College Football Rankings: 5 Frauds Still in the Top 25

In treasure hunting, there's gold and there's fool's gold.

Teams are ranked and voted based off the quality of wins, production and among other things. But a team that plays a lesser opponent and racks up big numbers, only to fall when faced with bigger competition, is what can be known as fool's gold.

Teams that not only beat the lesser ones, but also step up against bigger competition and even win some of those games, are what we can call the gold.

And in this week's AP Top 25, there are several teams that have that fool's gold label, and could very well show it this week and in the very near future.

South Carolina

The South Carolina Gamecocks have had plenty of issues.

They have issues at quarterback, the head coach is, well, just being the head coach. The defense is very suspect, especially in the secondary. The Gamecocks, despite a 54-3 victory on Saturday, are still among the fool's gold in the AP Top 25 at No. 15.

It is interesting to note that the victory was against a poor Kentucky team that has no kind of identity on offense or defense.

South Carolina has no kind of playmakers on offense outside of receiver Alshon Jeffery or running back Marcus Lattimore, and quarterback Connor Shaw has not shown anything in games against big opponents.

South Carolina is still a team on the verge of collapse, and is still a fragile team at this point in the season.

Auburn

The defending national champion Auburn has fallen twice by big points against pretty good teams in Clemson and Arkansas.

Its defense has been less than stellar and the offense is inconsistent at times. Auburn is definitely a different kind of team with Barrett Trotter as the quarterback, and he has not always been the best decision maker in the offense.

On top of that, the defense is among the worst in college football, and it has struggled all season to really stop anybody. Auburn's loss against Arkansas showed the kind of defense it has and it struggled to keep pace with all of the teams they have played so far. 

Virginia Tech

The Hokies, like the Florida State Seminoles, had all the preseason hype but failed to back it up against premier competition.

Logan Thomas has been an inconsistent quarterback and the defense has not lived up to expectations.

With Georgia Tech the only real threat, the Hokies don't look to have a whole lot of opportunity, especially with the way they are playing now. Special teams have also been a huge struggle for a program that once prided itself on stellar special teams play. 

Texas A&M

Quickly gaining a label as a proverbial choker, the Texas A&M Aggies dropped two straight games where they had 20-point leads heading into halftime. They had great first half offense, but poor defense and stagnant offense in the second half.

The Aggies have been unable to live up to expectations under coach Mike Sherman, whose pride and joy was the productive offense to go along with a great defense that specializes in rushing the passer.

The Aggies remain in the Top 25 despite their two losses, and is perhaps the biggest indication of fool's gold in the AP Polls.

Houston

Houston managed to crack the AP at No.25, and all with a well-known, high-powered offense led by Case Keenum. But, is it really worth the ranking? 

Houston has never really played any top opponents like Boise State has, and the fact that they're in the C-USA doesn't help their case for a Top 25 ranking.

Looking at the quality of its opponents, it's clear why Keenum is able to put up such numbers, not to mention that he is being labeled as a system quarterback.

While Houston likely won't crack any kind of BCS bowls, they are certainly a part of the fool's gold collection in this week's Top 25.