The 3 most surprising teams of the college football season

The college football season is always full of surprises, and a few weeks into the season, it’s safe to say that a few teams have already delivered.

There have already been a handful of teams that have simply not lived up to the hype, but there have been a few teams that have already defied even the most optimistic of expectations.

While there’s still a lot of season remaining, here are three teams that have gotten off to a surprising start to the 2026 season.

3. Mississippi State

Two years ago, Mississippi State finished with just a 2-10 record, and things didn’t get much better the following year, as the Bulldogs finished with just a 5-7 record. Through head coach Jeff Lebby’s first two seasons, Mississippi State won just one SEC conference game. This year has already been radically different.

Through the first four weeks of the season, Mississippi State is 4-0 and 2-0 in the SEC after a gutty 31-24 comeback victory over No. 19 Missouri, and they’re led by a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate in Kamario Taylor, who has established himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the country through the first quarter of the regular season.

It’s worth noting that Mississippi State did start the 2025 season with a 4-0 record, and those games included a win over No. 12 Arizona State. However, this team feels different in both its identity and talent. But we’ll have a good idea of where they really stand next week when they host No. 7 Alabama.

2. Oklahoma State

The past two seasons have been rough for the Oklahoma State Cowboys as the team went a combined 4-20 in 2024 and 2025 and hadn’t beaten an FBS team since September of 2024. After parting ways with Mike Gundy following last season, the Eric Morris era looked like more of the same in the season-opener as the Cowboys fell 24-10 to Tulsa to start the season.

Since then, however, Oklahoma State has looked like a totally new team, and that began with a stunning win over No. 6 Oregon just a week later. The Cowboys outplayed Oregon from almost start to finish, putting up 554 yards to beat Oregon 39-31, notching the program’s first FBS win in two years.

Oklahoma State has kept the same momentum the past two weeks, shutting out Murray State 59-0 before blowing out previously unbeaten West Virginia 41-24 on the road, snapping an 18-game Big 12 losing streak that went all the way back to the 2023 season.

Heading into the season, Oklahoma State was expected to be one of the worst Power 4 teams in the country. Now, just four weeks into the season, the Cowboys are the No. 19 team in the AP Poll.

1. Florida

After firing head coach Bill Napier in the middle of what turned out to be a 4-8 season, the Florida Gators seemed to be headed toward a rebuilding year under new head coach Jon Sumrall. However, four games into the 2026 season, Sumrall has seemingly engineered an instant turnaround.

Florida went 3-0 to start the season, but the statement came this week against No. 4 Ole Miss. Florida rushed for 302 yards and six touchdowns in a 52-28 blowout. The 52 points tied the most Florida has ever scored against a top-five opponent in history with the only other time coming in the 1997 Sugar Bowl, when the Gators won the national championship. This came a week after Ole Miss established itself as a legitimate playoff contender with a win over LSU.

The biggest difference so far has been the offense. The Gators have scored at least 44 points in every game, and Sumrall is the first SEC head coach to score 200 points in his first four games. They’ve already scored 28 touchdowns, one shy of their total from all of last season.

The schedule doesn’t get easier, with Missouri, Texas, and Georgia all coming in October. But after years of mediocrity in Gainesville, Florida suddenly looks like a real threat in the SEC and in the College Football Playoff race.

The post The 3 most surprising teams of the college football season appeared first on The Comeback: Today’s Top Sports Stories & Reactions.