College Football Rankings 2019: Final NCAA Overview of Week 5 Standings

There's potential for some movement in the AP Top 25 poll after this weekend, and that's essentially a guarantee after what transpired Friday night.

No. 15 Cal suffered its first loss of the season when it fell to unranked Arizona State 24-17 at home. That means the Golden Bears will likely slide down the rankings, while the Sun Devils proved they might be deserving of a spot in the Top 25, where it was earlier this month.

Another Friday game may have the opposite effect on a top-15 team. Earlier in the night, No. 12 Penn State rolled through Maryland 59-0. It was an impressive Big Ten victory for the Nittany Lions over the Terrapins, who had been ranked earlier this month.

And those matchups were just the start of what should be another exciting weekend of college football. There are a lot of top teams that will be in action Saturday during a slate that also includes a pair of games featuring two ranked teams.

Here's how the AP Top 25 poll looked heading into the weekend (with updated records through Friday), followed by three games to watch on Saturday.

AP Top 25 Poll

1. Clemson (4-0)

2. Alabama (4-0)

3. Georgia (4-0)

4. LSU (4-0)

5. Ohio State (4-0)

6. Oklahoma (3-0)

7. Auburn (4-0)

8. Wisconsin (3-0)

9. Florida (4-0)

10. Notre Dame (2-1)

11. Texas (3-1)

12. Penn State (4-0)

13. Oregon (3-1)

14. Iowa (3-0)

15. California (4-1)

16. Boise State (4-0)

17. Washington (3-1)

18. Virginia (4-0)

19. Utah (3-1)

20. Michigan (2-1)

21. USC (3-1)

22. UCF (3-1)

23. Texas A&M (2-2)

24. Kansas State (3-0)

25. Michigan State (3-1)

Games to Watch

No. 18 Virginia at No. 10 Notre Dame

Notre Dame may be coming off its first loss of the season, but it was still an impressive showing for the Fighting Irish. Last Saturday, they went on the road to face No. 3 Georgia and fell 23-17.

But they led the Bulldogs at halftime and kept it competitive in the second half, which kept them in the top 10 of the AP poll.

Now, Notre Dame will play the second of four teams that are currently ranked on its schedule in Virginia, which has started the season 4-0. However, the Cavaliers haven't yet played a ranked team, so this will be their toughest contest so far.

If the Fighting Irish want to make the College Football Playoff for the second straight year, they may need to win out, beginning with this matchup against the Cavaliers.

"This is an opportunity to kind of define who you are," Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said of his players, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com). "Clearly, they know what's at stake for them, they're playing a really good football team that's nationally ranked. Virginia has their attention."

No. 21 USC at No. 17 Washington

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

For the second time this season, USC will have a quarterback making his first career start. And this is a tough matchup to have in that type of spot.

Junior Matt Fink will start for the Trojans under center after freshman Kedon Slovis suffered a concussion on the opening drive of USC's win over Utah last Saturday.

Fink filled in nicely in that game, passing for 351 yards and three touchdowns in a 30-23 victory over the Utes, who were ranked No. 10 coming into that matchup.

If Fink can lead a win over Utah, one of the Pac-12's better teams, it's possible he could do the same against Washington, another one of the conference's top programs.

"It's kind of surreal. It's an amazing opportunity for me and for the team to keep moving forward," Fink said, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com). "It hurts to see anybody on the team get hurt in any way or shape, but it's a great opportunity for me to grow and for this team to be better."

The Huskies are 3-1, but they've lost their only Pac-12 game so far when they fell to Cal on Sept. 7. This could be a big matchup for them to stay competitive in the conference and not fall out of the Top 25 poll.

Mississippi State at No. 7 Auburn

Sam Craft/Associated Press

When looking at Auburn's schedule, this appears to be one of its easier games. But that's only because of how difficult the Tigers' 2019 slate is.

Auburn has upcoming matchups against four of the top nine teams in the country—No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 LSU and No. 9 Florida. However, Mississippi State, which is 3-1, should also be a formidable opponent.

In fact, the Bulldogs beat the Tigers 23-9 last year with a rushing attack that totaled 349 yards.

"They definitely embarrassed us last year," Tigers defensive tackle Derrick Brown said, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com). "We let the quarterback run for a bunch of yards. That was the highest rushing total we gave up all year. On defense, look at their rushing statistics and stuff like that—that's a lot of yards to give up in a game. That really was an embarrassment."

Auburn has big goals this season, and a loss to Mississippi State would likely hinder some of them. So, expect a competitive game, but the Tigers should take control and improve to 5-0.