Group of 5 Power Rankings: Week 4

Through the first four weeks of the college football regular season, the Group of 5 is already down to just two undefeated teams: Coastal Carolina and James Madison. By contrast, each Power 5 conference has at least three undefeated squads remaining. On the flip side, the MAC has more teams below .500 (8) than the Power 5 conferences combined (7). One bright spot to highlight small conference teams this week was Middle Tennessee’s dominant win at Miami, in which the game was never closer than two scores in the second half. It’s been a difficult start to the season for the Group of 5 as a whole, but here are the top 15 teams this week.

#1. Cincinnati Bearcats (Last Week: 1)

Cincinnati went up 38-10 on Indiana and withstood a comeback effort from the Hoosiers to earn a 45-24 win Saturday and move to 3-1 on the season. The Bearcats couldn’t get much going on the ground, rushing for just 40 yards in the game, but explosive pass plays allowed the Cincy offense to still score in bunches. The centerpiece of several big plays was Tyler Scott, who had touchdown receptions of 75, 34 and 32 yards amidst a 10-reception, 185-yard day. The defense allowed 25 first downs but came up with two interceptions, three fourth-down stops, and a fumble return touchdown by Dominique ‘Domo’ Perry following a strip-sack by Eric Phillips to support the explosive offense. Cincy kicks off conference play with a trip to Tulsa Saturday at 7 p.m. Eastern.

#2. BYU Cougars (3)

It was a slow start for BYU, which trailed Wyoming 10-7 until a touchdown on the last play of the first half gave the Cougars the lead. The offense kept rolling in the second half to finish with over 500 yards in Saturday’s 38-24 win. Jaren Hall had a stellar game, going 26-32 for 337 yards and four touchdowns. Miles Davis added a 70-yard run as part of a 131-yard rushing performance on 13 carries. BYU hampered its effort with 11 penalties for 109 yards in the game, something will look to fix in next week’s matchup against in-state rival Utah State. Thursday night’s game against the Aggies will kick off at 8 p.m. Eastern.

#3. Air Force Falcons (5)

Air Force rolled a stumbling Nevada squad 48-20 Friday in a game that was never in doubt. Brad Roberts ran for 123 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries, with John Lee Eldridge III joining him at over 100 rushing yards in the game, finishing with 102. Backup quarterback Ben Brittain came into the game and threw a single pass, which went for an 80-yard touchdown to David Cormier, just for good measure. Next week, Air Force has the first leg of the Commander-in-Chief’s trophy with a home matchup against Navy at noon Eastern.

#4. Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (6)

Coastal Carolina needed less than 20 seconds to score its first touchdown of the game Thursday night at Georgia State, and kept the offense going in a 41-24 win over the Panthers. Jared Brown eclipsed 100 receiving yards in the first three minutes of the game with touchdown catches of 50 and 53 yards, finishing with five receptions for 129 yards and the two scores. Grayson McCall totaled 306 yards and three touchdowns in the game, and CJ Beasley ran 25 times for 142 yards to help the Chants amass over 250 yards rushing and passing in the win. Coastal’s defense forced four turnovers, all in the second half, including a pair of interceptions by Charles Arnold Jr. as a major factor in keeping Georgia State’s offense scoreless in the second half. The 4-0 Chanticleers look to keep the winning going hosting Georgia Southern next Saturday at 4 p.m. Eastern.

5. James Madison Dukes (On the Bubble)

It was a difficult start to the game for James Madison at Appalachian State Saturday, falling behind 28-3 in the second quarter. Through that point, JMU had two fumbles and a turnover on downs. The rest of the game, App State turned the ball over twice and failed two fourth-down conversion attempts. The Dukes defense also forced three three-and-outs in the second half turned things on with four touchdowns to finish the game on a 29-0 run for the 32-28 victory. Todd Centeio, who transferred to James Madison this year after starting at quarterback for Colorado State in 2021, threw for 204 yards and two touchdowns while adding 61 yards and a score on the ground. The Dukes are now 3-0 after a pair of blowout victories to start the year, and come back home to face Texas State Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Eastern next week.

#6. Liberty Flames (7)

#7. UCF Knights (13)

#8. UAB Blazers (9)

#9. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (NR)

#10. Appalachian State Mountaineers (2)

#11. Tulane Green Wave (4)

#12. South Alabama Jaguars (OTB)

#13. Georgia Southern Eagles (NR)

#14. UNLV Rebels (NR)

#15. Memphis Tigers (NR)

Dropped Out

Marshall (8), Toledo (10), ECU (11), Louisiana (12), SMU (14), Fresno State (15)

On the Bubble

Houston, SMU, Marshall, Miami (OH), San José State, Western Kentucky