College Football Picks Week 5: Wisconsin and 3 Teams That Will Get Signature Win

Sports in general doesn't give style points. A win is a win, after all. The one exception to that is college football. The rankings play a huge part in who plays for the championship at the end of the season. With that in mind, how a team wins matters a lot.

In Week 5, the following three teams will get signature wins. While not all of them will be factors in the national title hunt this year, the wins will increase the program's profile and put them in line for a more favorable postseason destination.

No. 7 Wisconsin

Wisconsin almost always puts a really good team on the field. They have long been one of the more consistent programs in the nation in this way. The 2011 version of the Wisconsin Badgers looks like their best team in a long time.

Russell Wilson is the play-maker at quarterback they have long been lacking and the running game is still top-notch. The defense is smart and physical, just like always.

Collectively, they will face what may be their stiffest test until the bowl season this Saturday against Nebraska. The Huskers, the new kids on the block in the Big Ten, will be looking to make a statement in their first Big Ten game.

It will be the Badgers and not the Huskers that emerge victorious. There is a lot of big-game experience on Wisconsin's roster and they will be too much for Nebraska to handle. Wisconsin will get a win that will carry a lot of weight come time for the bowl selections.

No. 11 Virginia Tech

It seems that the Virginia Tech Hokies are always being underestimated. No one wants to believe they are as good as they are. Whether that's because they have struggled in BCS games or because they play in what is perceived as a weak conference .

This week against 13th-ranked Clemson, the Hokies will have a chance to prove they are the real deal.

Clemson is better than I was giving them credit for early on, but I'm still not completely sold that they are a top-15 team. Virginia Tech, on the other hand, has the look of a team that will reside in the top ten for much of the season.

Look for the Hokies to run the ball right at the Clemson defense. David Wilson is another in a long line of huge stars at running back for Virginia Tech.

No. 24 Illinois

Count me as a big believer in the Fighting Illini in 2011. This is the most talented team that Ron Zook has had at Illinois, including the team that went to the Rose Bowl. Nathan Scheelhaase is one of the best quarterbacks you've never heard of and the same goes for wide receiver A.J. Jenkins.

Their game this Saturday is a game that previous versions of Zook's Illini would lose. Those teams always found a way to lose games they were expected to win. A couple of inspiring wins were almost always followed by a couple of puzzling losses.

Northwestern will provide a stiff challenge. The Wildcats get the most out of their talent and they give everyone in the conference, including teams much better than Illinois, competitive games. Zook's team will grow up on Saturday. They will get a big win over a good Northwestern team and they will move their record to 5-0.