NCAA Football Top 25 Week Five: OU, MICH, and UH Lose—LSU Triumphs

After last weeks exciting college football action, with four top 10 teams upset, including four, five, and six, this week was underwhelming in the upset category. There was some significant action however, as two top ten teams (Houston and Oklahoma) lost.

Last weeks ranking, if different, is in parentheses.

1. Alabama—Looked impressive against Kentucky, winning 38-20. They still have the most impressive win of the season so far, defeating Virginia Tech 34-24 at a neutral site in week one. The winner of the Florida-LSU game is likely to take this spot after next week.

2. Florida—Took the week off. Play their toughest game of the season next week against LSU. And they may have John Brantley as their starter instead of Tim Tebow. If they can win that game, then they should reclaim the No. 1 spot.

3. Texas—Took the week off. They play Colorado next week, then have the big showdown against Oklahoma.

4. Boise State—Beat UC-Davis 34-16. Their strength of schedule will start to hurt them soon, but if Oregon keeps winning, it might not matter. They really do have an outside shot to reach the title game.

5. LSU—Pulled off a 20-13 win at Georgia in a wild finish. They almost earned the No. 4 ranking over Boise State. But they have a good chance to jump to No. 1 if they can beat Florida next week.

6. TCU (8)—Beat SMU 39-14. What has TCU done to justify this ranking? They went 11-2 last year (only losing to Oklahoma and Utah) and beat an undefeated Boise State team. And they are 4-0 this year, going 2-0 against BCS teams on the road (Clemson and Virginia). They have a great defense, an experienced quarterback, and can play and beat anyone in the nation.

7. Iowa (9)—Beat Arkansas St. 24-21. They seem to play down to their competition, but a win is a win. And they were in control of this game more than the score would indicate.

8. Cincinnati (15)—Beat Miami (OH) 37-14; Continuing an impressive undefeated season. They really have sleeper potential to reach the National Title game.

9. Virginia Tech (6)—Narrowly avoided an upset at Duke, winning 34-26. They still are the highest ranked one-loss team in the nation.

10. Oregon (13)—Beat Washington State 52-6. Right now they have the inside track to a Pac-10 title. And they still have BCS title hopes.

11. USC—Won at California 30-3. This win would've been huge if Oregon hadn't lambasted California so bad last week. Still, it was a very solid win for the Trojans, and their Pac-10 and national title hopes are still alive.

12. Ohio State—Looked impressive dismantling Indiana 33-14, which gave Michigan everything they could handle last week.

13. South Florida (14)—Beat Syracuse 34-20 by intercepting former Duke PG Greg Paulus five times. They face Cincinnati at home next week, in a game that could decide the Big East title this year.

14. Miami (Unranked)—Was the Virginia Tech game just an aberration? They looked good against Oklahoma, narrowly pulling off the upset against one of the top teams in the country.

15. Auburn (Unranked)—Beat Tennessee 26-22. They are 5-0 and as the wins keep racking up, last season is going to become a distant memory. They could easily be 7-0 heading into a brutal five game stretch to finish the season. They play at LSU, at home against  Mississippi, at Georgia, then play Alabama at home in four out of their last five.

16. Missouri (20)—Took the week off. They are competing with Nebraska and Kansas for front-runner status in the Big 12 North.

17. Nebraska—Took the week off. They are competing with Missouri and Kansas for front-runner status in the Big 12 North.

18. Kansas (19)—Took the week off. They are competing with Missouri and Nebraska for front-runner status in the Big 12 North.

19. Oklahoma State (18)—Took the week off. Their loss to Houston looks worse now.

20. Penn State (22)—Easily handled Illinois 35-17. They play yet another cupcake  opponent (Eastern Illinois) next week.

21. BYU (24)—Beat instate rival Utah State 35-17 at home, running for over 200 yards. I put them here because at 4-1, they deserve to be ranked over a 2-2 team they beat on a neutral field. They play their toughest road game remaining next week at UNLV.

22. Oklahoma (10)—Lost to Miami 21-20. Their national title hopes are all but shattered at this point, with close losses to Miami and BYU by one point a piece. Their goals now are to beat Texas, win the Big 12, then win a BCS bowl. Which are all still very attainable goals. They are the best two loss team in the nation.

23. Wisconsin (Unranked)—Beat Minnesota 31-28 to remain at 5-0. They have made a habit of winning close games.

24. South Carolina (Unranked)—Beat South Carolina St. 38-14. Gets into the top 25 a week after upsetting the No. 4 team in the country.

25. Utah—Took the week off. They have the talent to win the Mountain West, even with Matt Asiata out for the season. Their problem is their conference schedule. They play TCU, BYU, Colorado State, and UNLV on the road. Their only loss is an extremely close one against Oregon on the road.

Knocking on the door

Stanford, Notre Dame, Georgia, Mississippi, Boston College, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Michigan, Houston

Here is a link to my week four rankings: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/262142-ncaa-football-top-25-week-4-ole-miss-penn-state-cal-and-miami-fall.

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