but realistic minds should expect a rebuild when you lose a player like quarterback Frank Harris. Saturday's game at East Carolina gives the Roadrunners a chance to snap an 0-2 skid against FBS competition. (14) |
 | 23. Georgia Southern | 2-2 | Georgia Southern makes its return to the Bottom 25 (it escaped in Week 2) after a 52-13 loss to No. 6 Ole Miss, which hardly seems fair. No one has come close to competing with the Rebels thus far during their cakewalk of a schedule. But I guess when Georgia Southern has a minus-15.7 scoring differential on average against FBS foes, that puts you among the nation's worst. (NR) |
 | 22. Jacksonville State | 1-3 | Big win last week for Jacksonville State, as it eviscerated poor Southern Miss to the tune of 44-7. That dragged the Gamecocks out of a dreadful 0-3 start and put them on the precipice of climbing out of these rankings. An upcoming schedule that features three straight Bottom 25 opponents might be what they need to get over the edge. (9) |
 | 21. Colorado State | 2-2 | Colorado State is a featured program in the latest round of (extremely futile) conference realignment, which has served as a nice distraction from the fact that the Rams haven't been great this year. They did break the FBS seal with a 27-17 win against UTEP, which certainly doesn't move the needle. (15) |
 | 20. Utah State | 1-3 | What remains of Pac-12 has to be really grasping for straws if it's inviting this iteration of Utah State, which just lost 45-29 to Temple. That's rock bottom for a program that terminated its former coach just over a month before the season actually began. (NR) |
 | 19. Troy | 1-3 | Troy's on the board! The Trojans lost three straight games to open the 2024 season, two of which came by at least 17 points, before finally triumphing against a solid Florida A&M team. Beating FCS programs shouldn't necessarily be the standard for the Trojans -- who won 23 games from 2022-23 -- but it's something. (10) |
 | 18. Arkansas State | 2-2 | What a rollercoaster for Arkansas State thus far. Narrow wins against Central Arkansas and Tulsa didn't inspire confidence, but a 10-point loss on the road against Michigan (oddly enough) provided a little optimism. Then the Red Wolves crashed back down to earth against Iowa State. A bye for Arkansas State this week, but maybe Oct. 5's game against South Alabama will serve as the true measuring stick for Butch Jones' team. (24) |
 | 17. Temple | 1-3 | Temple, I genuinely did not know you had it in you. The Owls beating anyone by 16 points is notable, but an FBS team in Utah State? That's nothing short of impressive. (11) |
 | 16. Florida Atlantic | 1-3 | At least Temple is giving the "Owl" name some good publicity, because Florida Atlantic sure isn't. It's impossible to get worse than a 48-14 loss to UConn. UConn! (22) |
 | 15. Old Dominion | 0-3 | Old Dominion had a bye last week, so not much change in the Monarchs' standing. Good luck against Bowling Green Saturday, a team that gave both Penn State and Texas A&M a run for their money. (16) |
 | 14. Southern Miss | 1-3 | Will Hall should be writing thank you letters to Billy Napier for eating up all the hot seat attention, because no coach seems closer to the end than the fourth-year Golden Eagles boss. A 44-7 loss to Jacksonville State, a team in its second year out of the FCS, seems like a point of no return for his tenure. Not like things were great beforehand. (25) |
 | 13. Miami (OH) | 0-3 | Maybe Miami shouldn't schedule three Power Four opponents to open the season in the future, even if two (Northwestern and Cincinnati) are perfectly beatable. And not every MAC team can upset Notre Dame, apparently. Just a chosen few. (20) |
 | 12. Charlotte | 1-3 | The highlight of Charlotte's season thus far is a 1-point win against Gardner-Webb, which certainly isn't something to write home about. Otherwise the 49ers have largely got kicked around by FBS competition, a trend that might continue in Week 5 on the road against Rice. (18) |
 | 11. UMass | 1-3 | UMass had a bye last week to prepare for a huge Week 5 Bottom 25 showdown against Miami (OH). Grab your popcorn, folks. (7) |
 | 10. Air Force | 1-2 | Poor Air Force. The Falcons have to watch Navy and Army run around with their 3-0 records while Troy Calhoun and his squad struggle against the likes of San Jose State. A game against Wyoming this Saturday could be a serious get-right opportunity, at least. (12) |
 | 9. New Mexico | 0-4 | Something has to give this Saturday, as New Mexico travels to New Mexico State for the Bottom 25 Game of the Week. The Lobos have yet to come close to winning against an FBS team this year, but the Aggies are quite beatable. This is what college football dreams are made of. (5) |
 | 8. Akron | 1-3 | Is Akron at least an average team this year? The early signs aren't promising, but it's certainly hard to get a read when all the Zips have done (outside of one FCS win) is go on the road and play Power Four competition. Playing Ohio in Week 5 will be another stiff test. (13) |
 | 7. Middle Tennessee | 1-3 | Derek Mason clearly has his hands full with the Blue Raiders. They've lost their three games against FBS competition by an average of 35 points. A Saturday road trip to Memphis doesn't make things much easier. (8) |
 | 6. New Mexico State | 0-4 | It looked like New Mexico State was making some progress in a close Week 2 loss to Liberty (a legitimate College Football Playoff competitor) but the Aggies have lost their last two games by a combined score of 79-11. (4) |
 | 5. Ball State | 1-2 | Well hello Ball State. This seems like an unprecedented rise (or fall) for a new Bottom 25 team, as the Cardinals went all the way from unranked to top-five after a loss to Central Michigan. It certainly doesn't help Ball State's case that it ranks near the bottom of the MAC in total offense and total defense. (NR) |
 | 4. UTEP | 0-4 | It might be time to fire up the winless tracker for UTEP. The Miners couldn't get past a fellow Bottom 25 team in Colorado State and now have to play a surging Sam Houston and a very solid Western Kentucky over the next few weeks. It seems 0-6 os well within reach. (6) |
 | 3. Kennesaw State | 0-3 | Kennesaw got the full FBS experience through its first month at this level, but Saturday should provide a nice reprieve as the Owls host UT Martin. (3) |
 | 2. Wyoming | 0-4 | Wyoming coach Jay Sawvel's hiring must have been a social experiment to see how quickly a once proud program could come to ruin. For those that might think this is exaggeration, the Cowboys have yet to score more than 17 points in a game this year and are losing by an average of 23 points per contest. (2) |
 | 1. Kent State | 0-4 | It's early, but this year's iteration of Kent State is in the running for worst college football team of all time. There is no shame in that for the Golden Flashes; it's certainly meant as an honor. Just sit back and enjoy what could be a special season. (1) |
