College football's biggest surprises and disappointments after four weeks

• Tennessee’s defense has stepped up: There were concerns about the Volunteers defense earlier in the year, but the unit now ranks first in the nation in EPA allowed per play.

• What’s going on with Oklahoma’s offense?: The Sooners offense has struggled mightily in all areas this season.

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Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

We’re a quarter of the way through the 2024 college football season, and while it's still early for sweeping conclusions, plenty of surprising storylines have emerged.

Here are three of the biggest surprises and disappointments from the season's first quarter.

Surprise: BYU

The Cougars' 4-0 start has certainly exceeded expectations, especially after entering the season with a preseason win total of just 4.5. Their most impressive victory came last week in a dominant 38-9 win over then-No. 13 Kansas State. BYU’s defense has been stellar, ranking 14th nationally in EPA per play.

While doubts loomed about their bowl eligibility, BYU is now firmly in the conversation for the Big 12 title in a wide-open conference.

Disappointment: Florida State

While we were lower on the Seminoles than most this preseason — they ranked 16th in PFF’s preseason ranking vs. 10th in the preseason AP poll — even we didn’t foresee the program's disastrous start.

FSU is the first preseason top-10 team in four years to start 0-3, with all three losses coming to unranked opponents. The Seminoles have struggled to get anything going on offense — they currently rank fifth-worst among Power Four teams in EPA per play and have earned the sixth-worst team offense grade.

Surprise: Illinois’ pass-protection

Luke Altmyer has emerged as one of the most improved quarterbacks in the country this season. In 2023, he finished 96th among FBS signal-callers in PFF grade (69.4). Through four weeks of the 2024 campaign, his 86.9 grade is good for 18th.

Altmyer's improvement is closely tied to Illinois’ upgraded pass protection. Last season, the Fighting Illini ranked 117th in pass-blocking grade, but they’ve jumped to 35th this year.

Altmyer thrives when kept clean, posting a 93.0 PFF grade on such plays, fifth among FBS quarterbacks. Key additions such as transfer tackles Melvin Priestly and J.C. Davis have been crucial to Illinois’ first 4-0 start since 2011.

Disappointment: Jalon Daniels

Daniels entered the season as a top-five quarterback prospect on the PFF big board, but to say he’s had a rough start to his fifth year would be an understatement. His 55.1 passing grade is just 124th in the nation, as he has only four big-time throws and eight turnover-worthy plays.

Daniels has earned a sub-60.0 passing grade in three of his four games this season. He had two such performances in the last two years combined.

The loss of innovative offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki seems to have significantly affected Daniels, while his extensive injury history might also have caught up with him.

Surprise: Tennessee’s defense

Of the eight Tennessee defenders who earned a 65-plus PFF grade in 2023, only one — James Pearce Jr. — returned this season, leaving the Volunteers with some defensive question marks outside their star pass rusher.

After four games, however, Tennessee has silenced most of those doubts. The Volunteers lead the nation in EPA per play allowed (-0.528) and rank second in yards per play allowed (3.3), all while securing wins over two ranked teams, N.C. State and Oklahoma.

Surprisingly, they’ve achieved this without much contribution from Pearce, who has posted just a 63.1 pass-rushing grade. If he can find his form, Tennessee’s defense could become even more formidable.

Disappointment: Oklahoma’s entire offense

Oklahoma has been nothing short of a complete disaster offensively. The Sooners hold the second-lowest graded offense in the Power Four (59.7) and rank third-worst in EPA per play (-0.182).

No matter how you break it down, the offensive struggles only become more glaring.

Oklahoma’s offensive grading this season

While Oklahoma faced Tennessee's elite defense, its other three games came against Temple, Houston and Tulane — all three rank outside of the top 60 in team defense grade, while the Owls and Green Wave aren’t even among the top 100.

It’s worth noting that Oklahoma’s offense has been plagued by injuries, particularly in the receiving corps. However, the Sooners must elevate their play with the roster they have, especially with tougher SEC matchups looming on the schedule.

Oklahoma has benched former five-star quarterback Jackson Arnold for true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. But unless Hawkins turns into the next Caleb Williams, it’s unlikely he will be able to salvage this offense.