College Football Trending Teams After Week Five

By Tyler Smith and Matt Hetzler

Tyler's Teams

Trending Up
UCLA: The Bruins made at statement at Arizona State. Hundley posted four touchdowns through the air and one on the ground. The defense gave up over 600 yards which is a concern. 

Next Up: Utah. The Utes will be a tough match-up. Utah only gives up 19.8 points per game. UCLA should win, but they will need the defense to show up. 

Colorado State: The Rams went across the country and took down Boston College. The Rams now have two wins over BCS foes. 


Next Up: Tulsa. The Golden Hurricanes should be no problem for the Rams. 


Akron: Holding Pitt to only 10 points is impressive. Conor Hundley had a massive game with 148 yards on the ground. 


Next: Eastern Michigan. Hard to see EMU breaking through after last weeks performance. 

Trending Down

Penn State: Saturday was bad, very bad, for Penn State. The offense couldn't do anything against Northwestern. The offensive line will need to take a step forward or things will get ugly in Happy Valley.


Next Up: Bye. Much needed. 

Pitt: Two losses in a row for Pitt heading into the heart of the schedule is not good. For the Panthers to improve Voytik will need to not turn the ball over and improve on his 60.2 completion percentage. 


Next Up: At Virginia. UVA has a much better defense than their previous opponents. The Panthers have the weapons, but can they start clicking and scoring points? Not this week at least. 

Boise State: This one of the biggest stunners of the weekend. No one had Air Force on their radar to beat Boise State. Grant Hedrick has now had two four interception games. If this continues look for Boise State to make a change. Jay Ajayi will need to carry the load for the Broncos.


Next Up: At Boise St. If the Broncos want to get back in the MWC race, this is the game to do that. I don't see it happening though. 

Matt's Teams

Trending Up
Akron: The Zips were able to get a huge win for the program at Pitt this Saturday. Akron RB Conor Hundley had a huge day with 148 yards rushing. The defense held James Connor under 100 yards for the first time this season. I love what Terry Bowden has done with the program and should get some looks in the offseason. Akron has the roster to win the MAC, watch out for the Zips.
 
Next Up: Eastern Michigan. The Zips open MAC play against the Eagles. As long as Akron doesn’t have a hangover from a big win they should open conference play with a W.
 
Missouri: Missouri bounced back after a bad loss to Indiana at home a week ago to stun South Carolina in Columbia. Two late TD drives were able to put the Tigers in front and the defense held on for a big win. Missouri has put itself in a good position to possibly get back to Atlanta this year.
 
Next Up: BYE. Missouri gets a bye week before hosting Georgia at home. The Georgia game could very well determine who will win the East this season.
 
Ohio State: Ohio State continued its dominance when playing teams from Ohio. The Buckeyes offense totaled 710 total yards and QB J.T. Barrett threw for over 300 yards. The defense gave up huge plays but held UC to only 70 yards rushing. Ohio State have played great since the home loss to Virginia Tech.
 
Next Up: at Maryland. The Buckeyes open B1G play at Maryland. Maryland is coming off a B1G opening win at Indiana. Maryland won’t be an easy game, but I give Ohio State the edge here.
 
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Michigan: Could things get any worse in Ann Arbor? The Wolverines were pathetic yet again. There was a point in the game I feel Hoke should’ve put Gardner back in, but he waited way too long. Michigan had only 171 yards of total offense. QB Shane Morris went 7/19 for 49 yards.

Next Up: At Rutgers. A trip to Rutgers is not looking good for Michigan. Rutgers has been playing much better since the Penn State loss. Rutgers will be ready to go and Michigan will fall to 0-2 in the B1G.
 
Penn State: Saturday’s game vs Northwestern was ugly. The running game was nonexistent and Hackenberg didn’t look that great. NW came in with a great game plan and pulled off a pretty big upset.
 
Next Up: BYE. Penn State gets a week off before heading to Ann Arbor to face the Wolverines. At this point I would have to say Penn State is the better team. A bye week will be much needed after this debacle at home.
 
Boise State: The Broncos lost at Air Force Saturday thanks to a 7 turnover performance. Anytime a team turns it over 7 times at the collegiate level they will land on my list. Air Force jumped to a 28-0 lead before Boise was able to get a couple of TD’s in the 4th.

Next Up: At Nevada. This is a big game in the Mountain West to determine who may win the conference. Nevada has looked great and I’m not sure Boise will be able to knock them off at home. I like Nevada here.