College Football Rankings 2011: Predicting the Top 25 Heading into Week 5

With four match ups between ranked teams in Week 4 of the college football season, the rankings are likely to be shaken up when they are released Sunday.

Up to this point in the season there hasn't been any major movement in the Top 25 but that could all change in the aftermath of Saturday's football.

That being said, here is what the Top 25 could look like when the new rankings are released Sunday. 

Dropped from the Rankings: Clemson Tigers, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

With a tough match up this week against No. 11 Florida State, the No. 21 Clemson Tigers are likely to drop out of the Top 25 come Sunday. The Seminoles are fresh off a defeat to the No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners and will be looking to avenge that loss and take out their frustration on the Tigers.

Joining them in the likes of the unranked will be the No. 25 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets after a loss to North Carolina at home. The Tar Heels have been fairly good against the run thus far and that being the Yellow Jackets main form of attack in the triple option offense, the Tar Heels will come out victorious. 

Now, on to the Top 25.

No. 25 North Carolina Tar Heels

With a victory over the No. 25 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, the North Carolina Tar Heels will replace them as the No. 25 team in the country when the new rankings are released on Sunday.

The way the Tar Heels have been against the run this year leads me to believe they will come out of this ACC match up victorious. 

Georgia Tech will be forced to go to the air in their triple option scheme which will put them out of their comfort zone and lead to a loss to the Tar Heels.

The Yellow Jackets will slide out of the Top 25 due to the loss and the Tar Heels will slide in and take their place. 

No. 24 Miami Hurricanes

After a win against the No. 17 Ohio State Buckeyes, the Miami Hurricanes deserved a spot in the Top 25 last week.

But after a victory Saturday over the Kansas State Wildcats in Miami, the Hurricanes will slide into the Top 25 at the No. 24 spot.

The Hurricanes looked good on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball against the Buckeyes and could continue to climb in the rankings if Jacory Harris can avoid turnovers.

But for now, they will stick in the No. 24 when the rankings come out on Sunday. 

No. 23 TCU Horned Frogs

The TCU Horned Frogs have been unimpressive in all three games so far this season and with a game against a team no one has ever heard of, Portland State, the Horned Frogs will drop in the rankings from No. 20 to No. 23.

Teams don't usually drop in the rankings with a win but the Horned Frogs have done nothing to show that they are a Top 20 team this season.

Even with a blow out victory over Portland State, they will not have the resume of a Top 20 team. At this point in the season ranked teams should not be decided by past histories of teams, the Top 25 should be the best 25 teams in the country and the Horned Frogs are not one of them.

We will see what type of team they are when they play Boise State later in the year but for now, the Horned Frogs will settle in at No. 23 in the rankings. 

No. 22 Illinois Fighting Illini

After a victory over the No. 22 Arizona State Sun Devils last week to breach the rankings, the Illinois Fighting Illini will continue their climb in the Top 25 to No. 22 in the rankings.

The Illini play a 2-1 Western Michigan football team at home that they should defeat handily.

A climb in the rankings could be in the Illini's future as long as they keep winning but could come to a screeching halt when they welcome Ohio State to town in mid-October.

But for now, the Illini will settle in at the No. 22 spot in the rankings when they are released on Sunday. 

No. 21 Michigan Wolverines

The Michigan Wolverines have yet to lose a game in the Brady Hoke era and that trend will continue  this weekend as they take on San Diego State in the Big House. 

With a victory over the Aztecs, the Wolverines will jump one spot in the rankings to No. 21 and that climb could continue late into the season without facing another ranked team until November.

Denard Robinson could very well be the Heisman Trophy leader currently and this Wolverine team will go as far as he takes them.

With an improved defense, the Wolverines could find themselves highly ranked when they head to Illinois to face the fighting Illini in November, but for now they will hold the No. 21 spot in the rankings when they are released Sunday. 

No. 20 USC Trojans

Despite being ineligible for a bowl game, the USC Trojans continue to play solid football and will continue to rise in the rankings after a victory of Arizona State on Saturday. 

Behind one of the best quarterbacks in the country, Matt Barkley, the Trojans have began the season 3-0 and head to Sun Devil Stadium to play on Saturday night.

Road games are usually the toughest to play in college football, but behind Barkley's superior play, the Trojans should come out victorious. 

With the victory, the Trojans will move up three spots in the rankings when they are released.

No. 19 West Virginia Mountaineers

The West Virginia Mountaineers head into Saturday with the tough test of playing the LSU Tigers.

Although it is at home, I see no scenario that the Mountaineers come out on top. The Tigers defense is so far superior to those that they have faced up to this point that they will be blindsided.

Despite the loss on Saturday, don't expect the Mountaineers to drop to far in the rankings as a loss to a team like LSU isn't a huge failure.

When the rankings are released on Sunday, the Mountaineers will drop just three spots from No. 16 to No. 19.

No. 18 Arkansas Razorbacks

The Arkansas Razorbacks, like the West Virginia Mountaineers, will be a casualty of playing one of the best teams in the country on Saturday in the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Heading into Bryant-Denny Stadium, the Razorbacks have a slim chance of victory over the No.3 Crimson Tide, but will not be hurt much in the rankings by the loss.

Again, a loss to a Top 5 team is not a complete failure as long as you keep it somewhat respectable, which I expect the Razorbacks to do, and for that reason they will only drop four spots in the rankings from No. 14 to No. 18 when they are revealed on Sunday. 

No. 17 Texas Longhorns

With Garret Gilbert out for the season with a shoulder injury, the Texas Longhorns are finally headed in the right direction with Colt McCoy's younger brother, Case, at the helm of the Longhorn offense.

Gilbert has been nothing but bad for the Longhorns who have started the season 3-0 but McCoy has taken over and played well in the last two games.

They head to Iowa State on Saturday to face a 3-0 Cyclone team that just narrowly escaped Connecticut with a 24-20 victory over the 1-2 Huskies.

McCoy and the Longhorns should have no issues with the Cyclones after dismantling UCLA 49-20 last week.

With a victory over the Cyclones, the Longhorns will move up two spots in the rankings to No. 17, when they are released. 

No. 16 South Florida Bulls

The South Florida Bulls burst onto the scene this season with a 23-20 victory in South Bend over the Notre Dame Irish and they haven't let up since.

Last week they put up 70 points on Florida A&M and could do the same thing this Saturday against the UTEP Miners. 

B.J. Daniels is playing like he belongs in New York for the Heisman Trophy presentation and the Bulls look like they could be the top team in the Big East.

With an easy victory this week over UTEP, the Bulls will move up two spots to No. 16 in the rankings. 

No. 15 Baylor Bears

With Heisman Trophy candidate Robert Griffin III, the Baylor Bears are a program on the rise in the Big 12.

They surprised the country with a 50-48 victory over the TCU Horned Frogs in Week 1 of the season and continued their success with a 48-0 victory over the lowly Stephen F. Austin.

A home game against Rice this weekend will ultimately lead to another victory for Griffin III and the Bears which will lead to a slight jump in the rankings for the team.

When the rankings are released on Sunday, look for the 3-0 Baylor Bears to jump from No. 17 to No. 15. 

No. 14 Texas A&M Aggies

The No. 8 Texas A&M Aggies head into Saturday with a much anticipated match up with No. 7 Oklahoma State, a make or break game for the Aggies early season success.

Unfortunately for the Aggies, they run into an Oklahoma State offense that has put up 50+ points in two of their three games.

Brandon Weeden has looked like one of the best players in the country and he will devastate the Aggies on the road causing them to fall in the rankings.

With the loss to the Cowboys on Saturday, expect the Aggies to drop six spots in the rankings, to No. 14, when they are released on Sunday.

No. 13 Florida Gators

After the departure of Urban Meyer, the Florida Gators were off the radar, but they have slowly crept close to the Top 10 with an unbeaten start to the season.

The Gators head to Kentucky on Saturday where they should have no problem taking care of the Wildcats.

With last weeks victory over Tennessee, the Gators proved they could be a force to reckon with in the SEC this year and could surprise many.

A victory in Kentucky on Saturday will continue the Gators rise on up the rankings two spots, to No. 13. 

No. 12 Virginia Tech Hokies

The Virginia Tech Hokies have opened the season 3-0 with a near blunder against East Carolina in the second game of the season.

Despite the near blunder, the Hokies are ranked No. 13 in the country currently and should cruise to victory this Saturday against the Marshall Thundering Herd.

With a victory over the Thundering Herd, the Hokies will jump one spot in the rankings, to No. 12. 

No. 11 South Carolina Gamecocks

The South Carolina Gamecocks welcome Vanderbilt to town on Saturday after narrowly escaping last weeks game against Navy with a 24-12 victory.

Vanderbilt, 3-0, could prove to be a tough test for the Gamecocks but they haven't been great against the run thus far and Marcus Lattimore could have a big day.

Lattimore should be able to control the tempo of the game enough to allow the Gamecocks to come away with a win.

His success rushing the ball should set up the passing game for Stephen Garcia as well who has been struggling somewhat to begin the season.

With the win, the Gamecocks will jump a spot in the rankings from No. 12 to No. 11 when the rankings are released on Sunday. 

No. 10 Oregon Ducks

The Oregon Ducks suffered a tough defeat in Week 1 against LSU but have got back on track lately with two straight victories with 50+ points scored in each. 

On Saturday the Ducks go on the road to face an Arizona team that has been beat up in its last two games by Oklahoma State and Stanford.

Expect the same beat down from the Ducks. They should have no issues with the Wildcats and will improve to 3-1.

Despite the win, when the rankings are released Sunday the Ducks will see no movement and stick at the No. 10 spot. 

No. 9 Florida State Seminoles

After the 10 point loss to the No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners, the Florida State Seminoles will look to rebound in Death Valley on Saturday against the Clemson Tigers.

The Tigers are coming off an emotional victory against Auburn and will head into this game very confident, despite one problem, the Seminoles are a better team than Auburn.

Look for this game to be close but the play of E.J. Manuel will put the Seminoles over the edge and lead them to victory over the Tigers.

A fall in the rankings came after the loss last week but the Seminoles will jump to spots, to No. 9, when the rankings are released on Sunday with a victory in Death Valley. 

No. 8 Nebraska Cornhuskers

The Nebraska Cornhuskers head to Wyoming on Saturday to face off against the unbeaten Cowboys.

Despite the Cowboys 3-0 record, the Cornhuskers should have no issue with them as this game will be a blow out from the beginning. 

They have scored 40 or more points in each of their first three games and that trend should continue on Saturday in a Cornhusker victory.

With the win, the Cornhuskers will jump one spot in the rankings, to No. 8.

No. 7 Wisconsin Badgers

The No. 6 Wisconsin Badgers welcome South Dakota to town on Saturday in what should be a blow out victory.

Russell Wilson has looked like a Heisman Trophy candidate in the first three games of the season, leading the Badgers to an undefeated start.

They have yet to be tested and will not be until they play the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Oct. 1.

When the rankings are released on Sunday, the Badgers will drop a spot to No. 7 due to the Oklahoma State Cowboys victory over Texas A&M. 

No. 6 Oklahoma State Cowboys

The Oklahoma State Cowboys have proven to be one of the best teams in the country behind the arm of Brandon Weeden and they will continue to prove that on Saturday against Texas A&M.

Weeden will lead the Cowboys to victory over the Aggies on the road and cement the Cowboys as a force to be reckon with in the country.

With the victory over the Aggies, the Cowboys will improve on their ranking when they are released on Sunday.

Expect them to leap frog Wisconsin and be ranked in the No. 6 spot. 

No. 5 Stanford Cardinal

Behind Andrew Luck, Stanford has become one of the best programs in college football over the past two years.

They have opened up the 2011 season at a record of 3-0 and welcome UCLA to town on Saturday for a Pac-12 conference match up.

Luck and the Cardinal should have no issues with a UCLA team that got kicked around by a Texas Longhorn team trying to find its identity.

With a victory over the Bruins on Saturday, the Cardinal will remain in the No. 5 spot in the rankings. 

No. 4 Boise State Broncos

The Boise State Broncos have started another season 2-0 including a signature victory over the Georgia Bulldogs in Week 1.

Behind Kellen Moore, the Broncos have shown they are one of the top teams in the country over the past couples season. 

On Saturday, they welcome Tulsa to the blue field in a game that should be a cake walk for the Broncos.

With a win on Saturday, the Broncos will keep hold of the No. 4 spot in the rankings when they are released on Sunday. 

No. 3 Alabama Crimson Tide

In the second season after their National Championship, the Alabama Crimson tide have returned to the elite of the college football world.

They have begun the season 3-0 including a victory over the then No. 23 Penn State Nittany Lions.

Saturday, the Arkansas Razorbacks come to Bryant-Denny Stadium for the Crimson Tides toughest test this season.

With the run game led by Trent Richardson and outstanding defense, the Crimson Tide will come out on top against No. 14 Arkansas.

The victory will give the Crimson Tide a strong hold on the No. 3 spot in the rankings for the second straight week. 

No. 2 LSU Tigers

The LSU Tigers have been the most impressive team thus far and have another opportunity to show how good they are when the visit West Virginia on Saturday.

A win over the Mountaineers would add to the already impressive resume of victories for the Tigers.

Despite being on the road, the Tigers defense will prove too much for the Mountaineers and Jarrett Lee will continue to be solid and lead LSU to victory.

The win will give LSU a case to be ranked No. 1 when the rankings are released on Sunday, but that won't happen just yet, as they will keep hold of the No. 2 spot. 

No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners

After an impressive victory over No. 5 Florida State last week, the Oklahoma Sooners welcome the Missouri Tigers to town on Saturday.

With Landry Jones at the helm, it doesn't look like Oklahoma will be losing any time soon as he has positioned himself as one of the leaders for the Heisman Trophy. 

The Sooners should handle the Tigers at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium without issue.

A victory on Saturday will allow the Sooners to keep their hold on the No. 1 spot in the rankings.