My 2010 College Football Top 25 Rankings for Week 5

1. Alabama – Received a very real scare in Arkansas, but they did what all great teams do—they found a way to win even the tough games.

2. Ohio State – The offense is running like a well-oiled machine. First road game of the year coming up this week.

3. Boise State – Didn’t earn as many style points as they should have against Oregon State, but now they coast until that late-season game in Nevada.

4. TCU – Looked a lot more vulnerable than we are used to seeing against SMU, but took care of business in the second half.

5. Oregon – A confusing, statistical mess of a game, the most important thing for the Ducks is that they came out on top in another road test. This week’s game against Stanford could be for all the marbles in the Pac-10.

6. Nebraska – Their offense took a game off against South Dakota State, but now the real fun begins, heading into Kansas State and hosting Texas in their next two games.

7. Florida – The Gators have improved every week, which is a great sign, but back-to-back games in Alabama and at home against LSU will define the season. Hats off to Trey Burton’s six-touchdown performance.

8. Auburn – Topping a surging South Carolina team at home marked the second straight impressive home win for Auburn, who get a breather this week against ULM.

9. Stanford – The Cardinal aren’t just beating teams, they are steamrolling them. A win at Oregon would pave the way for a magical season.

10. Oklahoma – Scare in Cincinnati, but unlike Texas, playing for next week didn’t cost them the game. If they can get through Texas, the remaining schedule shapes up nicely.

11. Arizona – Not going to get any style points for this one, but doing just enough and narrowly avoiding the letdown shows a depth this Wildcats team hasn’t had in years past.

12. Utah – Another blowout win. There's not a whole more Utah can do but keep winning.

13. LSU – Another statement game for the defense, but the defense was never really in question. The offense will be the difference between a good season and a great one.

14. Wisconsin – Completely destroying Austin Peay in itself isn’t that impressive, but the fact that Wisconsin put together their first flawless start-to-finish effort of the season is.

15. Arkansas – Heartbreaking loss in a game Arkansas had within their grasp. It will be a long time before Ryan Mallett forgives himself for this one.

16. Miami – Going into Pittsburgh and thoroughly dominating is a pretty nice way to put the Ohio State game in the pass. Jacory Harris still needs to cut back on the mistakes, though, for this team to reach the next level.

17. Iowa – The easy games are out of the way. Now Iowa faces a four game stretch of Penn State, @Michigan, Wisconsin, and Michigan State, which will go a long way in determining the Big 10’s pecking order.

18. South Carolina – Tough loss in Auburn, but the Gamecocks now have two whole weeks to plan for a home game against Alabama. Find a way to pull off that upset and the Auburn loss is quickly forgiven.

19. Michigan – Easy win over Bowling Green. More importantly, Denard Robinson appears to be okay. Need to stay focused this week in Indiana and not look ahead to the looming Michigan State and Iowa games.

20. USC – As ugly as it has been, this is the first time the Trojans have started 4-0 since 2007—but it hasn’t exactly been against world-beaters. This week they’ll get the chance to exact some revenge on the Washington team that upset them last season.

21. Texas – I predicted this team would be looking ahead to the Oklahoma game, and wouldn't be at their best. What I didn’t predict was the Longhorns getting dominated on their home turf for four quarters by UCLA. A shot at redemption comes this week against the Sooners.

22. Nevada – BYU is having an off year, but Nevada still deserves credit for going on the road and taking care of business. They may not be in the same tier as Boise State, but the WAC isn't a one-team conference. 

23. North Carolina State – Not sure what’s wrong with Georgia Tech, but whatever it is, it doesn’t make NC State’s convincing road win over them any less impressive. Can they surprise again with a win over Virginia Tech this week?

24. Penn State – I like this team on paper, but we still haven’t learned anything about them in wins over Youngstown State, Kent State, and Temple. This week’s game at Iowa will tell us a lot.

25. Michigan State – A fifth straight home game of the season against Wisconsin this week gives the Spartans a chance to show they belong in the Top 25.

For more from me, please visit my website at http://www.davesdime.com, or follow me on Twitter @davesdime. Thanks!