College Football Rankings 2014: Week 5 AP and Amway Standings Revealed
After another wild week of the 2014 college football regular season, fans of the sport have already turned their attention to the Week 5 rankings and where the schools they support stand.
It was not a good week to be a ranked program. Florida State and several other teams came close to losing, and other schools like LSU, Missouri, Clemson and Kansas State were defeated and will slide down the ratings.
There will be plenty of turnover in this week’s college football rankings.
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Here are the full Amway coaches', Associated Press and Bleacher Report Top 25 polls, followed by a breakdown of which programs are playing well and which are struggling heading into Week 5.
| 1 | Florida State Seminoles | Florida State Seminoles | Oregon Ducks |
| 2 | Oregon Ducks | Alabama Crimson Tide | Florida State Seminoles |
| 3 | Alabama Crimson Tide | Oklahoma Sooners | Alabama Crimson Tide |
| 4 | Oklahoma Sooners | Oregon Ducks | Oklahoma Sooners |
| 5 | Auburn Tigers | Auburn Tigers | Auburn Tigers |
| 6 | Texas A&M Aggies | Baylor Bears | Texas A&M Aggies |
| 7 | Baylor Bears | Texas A&M Aggies | Baylor Bears |
| 8 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | Notre Dame Fighting Irish |
| 9 | Michigan State Spartans | Michigan State Spartans | Michigan State Spartans |
| 10 | Mississippi Rebels | UCLA Bruins | Mississippi Rebels |
| 11 | UCLA Bruins | Mississippi Rebels | UCLA Bruins |
| 12 | Georgia Bulldogs | Arizona State Sun Devils | Georgia Bulldogs |
| 13 | South Carolina Gamecocks | Georgia Bulldogs | South Carolina Gamecocks |
| 14 | Mississippi State Bulldogs | Stanford Cardinal | Mississippi State Bulldogs |
| 15 | Arizona State Sun Devils | South Carolina Gamecocks | Stanford Cardinal |
| 16 | Stanford Cardinal | Mississippi State Bulldogs | Arizona State Sun Devils |
| 17 | LSU Tigers | Wisconsin Badgers | BYU Cougars |
| 18 | USC Trojans | LSU Tigers | USC Trojans |
| 19 | Wisconsin Badgers | Nebraska Cornhuskers | LSU Tigers |
| 20 | BYU Cougars | Ohio State Buckeyes | Wisconsin Badgers |
| 21 | Nebraska Cornhuskers | BYU Cougars | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
| 22 | Ohio State Buckeyes | USC Trojans | East Carolina Pirates |
| 23 | East Carolina Pirates | Duke Blue Devils | Ohio State Buckeyes |
| 24 | Oklahoma State Cowboys | East Carolina Pirates | Clemson Tigers |
| 25 | Kansas State Wildcats | Kansas State Wildcats | Oklahoma State Cowboys |
Breaking Down the College Football Landscape
It was a tough week to be one of the top teams in the nation. For those ranked teams who managed not to lose, there were several close calls that had top programs sweating a possible loss on Saturday.
Many college football fans believed powerhouses like LSU, Missouri, Clemson and Kansas State would make a serious splash in the new playoff system, but each was handed a loss this week.
Kansas State and Clemson lost to college football juggernauts Auburn and a Jameis Winston-less Florida State respectively, but those defeats will not hurt as much as those suffered by SEC programs LSU and Missouri.
LSU was handed a defeat by the unranked and undefeated Mississippi State in a 34-29 thriller, and Missouri lost to a less-talented Indiana program in an even closer game, 31-27. If you are a fan of either team, it was a long Saturday filled with frustration and sadness.
Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen told The Associated Press, via ESPN.com, about the victory and the toll it took on him, “I probably aged seven to 10 years in the final three minutes of the game. We are trying to build a program and I'll take it. I guess everybody can now write how I have beaten LSU and Alabama once during my career.”
For other fans, close calls were the name of the game. Several ranked teams came close to losing, but none were closer than Florida State. With Winston suspended for his actions off the field over the last week, the Seminoles faced a tough test against Clemson and managed to pull out the 23-17 win in overtime. FSU proved it had the talent to win without Winston, but the team is clearly better with the former Heisman Trophy winner under center.
The official Twitter of SportsCenter talked about how Winston was still making bad choices Saturday:
Florida State wasn’t the only school involved in a game that was closer than many anticipated. With Oregon beating Washington State, 38-31, and Oklahoma holding off West Virginia, 45-33, supporters of each program were forced to bite their nails as the teams were unable to mount a sizable advantage on Saturday.
The talk has been about the teams that struggled this week, but there were several other top programs that dominated and likely earned even more respect from voters as the teams begin posturing for the postseason.
The biggest winners in Week 4 were Alabama, Texas A&M, Georgia and Wisconsin.
Alabama managed to dominate a tough Florida team on Saturday, but it wasn’t a traditional Crimson Tide victory. Instead of running the ball down Florida’s throat, Alabama leaned on quarterback Blake Sims and his 445 yards and four touchdowns.
Another SEC team that thrived was Texas A&M. SMU never stood a chance, but few saw the 58-6 beatdown coming. The Aggies could have scored even more if they hadn’t taken their foot off the throttle. Staying in the SEC, Georgia was another huge winner, knocking off Troy in spectacular fashion, 66-0. You read that right, folks, Georgia scored 66 on offense and managed to hold Troy to 216 total yards and zero points.
If you’re looking for a winner not getting the credit it deserves, look no further than Wisconsin. The Week 1 loss to LSU is tough to swallow after the Tigers lost on Saturday, but the Badgers destroyed Bowling Green, 68-17. Wisconsin is one of the few highlights for the lackluster Big Ten.
Hopefully, the rest of the season will be as wild as the first four weeks. College football fans certainly hope so.
*Stats via ESPN.com.
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