College Football Week 5 Recap

How in the world does Cincy jump Ohio Stae?
AP College Football Top 25 for week 5
1. Florida (54) 4-0 1,486 1
2. Texas (1) 4-0 1,416 2
3. Alabama (5) 5-0 1,404 3
4. LSU 5-0 1,290 4
5. Virginia Tech 4-1 1,200 6
6. Boise St. 5-0 1,185 5
7. Southern Cal 4-1 1,108 7
8. Cincinnati 5-0 1,004 10
9. Ohio St. 4-1 994 9
10. TCU 4-0 940 11
11. Miami 3-1 931 17
12. Iowa 5-0 823 13
13. Oregon 4-1 676 16
14. Penn St. 4-1 564 15
15. Oklahoma St. 3-1 563 14
16. Kansas 4-0 513 18
17. Auburn 5-0 428 --
18. BYU 4-1 403 20
19. Oklahoma 2-2 370 8
20. Mississippi 3-1 357 21
21. Nebraska 3-1 333 23
22. Georgia Tech 4-1 311 25
23. South Florida 5-0 238 --
24. Missouri 4-0 215 --
25. South Carolina 4-1 200 --
Others receiving votes: Wisconsin 157, Houston 142, Georgia 115, Stanford 50, Utah 31, Michigan 25, Boston College 12, Notre Dame 9, Pittsburgh 3, Arizona 2, West Virginia 2.



What we have learned so far in each conference:

ACC
Miami is a top-10 team, and Boston College showed you're never too old to play quarterback.

Big 12
Texas A&M's defense is improved, but still untested. Meanwhile, Mike Leach's decision was an inexplicable gamble.

Big East
South Florida is back in the national picture, but Pitt has a major defensive crisis.

Big Ten
Iowa is for real. Wisconsin QB Scott Tolzien is also for real. And Tressel ball still works.

Pac-10
Oregon might get the last laugh, and Arizona and Washington State found their QBs of the future.
SEC
A month into the season, the pecking order in the SEC is starting to take shape. And at this point, it's hard to argue that Alabama isn't tops.

Non-AQ: Houston is out, and that leaves just two teams to be the BCS busters.


1. Pike
Cincinnati quarterback Tony Pike's dark-horse Heisman campaign may be limited by a rarely seen problem: He can't get on the field. For the second consecutive week, the Bearcats' time of possession didn't climb out of the teens. Cincinnati is last in the Big East with an average TOP under 24 minutes. Pike is averaging 299 passing yards per game and has thrown 13 touchdown passes. He gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "passing efficiency."

2. We know two things about Notre Dame:
(1) the Irish can win a close game, and (2) they took good notes on USC's victory at Notre Dame Stadium in 2005. Did you see the scrum that crossed the goal line with Irish fullback Robert Hughes in the middle of it? Guard Chris Stewart pulled the pile from the goal-line side, while center Eric Olsen shoved it forward from the rear. Reggie Bush himself couldn't have Bush-Pushed Hughes over the goal line any better.

3. Bowden
It's beginning to look as if it won't matter whether the NCAA allows Florida State and Bobby Bowden to keep those 14 vacated victories or not. In five weeks, Bowden has fallen from one victory behind Joe Paterno of Penn State to three behind, 387-384. If you assume Bowden won't coach past 2010, that leaves him three back with 21 to play. No one's calculating a magic number just yet, but the race isn't turning into much of a race.




ACC
Miami is a top-10 team. The Hurricanes have knocked off three ranked opponents in four tries, including the No. 8 team in the nation. Any questions? There shouldn't be, because a 3-1 start against that gauntlet proves Miami is one of the best teams in the county and in the ACC. Saturday night's win over Oklahoma was monumental for the program and the conference, and it capped off an impressive winning record some thought would leave the Canes 0-4. The key for the Hurricanes now is to stay grounded, humble and consistent, because their toughest competition is behind them.


Big 12
The best story of any Big 12 quarterback is Kansas State's Grant Gregory. His effort in the Wildcats' 24-23 victory over Iowa State boosts them into an early lead in the North Division. The sixth-year senior transferred from South Florida to Kansas State after his father was fired as the Bulls' offensive coordinator and Bill Snyder arrived at KSU. He didn't win the starting job until Saturday. It came just in time, however, for the veteran KSU coach.


WHAT WE LEARNED
Click below to see what our bloggers learned this past weekend.

ACC
Big 12
Big East
Big Ten
Pac-10
SEC
Non-AQs
Notre Dame


Big East
There is separation in the league race. Cincinnati and South Florida are clearly the two most dominant teams in the Big East right now, and they will battle for superiority on Oct. 15 in Tampa. West Virginia and Pittsburgh have some issues but will be in the thick of the race the whole season. Connecticut is lurking and gets a chance to prove itself this week at Pitt. Those are the five contenders, and probably in that order.


Big Ten
Wisconsin is in the league title mix. After an extremely disappointing 2008 season, Wisconsin is off to a 5-0 start and showing improvement on both sides of the ball. The Badgers overpowered Minnesota after halftime with running back John Clay (184 rush yards, 3 TDs) and continued to get great performances from senior defensive end O'Brien Schofield (3.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, forced fumble). They still struggle to close games, but they're extremely opportunistic and consistently make opponents pay for mistakes. Wisconsin can further validate its start by upsetting Ohio State next week in Columbus.


Pac-10
Stanford and Toby Gerhart are legit. Stanford is 4-1 and 3-0 in the Pac-10. Gerhart ranks fourth in the nation with 130 yards rushing per game and has scored eight touchdowns. If that doesn't make him a Heisman Trophy candidate, then what the heck will? And unlike Cal and Jahvid Best, Gerhart has a solid passing game to support him. Also, the Cardinal seemed to have figured out ways to cover up their lack of team speed on defense. You've got to love the Cardinal's physical style. This team won't make it easy on anyone, so take note Oregon and USC.


SEC
Props for Ole Miss' defense. While there's still some concern in Oxford about the Ole Miss offense, specifically quarterback Jevan Snead's inability to put together a whole game, it's time to give it up for Tyrone Nix's defense. The Rebels have played well enough on defense this season to still be unbeaten right now. The 16-10 loss at South Carolina was hardly their fault, and the D was dominant Saturday in a 23-7 victory at Vanderbilt. Granted, the Commodores aren't going to be confused as an offensive juggernaut, but the Ole Miss offense put the defense in some tough spots in the second half, and Nix's guys responded every time. There are a lot of teams who'd be willing to trade for the Rebels' front seven on defense, which is the best thing Ole Miss has going for it Saturday entering one of the biggest games the Rebels have played at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in the past 40 years. Beating Alabama starts up front on defense, and Ole Miss has what it takes there to get it done.


Non-AQ
I da who? Idaho. The state of Idaho has become a hotbed for college football, and it's not just because of Boise State. While the Broncos are skyrocketing up the polls, the Idaho Vandals, long in Boise State's shadow, are holding their own against some pretty tough competition. Idaho is 4-1, its best start since John L. Smith was the coach and the Vandals were in the FCS. Perhaps the Nov. 14 matchup between Idaho and Boise State will mean more than anyone thought.


Notre Dame
Te'o has arrived. Freshman linebacker Manti Te'o made his first career start and finished with 10 tackles. He wasn't flawless, but he was active and made his presence felt. For a Notre Dame defense that's still struggling to wrap up ball carriers (at least until they get to the goal line) more Te'o can only be a good thing.