Through Week 5 of the college football season, there are only 16 undefeated teams in what has been a chaotic first month.
Kansas has jumped into the top 20 with a 5-0 record, USC came out of the gates flying on offense under new coach Lincoln Riley and Penn State has bounced back after a 7-6 season to start 2022 at 5-0.
Conversely, some teams that were ranked high to start the season have faltered early and are thinking about how they too might bounce back next season. Michigan State finished last season at 11-2, but has already lost three games this season with a stretch of games that includes Ohio State, Michigan and Illinois (4-1) coming up.
Oklahoma had a coaching change in the offseason and lost some important players, including quarterbacks Caleb Williams and Spencer Rattler, as well as receiver Mario Williams. Despite new coach Brent Venables filling holes via the transfer portal, the Sooners are unranked at 3-2 with a ton of questions about their defense.
Quite a few other teams have already shown struggles and weaknesses, but some of those programs have answers for the future in the form of their 2023 recruiting classes and the prospects joining the team after this season. Here is a look at seven teams that have gotten off to a slow start and the help they have on the way.
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Notre Dame | Texas | Iowa | Miami
Oklahoma | Florida | Michigan State