2009 College Football Power Rankings - Week 5

Some big upsets have caused more than a little movement in the week 5 college football power rankings. Florida makes its way to the top for the first time this season, but does so by sharing the crown with Texas. Houston waits in the wings with impressive (but close) wins over Big 12 opponents and the 1990s revival comes crashing down as Miami and Florida State drop like bricks out of the power rankings.

1. (tie) Florida Gators (4-0)

242 points

Florida blows out conference and division foe, Kentucky 41-7, but suffers a shock of its own with the loss of quarterback (and 2007 Heisman Trophy winner) Tim Tebow to an apparent concussion. The Gators have a bye week to get him back before heading to Baton Rouge for the teams' toughest test to date.

With three blow-out wins and a solid (if not overly impressive) victory over Tennessee, the Gators are undefeated and, so far, unmatched. Except for:

1. (tie) Texas Longhorns (4-0)

242 points

Three Longhorn blowouts and a ten-point win over a conference and division opponent retains Texas' spot at the top (albeit a little more crowded). UT could have used some help from Texas Tech to bump them up a notch. But, joining Oklahoma State, the Red Raiders found themselves punched for a one-point, last-minute, length-of-the-field-drive loss to an increasingly emboldened University of Houston.

Texas should have no trouble staying on top for at least two more week as they get a bye week before playing host to Colorado. The Red River Shootout comes the following week.

3. Iowa Hawkeyes (4-0)

236 points

When Iowa started the season with a one-point win over Northern Iowa, a power-rankings list probably seemed as daunting a climb to the Hawkeye faithful as Machu Picchu does to the average tourist from Cedar Rapids. But, thanks to a trio of stifling defensive performances versus three solid BCS conference teams (including then #5 Penn State), Iowa owns outright the precipice on which it now stands.

The biggest help to the Hawkeyes' meteoric ascension is that all four of its opponents' losses have come against Iowa itself, while those fours schools have collected 12 wins of their own. A date with struggling Sun Belter -- Arkansas State -- should keep the Hawkeyes hanging around the top, before getting its next text against Rich Rodriguez' resurgent Wolverines.

4. Kansas Jayhawks (4-0)

219 points

Kansas ripped through an unimpressive nonconference slate pretty much as expected. Southern Miss made last week's game in Lawrence a little too close for comfort, but the Golden Eagles help KU's power-rankings considerably with its own wins over UCF and Virginia. The Jayhawks start conference play in two weeks vs. 3-1 Iowa State. The Jayhawks should have no real challenge in hosting the Cyclones, but things pick up quickly thereafter with a trip to Boulder followed by a house call from the Sooners.

5. California Golden Bears (3-1)

218 points

You might think that Cal's 39-point loss to Oregon would send the Bears careening down to at least the middle of the power rankings. But wins over Minnesota and Eastern Washington continue to help California as the Gophers and Eagles continue to chalk up wins over their own opponents. Don't expect that to last too long, though, especially with Minnesota heading into Big 10 conference play.

Unless California shakes off this drubbing by the Ducks and returns to its previous high level of performance, the Bears' lofty footing is shaky at best. The disaster that has befallen Maryland football is no help to Cal, either. California can prove it still belongs near the top by beating USC at home next week. But, if the Trojans rouse out of their offensive slumber and pound the Bears in the way the Ducks did, it's sayonara time for Berkeley.

6. Cincinnati Bearcats (4-0)

216 points

The Bearcats chalk up another win, but haven't looked quite so dominant as they did in their opening week throttling of Rutgers. But those conference brothers are doing their best to make that blowout pay off as the Scarlet Knights muster a three-game win streak to boost Cincinnati's power ranking. The bad news for both Cincy and Rutgers, is that RU's lite schedule gets much tougher by mid-October.

As for Cincinnati's own schedule, road trips to South Florida and Pittsburgh could be tough but, by and large, a favorable forecast for wins should keep UC near the top of the rankings.

7. Pittsburgh Panthers (3-1)

201 points

North Carolina State dealt the Panthers their first blow of the season, but decisive wins in its first three games have kept Pitt on the move. Unfortunately those decisive wins were against conspicuously unimpressive competition. Expect Pitt to drop quickly with the schedule already having picked up.

8. Auburn Tigers (4-0)

195 points

The War Eagle needs just one more victory to match its total in the win column for all of last season. And, barring a breakdown, they should get it against Tennessee next week. The Tigers' offense has been impressive so far. The defense, on the other hand, needs some work. Road trips to LSU and Georgia present major challenges, but it's not inconceivable that this year's Iron Bowl ends up facing two undefeated teams.

I like Auburn's chances of moving quickly up in the power rankings.

9. Virginia Tech Hokies (3-1)

195 points

Of all the teams mentioned so far, Virginia Tech's two marquis wins (against Nebraska and Miami) and one marquis loss (against Alabama) seem to have the most potential for gaining the Hokies some ground as the season progresses. The Cornhuskers (despite the heartbreaking setback in Blacksburg) look like a killer team in the making. Miami has one more tough challenge as a "something to prove" Oklahoma comes to Land Shark Stadium on Saturday. But the rest of the Hurricane slate looks reasonably runnable. With wins over two potentially ten-win teams and a close lose to a National Title contender, the Hokies are sitting pretty for the remainder of the season.

10. LSU Tigers (4-0)

189 points

Undefeated, but just barely. LSU can take pride in its third consecutive 4-0 start, but the closeness in scores seems a little to eerily similar to last season when LSU lost five of its last nine games as opposed to 2007, when the Tigers won a BCS title.

It's hard to know just how helpful LSU's opponents will turn out to be just yet. Washington beats USC one week, sending a huge power boost back through Baton Rouge, but then loses badly to Stanford in a performance reminiscent of Washington's winless campaign of last year. And Mississippi State (the perennial SEC doormat) looked just a little too "with it" against the Tiger defense.

Back-to-back ranked opponents in Georgia and Florida will go a long way in predicting LSU's remaining season. Will it be another glorious 2007 or disappointing 2008? Most likely it will be something in between.

Other teams waiting to crack the Top 10:

Boise State (185 points), NC State (185 points), Alabama (181 points), Georgia Tech (177 points), Penn State (175 points), Oklahoma State (168 points), South Florida (167 points), Nebraska (166 points), BYU (165 points), Missouri (161 points), Michigan (160 points), Ohio State (157 points), Oregon (156 points), North Carolina (153 points), Oklahoma (141 points), USC (134 points), Connecticut (131 points) TCU (127 points), Tulsa (125 points), UCLA (124 points), Wisconsin (124 points), Boston College (121 points), Rutgers (112 points), Texas A&M (99 points), Houston (96 points), Georgia (79 points) and South Carolina (79 points)