Sunday Takes: What We Learned From Week 5 In College Football

Week Five of the college football season is now a thing of the past. As fans mourn losses and celebrate triumphant victories, I must divvy out the audacious takes needed to make sense of the madness that unfolded on Saturday.

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OHIO STATE IS NOT THE #1 TEAM IN THE NATION: Last year, Florida State was routinely discredited for their uninspiring performances against inferior opponents. Florida State pulled off wins, but they were ugly. They were given the playoff nod because a win’s a win (so to speak), and they were bestowed the defending champs ‘benefit of the doubt’. This year, it’s Ohio State in that scenario (thus far). Despite being the so-called most talented team in the nation, the Buckeyes have struggled against middling teams. Furthermore, the Buckeyes have a ~~generous~~ ‘cupcake’ schedule, which will likely assist them in going undefeated. Past accolades aside, Ohio State has no place among the top four teams in college football.

MICHIGAN STATE IS NOT THE #2 TEAM IN THE NATION: After the Spartans defeated Oregon in week 2, some were ready to hand Michigan State a playoff spot. In the ensuing weeks, that win over the Ducks has looked less and less impressive. Keep in mind Michigan State won by three, at home, to an injured quarterback who had roughly three weeks of practice. The Ducks would go on to lose 62-20 to Utah, at home. Anyway, the Spartans have struggled against weak opponents a la Ohio State. The next Tom Brady, Connor Cook, has looked mediocre against schools you’ve never heard of, and the worst defense in the Pac-12. Their ‘NoFly Zone’ defense is also no longer imposing. Michigan State isn’t one of the ten best teams in the country, and certainly unworthy of being ranked inside the top four.

OREGON DOES NOT HAVE A COMPETENT QB ON ITS ROSTER: The Vernon Adams experiment appears to have failed (at the moment). He also has an injury on his throwing hand, which is keeping him sidelined. The next quarterback on the depth chart, Jeff Lockie, has looked…suspect, to say the least. That leaves the Ducks with third-string Taylor Alie, a walk-on from Eugene, Oregon. It’s a desperate situation to say the least.

STANFORD IS ACTUALLY STILL REALLY GOOD: Stanford’s lone loss came on the road to Northwestern — who might actually be pretty good! Since then, the Cardinal have ripped off four-straight wins. Jim Harbaugh may be gone, but Kevin Hogan is still under center and the stout defense is still intact. All is well in Palo Alto.

OLE MISS LOSING TO FLORIDA WAS THE MOST OLE MISS THING EVER: After Ole Miss beat Alabama in Tuscaloosa, the Rebel’s impending letdown was right on time against Florida. Ole Miss was never going to go undefeated. As for the Rebels chances of winning the SEC West? Gone.

UCLA IS OVERRATED: The Bruins looked great against Arizona. This past week, against Arizona State, they looked the exact opposite. The ‘Rosen One’ is still a true freshman and UCLA is dealing with three inuries to key defensive players. The Bruins will likely rule over the Pac-12 soon, but it won’t be this year.

JIM HARBAUGH IS COMING FOR YOU, OHIO STATE AND MICHIGAN STATE: After a road loss to Utah, Michigan has gone without a loss. The wins aren’t even the most impressive part, though. The Wolverine’s defense has been absolutely stifling. It’s only year one of the Jim Harbaugh regime, but it’s safe to say Michigan has the potential to upset a few top-ranked Big 10 teams this season.

OREGON IS BAD, BUT NOT ‘COLORADO BAD’: The signature uptempo Oregon offense, which routinely put up 50+ points on the scoreboard, is no longer a thing in Eugene. I already mentioned that the Ducks don’t have a quarterback. They also don’t have a capable defense. The Ducks are a bad team, but their win over Colorado proves they haven’t sunk to the depths of the Buffs just yet.

ALABAMA ISN’T GOING ANYWHERE: Alabama’s fan base overreacted to the loss to Ole Miss, but cooler heads all knew the Tide would be fine. As long as Nick Saban is at the helm, Alabama is all but guaranteed to be in contention for the SEC title.

WATCH OUT FOR THE SLEEPER TEAMS: Powerhouse programs Florida State and Oklahoma aren’t mentioned as much as other top teams. They’re both still quietly undefeated and loaded with enough talent to break the top-four at season’s end.

NOTRE DAME’S LOSSES WILL START SURMOUNTING, AND THE WORLD WILL BE A BETTER PLACE BECAUSE OF IT: The first loss is always the hardest to acquire. After that, they start rolling in. Hopefully, that’s the case for Notre Dame. The Irish need to fade into Tommy Rees level irrelevancy.

AS OF NOW, PICKING THE TOP FOUR IS A HEADACHE: It’s only been five weeks of play, but at the moment, picking the top four teams for the playoff seems merely impossible. The ACC’s Clemson and Florida State are still undefeated. The Big 10 has two teams (unjustly) ranked in the top four. Big 12 powers TCU, Baylor, and Oklahoma are all still undefeated. And the SEC and Pac-12 are both going to want heavy consideration for their conference’s brutal schedules. Unless more upsets occur, the playoff committee is going to enrage A LOT of fan bases.