College Football Rankings 2014: Latest Standings and Predictions for Week 5

The NCAA football rankings are beginning to crystallize, with a few top-tier teams proving week in and week out that they are a cut above the rest in the tumultuous college football landscape. 

Florida State survived a scare against Clemson in Week 4 without star quarterback Jameis Winston, absent from the game due to a suspension. Redshirt sophomore Sean Maguire led the Seminoles to a 23-17 overtime victory and kept their undefeated record intact.

They don't have a signature blowout win yet on the season, and there are several teams below them in the rankings that appear to be more complete packages at this point, but no one can dispute a 19-game winning streak, the return of Winston and, of course, the 2013 national title.

Until they lose, expect to find them at the pinnacle of most polls.

Other teams with impressive showings include Texas A&M crushing SMU, Sony Michel and Georgia running wild against Troy, and Oklahoma handling a game West Virginia squad.

Here are the updated Amway and Associated Press Top 25 polls heading into Week 5.

Rank	Associated Press Top 25	Amway Top 25
1	Florida State Seminoles	Florida State Seminoles
2	Oregon Ducks	Alabama Crimson Tide
3	Alabama Crimson Tide	Oklahoma Sooners
4	Oklahoma Sooners	Oregon Ducks
5	Auburn Tigers	Auburn Tigers
6	Texas A&M Aggies	Baylor Bears
7	Baylor Bears	Texas A&M Aggies
8	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	Notre Dame Fighting Irish
9	Michigan State Spartans	Michigan State Spartans
10	Mississippi Rebels	UCLA Bruins
11	UCLA Bruins	Mississippi Rebels
12	Georgia Bulldogs	Arizona State Sun Devils
13	South Carolina Gamecocks	Georgia Bulldogs
14	Mississippi State Bulldogs	Stanford Cardinal
15	Arizona State Sun Devils	South Carolina Gamecocks
16	Stanford Cardinal	Mississippi State Bulldogs
17	LSU Tigers	Wisconsin Badgers
18	USC Trojans	LSU Tigers
19	Wisconsin Badgers	Nebraska Cornhuskers
20	BYU Cougars	Ohio State Buckeyes
21	Nebraska Cornhuskers	BYU Cougars
22	Ohio State Buckeyes	USC Trojans
23	East Carolina Pirates	Duke Blue Devils
24	Oklahoma State Cowboys	East Carolina Pirates
25	Kansas State Wildcats	Kansas State Wildcats

Check out the full list of predictions for AP Top 25 teams next week, followed by the top game to tune in to for Week 5.

Date	Time (ET)	Away	Home	Winner
Sep 25	7:30 p.m.	Texas Tech	No. 24 Oklahoma State	Texas Tech
Sep 25	10 p.m	No. 11 UCLA	No. 15 Arizona State	UCLA
Sep 27	12 p.m.	Wyoming	No. 9 Michigan State	MSU
Sep 27	12 p.m.	Tennessee	No. 12 Georgia	Georgia
Sep 27	12 p.m.	South Florida	No. 19 Wisconsin	Wisconsin
Sep 27	12 p.m.	UTEP	No. 25 Kansas State	UTEP
Sep 27	3:30 p.m.	No. 1 Florida State	North Carolina State	FSU
Sep 27	3:30 p.m.	Arkansas	No. 6 Texas A&M	Texas A&M
Sep 27	4 p.m.	Louisiana Tech	No. 5 Auburn	Auburn
Sep 27	4:15 p.m.	No. 16 Stanford	Washington	Stanford
Sep 27	6 p.m.	Cincinnati	No. 22 Ohio State	Ohio State
Sep 27	7 p.m.	Missouri	No. 12 South Carolina	Mizzou
Sep 27	7:30 p.m.	Memphis	No. 10 Ole Miss	Ole Miss
Sep 27	7:30 p.m.	New Mexico State	No. 17 LSU	LSU
Sep 27	8 p.m.	No. 7 Baylor	Iowa State	Baylor
Sep 27	8 p.m.	No. 8 Notre Dame	Syracuse	Notre Dame
Sep 27	9 p.m.	Illinois	No. 21 Nebraska	Illinois
Sep 27	10:30 p.m.	Oregon State	No. 18 USC	USC

Game of the Week: UCLA at Arizona State

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

This titanic Pac-12 tilt is the only matchup between two AP-ranked teams in Week 5, and its late Thursday night time slot makes it a fine contest to whet fans' appetites for the mayhem and madness set to take place on Saturday.

These two programs have provided some excellent football action over the past couple of seasons, with ASU besting the Bruins by a score of 38-33 to win the Pac-12 South last season. The Bruins had their way in October 2012, when they beat the Sun Devils by a score of 45-43.

CBS Sports' Bruce Feldman pointed out that it's rare that the best college game is on a weeknight:

UCLA got an early break from the 2014 action in Week 4, a much-needed breather considering the uncertain status of star quarterback Brett Hundley, who left the Bruins' game against the Texas Longhorns with an elbow injury.

Jerry Neuheisel did a fine job stepping in for Hundley and pulling out the win for UCLA, but he can't overcome the talented Sun Devils in Arizona.

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

Mora's poker-faced comments haven't been much help in assessing Hundley's injury situation. Via Chris Foster of the Los Angeles Times:

"

All of our players who are out, what we try to do is make the best decisions for them based upon the knowledge we have. We depend on our doctors to get us good information, and we got the best doctors in the nation in my opinion. If they clear him, and they say he can play, just like everyone else, then we’ll play him.

"

Foster did note that Hundley has been practicing and believes he is on track to play.

If he does take the field on Thursday, the Bruins have a definite edge since it appears Sun Devils quarterback Taylor Kelly won't be suiting up for the game. He will miss the rivalry game with a right foot injury, per The Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com).

Senior Mike Bercovici—who's completed all of 14 passes in his collegiate career—will take over quarterbacking duties, according to the AP, putting this game in doubt for the home squad.

Key players to watch include UCLA's Myles Jack, the linebacker-turned-instant folk hero with his part-time running back exploits, and Sun Devils running back D.J. Foster, who is averaging a staggering 9.4 yards per carry this season and will test the likes of Jack and fellow linebacker Eric Kendricks.

ESPNU kept track of his handiwork when the Sun Devils took on Colorado:

If Hundley, an Arizona native, doesn't suit up in his home state or his play is limited, this game could go either way. Expect him to play and keep UCLA's undefeated record intact with a critical Pac-12 South victory.

Prediction: Arizona State wins