College football sees early season surprises and high viewership

The 2026 college football season has seen several unexpected developments and high-profile matchups. UCLA has emerged as a major surprise under first-year head coach Bob Chesney, starting with a 4-0 record and earning its first top-25 AP Poll ranking in three years. Oregon head coach Dan Lanning noted that the Bruins' performance reminds him of the 2025 Indiana Hoosiers squad that won the national championship.

In terms of viewership, the Texas-Tennessee matchup led Week 4 with 9.8 million viewers on ABC. Other highly-watched games included Ole Miss-Florida (8.3 million) and Texas A&M-LSU (5.7 million).

On the injury front, Tennessee offensive lineman Sham Umarov is listed as questionable for the upcoming game against Auburn following an injury sustained during a loss to Texas. Meanwhile, teams like Mississippi State and Houston have also shown unexpected strength early in the season, with Mississippi State securing notable victories over Minnesota and Missouri.