As the calendar changes to October, the playoff race starts to heat up and coaches’ seats start getting a little toasty, even as the weather gets chillier. Here’s what to look for in Week 5.
Best Matchups
#7 Stanford Cardinal at #10 Washington Huskies
After the Cardinal escaped UCLA last Saturday 22-13, the Cardinal and Christian McCaffrey take their 3-0 record up to Seattle to face off against the Washington Huskies. While Stanford hasn’t beaten up on their opponents like Washington has—the Huskies have outscored their opponents 183-58—Stanford has dominated the Pac-12, winning the conference championship three of the past four years. Huskies head coach Chris Petersen has created a buzz around Washington with stellar recruiting and good play on the field. Beating Stanford in Seattle will go a long way to shifting the power in the Pac-12, and the winners of this game will have an inside track to the College Football Playoff.
#25 Georgia Bulldogs at #11 Tennessee Volunteers
The Vols are riding high in Rocky Top, after finally beating the rival Florida Gators. Down 21-3 at the half and getting booed by 100,000 of their own fans at Neyland Stadium, the Vols and quarterback Josh Dobbs pulled off the comeback winning 38-28. This win snapped an 11-game losing streak against the Gators that stretched back to 2004. To put that in perspective, YouTube and Twitter hadn’t been invented. The highest grossing movie that year was Shrek 2, and Barry Alvarez still coached the Badgers. The Bulldogs, on the other hand, are at a low point of their season, after losing 45-14 at Ole Miss. To make matters worse, the Bulldogs lost star running back Nick Chubb during the game with a sprained ankle. The winner of this game gets the edge in the SEC East, and makes them likely to reach Atlanta and the SEC Championship game at the season’s end.
#3 Louisville Cardinals at #5 Clemson Tigers
The Louisville Cardinals head down to Death Valley to further solidify their credentials as a playoff team, while the Clemson Tigers and last year’s Heisman finalist, DeShaun Watson, look to stop Lamar Jackson’s Cardinals. That seems much easier said than done. Jackson has amassed 1,377 total yards and 18 total touchdowns in four games, and he barely has played in the second half. On the other side, Dabo Swinney’s Tigers are also undefeated, but their offense has been underwhelming, as highlighted by their Week 1, 19-13 struggle against Auburn. The Tigers’ defense has been fearsome though, ranking in the top-10 and top-25 in yards allowed and scoring defense, respectively. The Tigers are hoping they won’t be destroyed by Jackson like the Florida State Seminoles, who lost 63-20 in Week 3.
Other Storylines
SEC West Hot-Seat
In the supposed best division in college football, the SEC West, have several coaches under the microscope for recent poor performances. LSU’s Les Miles was the first to fall victim to the pressure, as he was fired last weekend. The Tigers came into the season at No. 5 before dropping a thriller to then unranked Wisconsin in Week 1 and then putting up a dud against unranked Auburn. Miles, who was nearly fired last season, got the boot when his team failed to score on the last drive of the game against the Tigers. Speaking of Auburn, Gus Malzahn is also on the hot seat, along with Mississippi State’s Dan Mullen. Auburn squeaked out a win against LSU last week, but they weren’t exactly impressive, scoring 18 points and nearly losing on the final play on the game. Malzahn’s seat is getting warm, as he needs to have a 4-4 record to match former coach Gene Chizik’s record at Auburn. Chizik was unceremoniously fired in 2012 after going 3-9, despite winning the National Championship two years before. Unless Malzahn miraculously turns it around, it’s likely he’ll get the axe from Auburn. For Mullen, Mississippi State is 2-2, and had to scrape past UMass this past weekend, barely winning 47-35. The Bulldogs have looked poor this season, and judging by their schedule, it seems hard to find the six wins needed to make them bowl eligible at the end of the season.
Year of the Buffalo
The Colorado Buffaloes might’ve finally started to turn their program around. After a few dismal years since joining the Pac-12, the Buffaloes might end up bowling again this year after beating Oregon last week 41-38, in a game that featured an incredible, one-handed go-ahead catch by wide receiver Bryce Bobo. Colorado is now 3-1, with its game this weekend against Pac-12 cellar dwellers Oregon State (Hi, Gary Andersen).
Party Crashers
While the #6 Houston Cougars have received all the attention of any team outside of the Power 5 conferences, the San Diego State Aztecs have reached the No. 19 spot in the AP poll, and may have a shot at a “New Year’s Six” Bowl. The Aztecs are 3-0 and have a win against Cal on their resume, and a presumably easy path to the Mountain West Championship game. They’ve been led by running back Donnel Pumphrey’s 616 yards and eight TDs, and will probably beat up on South Alabama this weekend.
