by Sean Szymczak
Week 4 may not have lived up to the hype thanks to decisive blowouts by Penn State & Oregon and an ugly 14-7 Utah win against UCLA. But we also saw a couple instant classics.
Florida State escaped Clemson by the skin of their teeth to kick off the day. Ohio State then rallied past Notre Dame with a game-winning drive to conclude the night.
Alabama disposed of Ole Miss in not the prettiest fashion. LSU pulled out a tight win against their conference rival Arkansas. Cam Ward entered his name into the Heisman conversation with an incredible performance in an upset win against Oregon State.
There is a lot of reshuffling in this week’s top 25 thanks to so many teams finally facing a real test.
The Floor Slap’s Week 5 Top 25
- Ohio State (4-0)
- I put the Buckeyes at #1 because I would favor them against every team below them with the exception of Georgia. But I’m knocking the Bulldogs for their schedule. Ohio State’s defense looks like it’s the best in the country. McCord isn’t perfect, but he was when it counted most: on 3rd down and on their game-winning drive. He made three incredible throws on that drive and showed impeccable poise. The short-yardage situations are concerning, but the offensive line is improving by the week. If Ohio State continues their trajectory, they’ll be a scary team to play in November.
- Texas (4-0)
- They have the best win the country.
- Washington (4-0)
- Michael Pennix should be everyone’s Heisman favorite right now.
- Penn State (4-0)
- The Nittany Lions looked like a complete team in a 31-0 stomping of Iowa.
- Florida State (4-0)
- Florida State’s first win at Clemson since 2013 was a hell of a win for their program and a fell of a game for the fans. But this clearly isn’t the same Clemson team as in years’ past.
- Georgia (4-0)
- Their only game against the Power 5 was a sloppy win against South Carolina in which they trailed at halftime. I just can’t keep them above other teams who deserve recognition for who they’ve beaten.
- Michigan (4-0)
- 4 weeks into the season, it’s time to knock Georgia and Michigan for their lack of quality opponents. Besides, neither have looked utterly dominant so far.
- Oregon (4-0)
- Their 42-6 drubbing of Colorado was somehow even worse than the final score indicates. Oregon is playing the best football they have since the last time they went to the playoff in 2014. But I don’t want to overreact too much. After all, this is likely a six or seven-win team they just beat up on.
- USC (5-0)
- One-win Arizona State was the closest thing to a test that USC has seen this season. It wasn’t necessarily pretty, as the Trojans held only a six-point lead heading into the 4th.
- Oklahoma (4-0)
- I genuinely believe you can arrange these 10 teams however you’d like. Every team has an argument to be #1. But everyone has a question mark as well, even if it’s just their schedule to date.
- Utah (4-0)
- Their 14-7 win against UCLA was ugly, with the two teams combining for 462 total yards. Until Cam Rising returns and proves he is 100%, I have the Utes on the outside of the elite teams in the top 10.
- North Carolina (4-0)
- Their win against Minnesota seems a little less impressive now that the Gophers lost to the hapless Northwestern Wildcats. Upcoming home games against Syracuse and Miami should tell us more.
- Washington State (4-0)
- Cam Ward needs to be on the Heisman watch. In the Cougars’ 38-35 win over Oregon State, Ward completed over 80% of his passes and had 423 total yards and 5 total TDs.
- LSU (3-1)
- Alabama (3-1)
- It likely won’t be until Alabama and LSU face off on November 4th when we see some separation between these two teams.
- Notre Dame (4-1)
- Sam Hartman made a few incredible throws on the go-ahead TD drive in the 4th quarter. This Notre Dame is really, really good. They are a complete team with a great defense and an offense that can beat you through the air or on the ground. The Irish had the win in-hand against the Buckeyes. But a loss is a loss. I dropped them below the other one-loss teams because this is more recent. But games against Duke, Louisville, and USC over the next three weeks, Notre Dame has every chance to start working it’s way back up the rankings.
- Miami FL (4-0)
- Duke (4-0)
- They host Notre Dame next weekend. It’ll be fascinating to see how Marcus Freeman responds. The game will be a great measuring stick for how good the ACC really might be.
- Missouri (4-0)
- Kansas (4-0)
- College football is better when Kansas is ranked.
- Maryland (4-0)
- Now a quarter of the way through the regular season, it’s time to recognize the teams that are undefeated over some name-brand one-loss teams. Taulia Tagovailoa has the Terp offense humming, scoring over 30 points in every game so far.
- Syracuse (4-0)
- They should be favorites at home against Clemson this weekend.
- Louisville (4-0)
- Fresno State (4-0)
- They beat Purdue on the road and shut out Arizona State. QB Mikey Keene is one of the most underrated in the country.
- Florida (3-1)
- Of all the one-loss teams you could rank, Florida has the best loss (at Utah) and best win (Tennessee).
Just Missed Out: Liberty, Georgia State, Oregon State, Ole Miss
New to Rankings: Kansas (20), Maryland (21), Louisville (23), Fresno State (24), Florida (25)
Dropped from Rankings: Oregon State (14), Ole Miss (17), Colorado (18), Iowa (19), UCLA (22)
Biggest Risers: Washington State (up 7 spots), Duke (up 5 spots), Missouri (up 5 spots), Miami (up 4 spots)
Biggest Fallers: Notre Dame (down 7 spots), Georgia & Michigan (each down 5 spots)
Ranked Teams by Conference
ACC: 6
Pac-12: 5
SEC: 5
Big Ten: 4
Big 12: 3
Other: 2 (Notre Dame, Fresno State)