Snatching Away Victory: Five Things We Learned in Week Five

The calendar has turned into the October grind, when big conference games pick up and the old rivalries kick into action.

And while we had a few fun games this past weekend, next weekend will have just as many interesting matchups, such as unbeaten Wisconsin at Ohio State, Alabama at Ole Miss, and of course, Florida at LSU.

This week has also presented something unusual: only one top-10 team fell on Saturday. In a day of few upsets, here are the lessons we learned after the fifth week of college football:

1) LSU will have to beat Florida with the defense

Despite how well LSU played to get back in the final minutes to win a huge road game against Georgia, one has to note that the Tigers scored more in the final few minutes than in the first 55.

That's a troubling sight to an LSU team that goes up against one of the best defenses in the country against Florida. Of the top five teams, LSU has the worst of those offenses, and it's not even close either.

Luckily, the Tigers defense has kept them in these games and the running of Charles Scott has done just enough to keep them undefeated up til this point.

Saturday might be the day that the Tigers fall, but their defense could keep them in the game, along with the homefield advantage of Death Valley.

But for those expecting a breakout offensive explosion, it probably isn't going to happen this Saturday night.

2) Michigan still has some maturing to do

The Wolverines first road game of 2009 did not turn out as well as they hoped, losing to rival Michigan State in consecutive years for the first time since the 1960s.

The offense was very sluggish all day until the final minutes and the defense could not get it done when the offense gave the ball away.

Still, Michigan fans have hope that Tate Forcier looks more like the real deal every day. That last drive on the Spartans showed again that he has ice water in his veins.

He needs some help around him in those situations because he appeared gassed after the drive, and had nothing left for overtime.

They need to come out and start better on the road if they want to be a better road team because they have not shown that consistency that you look for. They are probably a year away from BCS contention, but the Wolverines are well on their way.

3) The Pac 10 once again runs through USC

Two weeks ago, the Cal Bears looked like the sexy pick in the Pac 10 after USC fell to Washington. Two weeks later, the Berkeley self-destruction continues after being routed at home by the Trojans 30-3.

The Trojans who are still finding an offensive identity have started to rely on a stingy defense that held Jahvid Best to 47 yards on the ground.

Other than the surprising Stanford Cardinal, few teams have any chance to beat the Trojans this season.

While Stanford and the Oregon Ducks both look good this year, it really is hard to put either team past the Trojans at this point.

Although both of those teams are unbeaten in conference play and USC has lost once, there's a good chance USC might be the lone wolf standing when the Pac-10 gauntlet runs its course.

4) Miami continues their road back to glory

After looking abysmal in Blacksburg against Virginia Tech, the Canes came back and showed great resiliency against a talented, aggressive Oklahoma squad, pulling out a 21-20 win at home.

Jacory Harris bounced back after a terrible start with two interceptions and became the efficient Jacory Harris once again.

Mark Whipple's offense is the talk around Coral Gables and the defense is nothing to shake a stick at either.

Last month, everybody felt that this early four-game stretch would tell us about the Hurricanes. Now that it's over and Miami is 3-1, no one can help but be impressed at this young squad.

They've come together in a hurry and should make some more noise in the ACC and could find a spot in the BCS.

5) The injury bug is the biggest story of the first month of football

It seems like some years, players out with injury are more of a story than the guys replacing them. This year, both the injured and the replacement are equally big factors.

The earliest big injury was Virginia Tech RB Darren Evans tearing an ACL before the game with Alabama. Insert Josh Oglesby and Ryan Williams, and the Hokies haven't lost a step in the running department.

Then came the most famous shoulder in college football, Sam Bradford's which he injured in their loss to BYU.

All Landry Jones has done since that game is throw for six touchdowns against Tulsa. Jones didn't lose that Miami game for the Sooners, but he could not win it either.

Either way, Sooner fans have to feel good that they have a capable replacement for when Bradford turns pro.

Then there is the biggest story heading into week six, the health of Tim Tebow. His status is unknown against LSU next Saturday, but there is no doubt that it will be the main focus all week.

Tiger Nation will be relentless, and it's unclear if Tebow can resume football activity this week. Concussions are tough to gauge, and Florida has to maintain the balance of not being too cautious but not too careful.

If they don't, Florida could be prime for an upset. With the Tigers licking their chops after getting humiliated a year ago, be prepared for the unexpected.