| Rank | Team | Comments | Prior | |
| 1 |  | Alabama | Alabama faces another tough test this week when they head to the Swamp to take on the Gators. | 1 |
| 2 |  | Oklahoma | In the end, Oklahoma domianted Missouri last week. This week will be a little easier with Ball State on the slate. | 2 |
| 3 |  | LSU | LSU's stellar defense can shut down any offense. Kentucky does not have enough offense to threaten the Tigers. | 3 |
| 4 |  | Wisconsin | Wisconsin faces off against Nebraska in a game that has Big Ten and BCS title implications. | 4 |
| 5 |  | Nebraska | Nebraska keeps cruising along, but going to Wisconsin is not an easy way to join the Big Ten. | 5 |
| 6 |  | Oklahoma State | Oklahoma State gets a well deserved week off after their hard fought road win over Texas A&M. | 7 |
| 7 |  | Boise State | Boise State will want some revenge when they face off against former and future conference foe Nevada. | 6 |
| 8 |  | Stanford | Stanford should keep cruising along, and get to a 2-0 conference record, with UCLA coming to Palo Alto this week. | 8 |
| 9 |  | South Carolina | South Carolina has not looked too great, but they can win ugly again against Auburn this week. | 10 |
| 10 |  | Oregon | Oregon has a week off after knocking off Arizona and this is a team that could remain undefeated into November. | 11 |
| 11 |  | Clemson | The tough games for the Tigers continue with a trip to VT this week and a win here would make them contenders. | 19 |
| 12 |  | Florida | We will get a much better idea of where Florida stands in the SEC once they face off against Alabama. | 15 |
| 13 |  | Virginia Tech | It could be a preview of the ACC championship game when VT hosts Clemson this week. | 16 |
| 14 |  | Texas | Texas is finally looking pretty good and they should have another tuneup against ISU before the big OU game. | 17 |
| 15 |  | Texas A&M | Texas A&M will face off against Arkansas in Arlington in a battle of teams that are coming off of tough losses. | 12 |
| 16 |  | Florida State | Florida State lost to Clemson without their quarterback. Now they get a much, much needed week off. | 9 |
| 17 |  | Arkansas | There is no shame in losing at Alabama, but Arkansas has another tough test when they face TAMU in Arlington. | 13 |
| 18 |  | West Virginia | West Virginia may not be at LSU's level, but they are still the favorite in the Big East for now. | 14 |
| 19 |  | Arizona State | ASU is the team to beat in the Pac-12 South after knocking off USC. OSU should not give them much trouble. | 25 |
| 20 |  | Ohio State | Ohio State may have found their QB in Braxton Miller and, after the MSU game, they have a RB and WR too. | 22 |
| 21 |  | Michigan | Michigan starts conference play with a very, very winnable home game against Minnesota. | NR |
| 22 |  | Penn State | Penn State has some major issues to address, like finding a QB. However, the conference slate starts easy with IU. | 23 |
| 23 |  | Baylor | With KSU coming off of a huge win, Baylor may have more trouble heading to Manhattan than most expect. | 24 |
| 24 |  | Georgia Tech | Georgia Tech is a hot team right now and they should keep on winning against a reeling NC State squad. | NR |
| 25 |  | Illinois | If Dan Persa is back for Northwestern, Illinois' defense will face a very tough test this week. | 20 |
Week 4 Football Top 25
Sat, 09/24/2011
