• Alabama the new No. 1: The Crimson Tide take over as the top-ranked team after an impressive win 49-26 over then-No. 20 Arkansas.
• Georgia falls to No. 2: The Bulldogs drop after struggling to get by Missouri, winning 26-22.
• Oklahoma State enters the top 10: The Cowboys move up after beating then-No. 16 Baylor, 36-25.
Estimated Reading Time: 6 mins
Week 5 of the college football season provided five games between ranked teams, tied for the most in a regular season week since 2017.
With that massive week comes massive changes to our top-25 rankings, including at the top. Here’s how our top 25 looks entering Week 6. Note that this ranking is not the same as PFF’s power rankings.
1. Alabama Crimson Tide (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 1st)
Week 6 Matchup: vs. Texas A&M Aggies
Alabama won convincingly on the road against No. 20 Arkansas, 49-26, in the Crimson Tide’s first top-25 victory of the season.
The win came at a cost, though. Reigning Heisman winner Bryce Young went down with a shoulder injury early in the second quarter. Before that, he was lighting the Razorbacks up with a 93.2 passing grade, the highest among all Power Five quarterbacks in Week 5. Redshirt freshman Jalen Milroe took over and recorded just a 34.0 passing grade, the third-lowest among Power Five quarterbacks for the week. However, he was impressive on the ground, finishing with the fifth-best rushing grade.
Head coach Nick Saban said Young is “day-to-day” with a shoulder injury, so it remains to be seen if he can play this weekend against Texas A&M. If he can’t, expect the Crimson Tide to employ a hefty dose of the ground game with Milroe and running back Jahmyr Gibbs.
2. Georgia Bulldogs (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 2nd)
Week 6 Matchup: vs. Auburn Tigers
Despite being 31-point favorites, Georgia squeaked by Missouri with a 26-22 win on the road. The Bulldogs were down by 10 with 9:39 left in the fourth quarter before waking up and scoring 14 unanswered to close out the game.
This is the second straight inferior opponent Georgia has struggled to put away. In Week 4, the Bulldogs were favored by 45 points over Kent State but won by only 17. This week, Georgia is favored by 29.5 points over Auburn.
3. Ohio State Buckeyes (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 3rd)
Week 6 Matchup: at Michigan State Spartans
Heisman favorite C.J. Stroud earned the lowest-graded game of his career against Rutgers in Week 5, finishing with a 57.2 figure for the day. Coupled with the fact that the Buckeyes were missing two stars in wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba and running back TreVeyon Henderson, that’d normally spell trouble for most offenses.
Ohio State isn’t like most offenses. The Buckeyes rode running back Miyan Williams to a 49-10 victory over the Scarlet Knights. Williams finished the game with 189 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns on 21 carries, forcing 10 missed tackles along the way. He’s now the nation’s highest-graded running back with a 90.5 mark for the season.
Even when the Buckeyes aren’t close to their best, they can still hang nearly 50 points on opponents. This offense is special.
4. Clemson Tigers (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 5th)
Week 5 Matchup: at Boston College Eagles
Clemson pulled off its second top-25 win in as many weeks by defeating No. 10 N.C. State, 30-20, this past weekend.
Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei didn’t have the best game through the air, posting just a 67.1 passing grade against the Wolfpack. He made up for it on the ground, though, with two rushing touchdowns and 59 yards on 17 carries. Under his leadership, the Tigers look primed for another College Football Playoff run.
5. Michigan Wolverines (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 4th)
Week 6 Matchup: at Indiana Hoosiers
Michigan’s offense had an impressive performance against an elite Iowa defense. Heading into Saturday, the Hawkeyes had the highest team-defense grade and third-lowest expected points per play allowed figure among Power Five teams. The Hawkeyes weren’t nearly as successful against the Wolverines.
Iowa defensive performances by week
| Games | Team defense grade (P5 Rank) | EPA/play allowed |
| First four games | 93.7 (1st/65) | -0.353 (3rd/65) |
| vs. Michigan | 62.7 (50th/61) | 0.166 (51st/61) |
Leading the charge for Michigan was running back Blake Corum. He ran for 133 yards and picked up a first down or touchdown on nine of his carries. Over the past two weeks, Corum has rushed for a nation-leading 376 yards and looks like the favorite to win the Doak Walker Award, given to the nation’s best running back.
6. USC Trojans (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 6th)
Week 6 Matchup: vs. Washington State Cougars
After an uncharacteristically low-scoring game against Oregon State two weeks ago, USC’s offense got back on track against Arizona State in Week 5, winning 42-25.
Sophomore quarterback Caleb Williams also regained his form against the Sun Devils. In the three games prior to Saturday, Williams had just the 36th best grade (73.7) among 67 Power Five quarterbacks. Against Arizona State, Williams’ 90.4 grade ranked fifth. He’ll need more of those performances if he wants to bring home USC’s first Heisman Trophy since Matt Leinart in 2004.
7. Tennessee Volunteers (Record: 4-0, AP Ranking: 8th)
Week 6 Matchup: at No. 25 LSU Tigers
Tennessee was off this past week but has a chance to pull off its third top-25 win of the season when it travels to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to take on No. 25 LSU.
8. Penn State Nittany Lions (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 10th)
Week 6 Matchup: Bye
Penn State beat both Northwestern and the conditions in Week 5, winning 17-7 in a rainy affair. Penn State’s run defense was the most impressive part of the victory. The Nittany Lions held the Wildcats to just 1.5 yards per carry, tied for the fewest allowed by a Power Five team all season.
Penn State will need its run defense to step up in two weeks when it travels to The Big House to take on Blake Corum and No. 4 Michigan.
9. Oklahoma State Cowboys (Record: 4-0, AP Ranking: 7th)
Week 6 Matchup: vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders
Oklahoma State passed its first test of the season with a 36-25 win on the road over No. 16 Baylor. Before that game, the Cowboys had played the third-easiest schedule in the country, according to PFF's power rankings.
The Big 12 was seen as wide-open heading into this season. After beating the Bears, Oklahoma State now has a 39% chance of winning the conference, according to our simulations. No other Big 12 school is above 16%.
10. Ole Miss Rebels (Record: 5-0, AP Ranking: 9th)
Week 6 Matchup: at Vanderbilt Commodores
Ole Miss picked up a statement win over No. 7 Kentucky, winning 22-19 at home.
The Rebels are now 5-0 for the first time in eight years, thanks in large part to their defense. Ole Miss forced two turnovers in the final three minutes to preserve the victory over Kentucky. So far this season, the Rebels have top-10 marks in team defense grade, pass-rush grade and coverage grade among Power Five teams.
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