College Football AP Top 25, Power Rankings, Top Heisman Candidates after Week 5 - 2026

After Week 5 AP Top 25 rankings BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Texas Georgia Notre Dame Miami (Fla.) Ohio State Alabama Indiana BYU Mississippi LSU Texas Tech Utah Oregon Missouri Tennessee Florida Mississippi State Oklahoma State USC Iowa UCLA Houston Boise State SMU Pittsburgh

Week 5 Power Rankings cbssports.com BIGGEST MOVERS 13 MISSOURI 13 MISS. STATE RK TEAMS CHG RCRD 1 team logo TEXAS 1. Texas (--) 4-0 Texas rested after escaping Tennessee. Steve Sarkisian spent the bye working on an offense stuck in too many third-and-longs as his boss penned letters bemoaning his players' immature behavior. Next up is Oklahoma, which hasn't scored a TD in Brent Venables' three rivalry losses. -- 4-0 2 team logo OHIO STATE Jeremiah Smith now owns Ohio State's career records for catches, yards and touchdown receptions after piling up 206 yards and two TDs in a 31-14 win at Iowa. Only Smith and Ty Fryfogle have recorded 200-yard games in back-to-back games in Big Ten history. 1 4-1 3 team logo GEORGIA Georgia pulled away in the second half to beat Vanderbilt 38-14, becoming the fifth SEC team to win its first five games by 24-plus points. No SEC team has reached six. The Bulldogs get their shot Saturday at Alabama. 1 5-0 4 team logo MIAMI (FLA.) Miami beat Clemson in Death Valley for the first time since 2010, a 41-13 rout that was the second-worst home loss under Dabo Swinney. Darian Mensah now has 17 total touchdowns and zero turnovers. Rival Florida State is next. -- 5-0 5 team logo NOTRE DAME Notre Dame braved sloppy conditions to beat North Carolina on the road 37-26 for its 15th straight double-digit win, tying 2008-09 Florida for the second-longest streak in 30 years. CJ Carr accounted for five touchdowns. -- 5-0 6 team logo ALABAMA Alabama hung 56 on Mississippi State, the most points it has ever scored on the road against a ranked team. Kalen DeBoer is 25-8 through 33 games, identical to Nick Saban's start in Tuscaloosa. Georgia this week might be the biggest game of his career. -- 5-0 7 team logo INDIANA Indiana won its 21st straight game in a 47-15 shellacking of Rutgers on the road. Indiana wasn't penalized once. Josh Hoover has 15 touchdown passes and no interceptions. Next: a trip to unbeaten Nebraska. 1 5-0 8 team logo LSU LSU piled up 731 yards against McNeese, the second-best total in school history. Sam Leavitt threw three TDs and an interception, the first SEC QB with a pick in each of his team's first five games since 2021. Those turnovers could bite the Tigers in the SEC. 1 4-1 9 team logo UTAH Utah rested during the bye week. The Utes have led by 20-plus at halftime in all four games. Morgan Scalley is 5-0 as a head coach, and Utah has won 10 straight dating back to last season. Kansas visits Saturday to face the Utes' innovative two-quarterback package. 5 4-0 10 team logo UCLA UCLA sat at home preparing for Oregon. James Madison's last three coaches - Curt Cignetti, Bob Chesney and current Dukes coach Billy Napier - are all unbeaten. Chesney returns this week to Eugene, where he led James Madison to a loss in the CFP's first round last season. 2 4-0 11 team logo MISSOURI With Ahmad Hardy still out, Jamal Roberts ran for 211 yards and three TDs in a 45-17 demolition of No. 8 Florida, Missouri's first home win over a top-10 team since 2010. Austin Simmons has yet to throw an INT. Texas A&M comes to Columbia next. 13 4-1 12 team logo TENNESSEE DeSean Bishop ran for a career-high 220 yards and three TDs as Tennessee beat Auburn at home for the first time since 1999. Freshman QB Faizon Brandon was benched at halftime for George MacIntyre. Arkansas is next. 2 4-1 13 team logo OREGON Oregon was idle and Dante Moore remains in concussion protocol with no timetable for his return. If he can't go, Dylan Raiola, who threw for 289 yards in relief in a win at USC, would start against UCLA on CBS. -- 3-1 14 team logo BYU BYU won ugly at TCU, 17-10 after losing RB LJ Martin to a lower-leg injury in the first quarter. Bear Bachmeier threw for 62 yards but ran for two TDs. He's 16-2 as a starter. 4 4-0 15 team logo TEXAS TECH Texas Tech beat Colorado 29-7 to start 5-0 in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history. The defense had a pick six, recording four interceptions, its most since 2021. Arizona State visits Oct. 17. 2 5-0 16 team logo OLE MISS Ole Miss spent its bye trying to fix a defense Florida gashed for 302 rushing yards. RB Kewan Lacy's shoulder got two weeks to heal in advance of Vanderbilt. 1 3-1 17 team logo PITTSBURGH Pitt won 35-33 at Virginia Tech on the Hokies' missed field goal. The Panthers were outgained by 204 yards, the largest margin for a winner in 30 seasons. The bad news: QB Mason Heintschel tore his ACL. Holden Geriner gets his first career start this week against UNC. 4 5-0 18 team logo NEBRASKA Nebraska's best start since 2016 continued as Dwayne McDougle III's 81-yard pick-six was part of a 34 unanswered points in a 48-23 win over Maryland. Now the real test: defending national champion Indiana. 1 5-0 19 team logo FLORIDA Florida couldn't block Missouri's defensive line, and the Gators' secondary struggled to contain explosives in a 45-17 loss at Mizzou. Jadan Baugh, averaging 150 rushing yards a game, managed only 13. Jon Sumrall's first loss at Florida was an old-fashioned butt-whooping. 12 4-1 20 team logo ARIZONA Arizona held a Cincinnati offense that averaged 270 rushing yards to 74 in a 34-7 rout, despite losing three receivers to injuries. Brent Brennan has Arizona 4-1 in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1993-94. NR 4-1 21 team logo VIRGINIA TECH Virginia Tech outgained Pitt by 204 yards and lost 35-33 when John Love missed a 36-yard field goal at the gun. James Franklin had been 91-0 against unranked teams when leading by 14 or more, introducing a new wrinkle for critics who point to his struggles in big games. 1 4-1 22 team logo HOUSTON Houston trailed UCF 17-0 late in the third quarter and won 27-17. Conner Weigman ran for three touchdowns. It was the Cougars' first win when trailing by 17-plus since 2022. Kansas State is next. NR 4-1 23 team logo IOWA The magic ran out against Ohio State. Iowa lost 31-14 at home, its eighth straight loss to a top-10 team, and Kirk Ferentz fell to 2-11 against the Buckeyes. 7 4-1 24 team logo MISS. STATE Alabama scored 56 in Starkville, the most ever allowed at home by a ranked SEC team in regulation. Kamario Taylor has three or more TD passes in all five games, but he was pulled Saturday with an apparent foot injury. LSU awaits after a bye. 13 4-1 25 team logo USC USC held off Washington 25-21 for its first win over the Huskies since 2016, without suspended linebacker Desman Stephens II. Lincoln Riley is 24-1 at home against unranked teams. Next up is a cross-country trip and Penn State's White Out.

Heisman of Week 5: Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith starts to pull away play By: Bill Connelly The hope of doing a Heisman of the Week feature, horse-race style, is that we end up watching a super interesting race unfold over the course of 14 weeks. But if the past two Saturdays are any indication, we might be looking more at a Secretariat situation. A week ago, Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith caught 12 passes for 217 yards and four touchdowns, earning co-Heisman of the Week status with Texas' five-sack Colin Simmons. It was Smith's first 200-yard game. Seven days later, he posted his second -- an 11-catch, 206-yard, two-score performance against an Iowa team that has defended the pass about as well as anyone in the sport in the 2020s. Both Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin and the coaches calling the plays seem to have finally internalized that even if defenses are creating unfavorable numbers for Smith, maybe it makes sense to just throw the ball to him anyway. And if this is what we can expect from the junior in the coming weeks, then this won't be much of a race. But it will be a thrill ride all the same. This season, Heisman is running its Heisman Hopefuls Fan Vote all season long, with a platform that provides statistics, EA Sports ratings and other information. In that vein, I am again awarding the Heisman every single week of the season and doling out weekly points, F1-style (in this case, 10 points for first place, 9 for second, and so on). After five weeks, the leader is clear. This week's Heisman winner: Jeremiah Smith 1. Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State Week 5 numbers: 11 catches for 206 yards and two touchdowns against Iowa Five weeks into the 2026 season, 23 players have gained at least 423 receiving yards. Some of the most exciting receivers in the country -- Alabama's Ryan Coleman-Williams and Lotzeir Brooks, Notre Dame's Micah Gilbert, USC freshman Kayden Dixon-Wyatt -- have yet to hit that mark. Smith hit it in the past two weeks. The Ohio State run game hasn't been particularly sharp this season: The Buckeyes are just 57th in rushing success rate* and, with minimal explosiveness, 83rd in yards per carry (no sacks). Their offensive line isn't shining in any category -- 65th in stuff rate (run stops at or behind the line), 53rd in pressure rate, 91st in O-line penalties per game. But it might not matter as long as Smith is on the field.

Jeremiah Smith is the best receiver since...? DeVonta Smith? Larry Fitzgerald? Randy Moss? Ever? It's not hyperbolic anymore to suggest that Smith could be the best wide receiver in college football history. In just 2½ seasons, he has already broken every major all-time Ohio State receiving record. As a true freshman two years ago, he made the game-clinching grab against Notre Dame to lift the Buckeyes to the national championship. And he's the clear favorite to become just the fifth receiver in college football history to win the Heisman. Smith is a generational player. He could go down as the best to play the position. -- Jake Trotter

Ohio State vs Iowa Facts and Numbers Guide

Everything Ohio State vs Iowa Football Predictions

Iowa has one path to pulling off the upset against Ohio State but the Buckeyes are built to make that path impossible Iowa can drag Ohio State into the kind of ugly low-scoring game it doesn’t want to play, but this Buckeyes team has too much talent and explosiveness to stay there for four quarters. By: Tegan Randolph The Ohio State Buckeyes are traveling to Iowa to take on the Hawkeyes, and while the setting might scream trap game to some (and something ESPN is likely banking on), the reality of this matchup tells a very different story. What Iowa needs to do to potentially pull off an upset Let’s live in la-la land with fairy tales, butterflies, and unicorns for a second. What does Iowa have to do to win this game? They have to play Iowa football. The Hawkeyes have to drag Ohio State into the mud, get the Buckeyes to their level, limit the explosives, and try to stop the best player on the face of the planet in Jeremiah Smith. They need to run the football effectively, not make mistakes, and keep this a low-scoring affair. And you may say, Tegan, that sounds like it could work. Sure, in theory. Iowa is going to need maybe one, probably two plays on special teams to swing the game. And on top of that, they’re going to need a disaster class from Ohio State. Maybe force quarterback Julian Sayin into some really tough predicaments, which I think Iowa has the capabilities of doing. Their defense is built for that kind of disruption. But, there’s a problem with that logic actually coming to fruition for the Hawkeyes. Ohio State is immune to this kind of game Here’s where I stand on this matchup and the way Iowa is going to approach it. I think this iteration of Ohio State football is immune to this kind of game. Outside of what we saw with Purdue, and you can look at examples way far into the past, this Buckeyes team has been built to avoid the mud fight. They are too talented, too deep, and too explosive for Iowa to contain them for four quarters. Jeremiah Smith alone is a matchup nightmare that the Hawkeyes simply don’t have an answer for, and when you pair him with the rest of that Ohio State roster, it gets ugly fast. The only thing I’ve seen talked about online is Iowa covering the 14.5-point spread. Sure, I think they could backdoor into that. But if the basis of a bet is a backdoor cover, it’s not a good bet. That tells you everything you need to know about where this game is headed. I think Ohio State rolls past Iowa in this game. And I’m putting my confidence where my mouth is. If I’m wrong on this, I’ll wear a clown nose. I’ll put up the same wager I had with Florida and Ole Miss. And frankly, I’m more confident about this game being an Ohio State dominant victory than I was about either of those. I believe the Buckeyes win big, and College GameDay picked the wrong game of the week to travel to. Ohio State vs. Iowa prediction, pick, odds, spread: Buckeyes face another road test at Hawkeyes No. 5 Ohio State travels to Iowa City for a Big Ten showdown with the No. 14 Hawkeyes By David Cobb Iowa and Ohio State are squaring off as top-15 foes for the first time since 2006 on Saturday, when the No. 14 Hawkeyes host the No. 5 Buckeyes on CBS. The Big Ten showdown brings a moment of tension for Ohio State, which suffered a 55-24 loss during its last visit to Kinnick Stadium in 2017. With one loss already, the Buckeyes can ill-afford a stumble as they enter a month that also includes trips to No. 6 Indiana and No. 18 USC. For Iowa, this represents a breakthrough opportunity on the heels of a last-second win at Michigan in Week 4. That victory propelled Iowa to 4-0 for the first time since 2021, when the Hawkeyes rose all the way to No. 2 in the AP poll on their way to an appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game. Beating the Buckeyes would put Iowa on a similar trajectory and send its playoff chances skyrocketing. Ohio State won the last two meetings by 28 (2024) and 44 (2022), but there are signs that these Hawkeyes are better equipped to stage a competitive battle as these Big Ten stalwarts square off in Iowa City for the first time in nearly a decade. Ohio State vs. Iowa: Need to know Iowa's offensive punch: Iowa ranks No. 48 nationally in total offense entering this showdown, which is hardly remarkable on the surface. But after ranking 117th or worse in total offense for the past five seasons, it's a marked improvement. The Hawkeyes struggled to run the football against Michigan last week, but quarterback Hank Brown led a game-winning drive capped by a touchdown pass to Reece Vander Zee on the game's final play. Considering the hostility of Michigan Stadium and the quality of the opponent, it was the sort of clutch, late-game execution that would have been unfathomable for the Iowa offense at any point over the past several years. Ohio State's defensive questions: Ohio State ranks just 27th in total defense through four games, down from finishing the 2025 season at No. 1 in that metric. Considering seven players from last season's defense were selected in the 2026 NFL Draft, it's not shocking that the Buckeyes have dropped off a bit. But the slide came with a cost in a Week 2 loss at Texas, when Ohio State's defense couldn't get off the field over the final 20 minutes as the Longhorns rallied from a 23-3 deficit to win 24-23. Illinois racked up 462 yards and 25 first downs on Ohio State last week. Though the Buckeyes won 42-19, it wasn't a banner day for coordinator Matt Patricia's defense, which comes into this game with some questions to answer. Jeremiah Smith making history: Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith is on a blistering pace with 33 receptions for 617 yards and seven touchdowns through four games. The junior star is one touchdown away from tying Chris Olave for most receiving touchdowns in program history and just five away from matching ex-Michigan star Braylon Edwards for most receiving touchdowns in Big Ten history at 39. Smith is on track to become the first player to ever lead the Big Ten in receiving yards three times. He's also likely to surpass K.J. Hill and Emeka Egbuka for most receptions in Ohio State history in the near future. Where to watch Ohio State vs. Iowa live Date: Saturday, Oct. 3 | Time: 3:30 p.m. ET Location: Kinnick Stadium -- Iowa City, Iowa Ohio State vs. Iowa prediction, picks Ohio State's defense is suspect enough that Iowa's offense -- on track to be the program's best in years -- may actually put up some points. However, the Hawkeyes aren't quite as stingy on defense as usual, which means slowing the Buckeyes down enough to keep the game within two touchdowns could be hard. Look for Iowa to make this a competitive game until Ohio State's superior skill talent (see: Jeremiah Smith) creates separation down the stretch. But it's close enough of a call that bettors seeing Ohio State -14.5 should consider the Iowa side. Pick: Ohio State -13.5

By Josh Poloha For the first time this season, and for the first time ever with the Buckeye Stripes, Ohio State will wear alternate jerseys in Iowa City on Saturday. The Buckeyes are set to wear their all-white, “Sub Zero” uniforms against Iowa, a source told Eleven Warriors. It marks the first time since 2024 that Ohio State will wear its all-white uniforms. It also marks the third time ever that OSU will wear the "Sub Zero" whites, as the Buckeyes wore the all-white uniforms with the old shoulder stripes against Oregon in 2024 and Michigan State in 2020. Ohio State wore another all-white uniform – affectionately known as its “Cocaine Whites” – for road games at Michigan in 2013 and Penn State in 2014. Photos: Ohio State’s New Scarlet Rush and Sub Zero Uniforms with Buckeye Stripes RELATED PHOTOS: OHIO STATE’S NEW SCARLET RUSH AND SUB ZERO UNIFORMS WITH BUCKEYE STRIPES Ohio State dropped over 90 photos of the program's updated Scarlet Rush and Sub Zero uniforms from every angle. Read More The Buckeyes showcased all-white cleats with a scarlet Nike swoosh leading up to their top-four showdown at Texas two weeks ago. Expect them to return on Saturday to pair with Ohio State's all-white uniforms against Iowa. OSU will reveal its full uniform for the Iowa game at 3:30 p.m. Friday, 24 hours before kickoff. The Hawkeyes are expected to wear either all-black uniforms or their traditional home uniform, which features black jerseys with gold pants. Ohio State and Iowa are set to kick off in Iowa City at 3:30 p.m. ET. The top-14 matchup will be televised on CBS. ESPN's College GameDay will be on site Saturday morning.

Week 5 College Football TV Schedule - October 2-October 3, 2026

Week 5 schedule Friday, Oct. 2 FBS Pitt at Virginia Tech | 7 p.m. | ESPN Liberty at Delaware | 7 p.m. | CBSSN Penn State at Northwestern | 8 p.m. | FOX Saturday, Oct. 3 No. 3 Notre Dame at North Carolina | 12 p.m. | ESPN No. 7 Alabama at No. 16 Mississippi State | 12 p.m. | ABC UCF at No. 20 Houston | 12 p.m. | ESPN2 Boston College at No. 21 SMU | 12 p.m. | CW Michigan at Minnesota | 12 p.m. | FOX Middle Tennessee at Kansas | 12 p.m. | ESPNU West Virginia at Iowa State | 12 p.m. | TNT Stanford at Wake Forest | 12 p.m. | ACC Network Syracuse at UConn | 12 p.m. | CBSSN Navy at Air Force | 12 p.m. | CBS Michigan State at Wisconsin | 12:30 p.m. | Big Ten Network Vanderbilt at No. 2 Georgia | 12:45 p.m. | SEC Network Western Michigan at Buffalo | 1 p.m. | ESPN+ Toledo at Ball State | 2 p.m. | ESPN+ No. 5 Ohio State at No. 14 Iowa | 3:30 p.m. | CBS No. 8 Florida at No. 25 Missouri | 3:30 p.m. | ABC Auburn at No. 17 Tennessee | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN Louisville at NC State | 3:30 p.m. | ACC Network Cal at UNLV | 3:30 p.m. | CBSSN Virginia at Florida State | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN2 Memphis at Charlotte | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+ Samford at UAB | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+ Wyoming at North Dakota State | 3:30 p.m. | CW Akron at Central Michigan | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+ Eastern Michigan at UMass | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+ Ohio at Kent State | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+ Bowling Green at Miami (Ohio) | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+ Old Dominion at Georgia State | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+ Marshall at James Madison | 3:45 p.m. | ESPNU Maryland at Nebraska | 4 p.m. | FS1 UTEP at New Mexico | 4 p.m. | MW+ No. 24 Kentucky at South Carolina | 4:15 p.m. | SEC Network Purdue at Illinois | 4:15 p.m. | Big Ten Network Oregon State at Colorado State | 6 p.m. | USA Network Texas Southern at Florida Atlantic | 6 p.m. | ESPN+ No. 10 BYU at TCU | 7 p.m. | ESPN Arkansas at Texas A&M | 7 p.m. | ESPN2 UTSA at Rice | 7 p.m. | ESPN+ Georgia Southern at Costal Carolina | 7 p.m. | ESPN+ UL Monroe at South Alabama | 7 p.m. | ESPN+ No. 4 Miami (Fla.) at Clemson | 7:30 p.m. | ABC No. 12 Texas Tech at Colorado | 7:30 p.m. | FOX Washington at No. 18 USC | 7:30 p.m. | NBC Utah State at No. 22 Boise State | 7:30 p.m. | CBSSN Temple at South Florida | 7:30 p.m. | ESPNU Army at Louisiana Tech | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN+ McNeese at No. 11 LSU | 7:45 p.m. | SEC Network No. 6 Indiana at Rutgers | 8 p.m. | Big Ten Network Arkansas State at Louisiana | 8 p.m. | ESPN+ Fresno State at Washington State | 9:30 p.m. | USA Network Baylor at Arizona State | 10:30 p.m. | ESPN Texas State at San Diego State | 10:30 p.m. | CW Cincinnati at Arizona | 11 p.m. | FOX San Jose State at Hawai'i | 11:59 p.m. | MW+