The season is a month old, but it’s already been full of surprises.

Some are better than others. Hyped quarterbacks such as Arch Manning, Cade Klubnik and Garrett Nussmeier have underwhelmed. Unknowns such as Trinidad Chambliss have thrived. John Mateer and Rueben Bain have enjoyed breakout seasons.

But which teams have been the biggest disappointments? And which have excelled, suggesting expectations were too low?

Here are five(ish) of each.

Most disappointingClemson

The Tigers opened the season as the clear ACC favorite (167 of 183 first-place votes in the preseason poll) and a trendy pick to win the national title. Klubnik also started the season as one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy.

A month into the season, the Tigers are tied for last place in the ACC and, at 1-3, aren’t receiving a single vote in either major poll. The Tigers have losses to LSU, Georgia Tech and Syracuse. In their only win, they trailed Troy 0-16 before the Tigers rallied in the second half for a 27-16 victory. The Tigers’ roster, stocked with All-Americans on both sides of the ball, is 116th in scoring offense. Northwestern, Oklahoma State and UCLA are the only Power 4 teams that have been worse.

The race for the nation’s most disappointing team in the first month of the season is not close.

Bill Belichick’s team has faced two Power 4 opponents, and it hasn’t been competitive in either. (Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)

North Carolina

Bill Belichick’s arrival was supposed to mean an improvement from Mack Brown, who was fired after going 23-16 in his final three seasons in Chapel Hill. Portal exits decimated the Tar Heels’ roster, and the 70 newcomers to fill those spots have struggled early on.

Belichick’s team has faced two Power 4 opponents. It hasn’t been competitive in either. It fell behind TCU 41-7 and faced UCF — also featuring a first-year coach who inherited a 4-8 team — and the Knights led 20-3 at halftime on the way to a 34-9 victory.

In an ACC where the talent gap between the top and bottom of the league is razor-thin, there was hope Belichick’s arrival might give the team a decided schematic advantage. That hasn’t happened. At least not yet.

Oklahoma State

Expectations were low for the Cowboys, but a first month this humiliating? It cost Mike Gundy the job he’s held for 20 years. OSU made the wrong kind of history, first by losing 69-3 at Oregon days after Gundy complained about Oregon doing the thing he refused to do that eroded his program: Paying top dollar to secure talent. That was the most lopsided loss since losing 67-0 to Oklahoma in … 1907.

Two weeks later, with an off week to prepare for in-state opponent Tulsa, the Cowboys were physically dominated on the line of scrimmage in a 19-12 loss, losing to the Golden Hurricane in Stillwater for the first time since 1951, a span of 23 consecutive wins.

Kansas State

The Wildcats were on the short list of preseason Big 12 contenders and kicked off the season ranked in the top 20. They lost an ugly Farmageddon game to Iowa State in rainy Ireland in Week 0. A week later, they needed an 81-yard touchdown drive in the final minute to beat North Dakota in Manhattan.

But a week later, Army finished what North Dakota couldn’t, rallying from a 13-0 deficit for a 24-21 road win. That’s Army’s only win this season, including a loss to FCS Tarleton State.

Avery Johnson, in Year 2 as the starting quarterback for Kansas State, looks hesitant to run and hasn’t grown enough as a passer. He was 62nd in passer rating last year. He’s 76th this year and has run for 50 yards just once — in a win over UCF last weekend. He did it seven times last season and helped K-State win nine games.

UCLA

The Bruins, like Oklahoma State, had modest expectations entering the season and were picked 15th in the Big Ten, ahead of Maryland, which is now 4-0. Through the first month, the Bruins are one of four winless FBS teams and the only Power 4 program without a win. That included an embarrassing 35-10 beatdown courtesy of New Mexico, whose program was ravaged by the portal and the coaching carousel this offseason.

“I know they’re a Power 4 team, but there’s gonna be a lot of teams we play that are better than UCLA,” Lobos coach Jason Eck said after the game.

It already cost alum Deshaun Foster his job, but UCLA is staring the first winless season in school history in the face. The Bruins haven’t had a one-win season since 1943.

Most surprisingMississippi State

The Bulldogs were winless in the SEC a season ago, and every loss came by double digits. This year, aided by portal additions and a healthy Blake Shapen at quarterback in Year 2 under Jeff Lebby, Mississippi State is showing more than signs of life. It beat Arizona State — a Big 12 contender that went to the Playoff a season ago — on a dramatic 58-yard touchdown pass in the final seconds. The Bulldogs got to 4-0 with three more no-doubt wins, and last week they dragged a top-15 Tennessee team eyeing its own return trip to the Playoff into overtime in a back-and-forth game and narrowly lost, 41-34. The Bulldogs are the nation’s most improved team and look ready to qualify for a bowl game and ruin someone’s season along the way.

UNLV

Dan Mullen had been doing TV and hadn’t done any college coaching since being fired from Florida in 2021. Then UNLV came calling when it was looking for Barry Odom’s replacement. Mullen scraped together a portal-heavy squad to rebuild a program that nearly reached the Playoff a season ago and UNLV picked right up where it left off. The Rebels are one of 20 remaining undefeated teams and, outside of the American, have the best path to the Playoff among Group of Five teams.

Missouri

The Tigers were picked to finish 12th in the SEC, and Vegas oddsmakers set their over/under for wins at 7.5. But the Tigers look uninterested in taking a step back after losing quarterback Brady Cook and receiver Luther Burden III. Penn State transfer Beau Pribula had the best game of his career in a win over Kansas, and Louisiana-Monroe transfer Ahmad Hardy leads the nation in rushing yards (730) and rushing touchdowns (9). No other back has more than 624 yards. The Tigers are eyeing a third consecutive double-digit win season under Eli Drinkwitz, something no one has ever done at Mizzou.

Vanderbilt

Diego Pavia is no one-hit wonder. He’s even better this year, looking dominant in wins over Virginia Tech and South Carolina. The Commodores are fourth nationally in scoring offense and are 5-0 for the first time since 2008. All five wins have come by more than 20 points, tied for the third-longest streak to begin a season in SEC history. The Commodores won seven games a season ago and look ready to improve on that in Year 5 under Clark Lea.

Virginia

Tony Elliott looks like he’s eyeing a breakout season in Year 4 in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers are 4-1, fresh off a home win over Florida State and are eighth nationally in scoring offense. North Texas transfer Chandler Morris has ignited Elliott’s offense and is 11th nationally in passing yards. J’Mari Taylor (397 yards, 7 TDs) has given the offense much-needed balance, and the Cavaliers need only two more wins to earn the first bowl bid for Elliott. They might be dreaming much bigger in a wide-open ACC after being picked 14th in the preseason. The win over Florida State was the program’s first home win over a top 10 team since 2005.

North Texas

Second-year coach Eric Morris has the Mean Green 5-0 for the first time since 1959 and they can play their way into Playoff contention with a home win over South Florida next Friday. UNT already has a road win over Army and a blowout victory over Washington State on its resume. If it can play its way into the American championship game, it’ll be 60 minutes from the College Football Playoff.

(Photo of Dabo Swinney: Katie Januck / Getty Images)