NCAA Week 5 Top 25

It was a strange week.  Only one Top 25 team was upset (Stanford), but very few demonstrated powerful performances.  As a result, there was relatively little movement, and nobody dropped from the Top 25.  It seemed like a late season week.

Top 25 [Last week's position]
1.  Alabama Crimson Tide (5-0) [1] : The only Top 5 team who turned in a strong performance.  The gap between Number One and the rest is growing.
2.  Oregon Ducks (5-0) [2] : The Ducks floundered in the first half, but their second half was stronger than any of the SEC teams below them.  Take that, you SEC doubters!  Until you guys improve, Oregon stays at Number Two.
3.  Georgia Bulldogs (5-0) [4] : Tennessee tested their defense, which doesn't reflect well on that side of the ball.
4.  South Carolina Gamecocks (5-0) [5] : Aside from Alabama, the only other Top Ten team with a good performance.
5.  LSU Tigers (5-0) [3] : Allowing FCS Towson to score 22 points, and winning by only 16, continues to demonstrate that LSU is not the same team they were last season.
6.  Texas Longhorns (4-0) [6] The Cowboys pushed the Longhorns defense.  Since their next opponent is the 70-point scoring West Virginia Mountaineers, they have to be concerned.
7.  Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-0) [7]
8.  Florida State Seminoles (5-0) [9] : The Seminoles had a decent showing, but with South Florida struggling this season, they should have done better.
9.  West Virginia Mountaineers (4-0) [16] : Their offense clearly works well, but Baylor tore through their defense.
10. Ohio State Buckeyes (5-0) [10] : They squeaked by Michigan State, but it wasn't comfortable
11. Kansas State Wildcats (4-0) [11]
12. Florida Gators (4-0) [12]
13. USC Trojans (3-1) [13]
14. Texas Tech Red Raiders (4-0) [17] : Iowa State slowed that exceptional offense, which showed other Big XII teams it could be done.
15. TCU Horned Frogs (4-0) [15]  Way too close a game against SMU
16. UCLA Bruins (4-1) [18] : Decent game against a weak Colorado team
17. Stanford Cardinal (3-1) [8]
18. Clemson Tigers (4-1) [19] : Good game against Boston College, but the Eagles scored a bit more than they should
19. Baylor Bears (3-1) [14] : Who could score 63 points and LOSE?  A team whose defense is porous, that's who
20. Mississippi State Bulldogs (4-0) [20]
21. Arizona State Sun Devils (4-1) [21] : Good game against Cal, but their offense stumbled a bit
22. Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-1) [22] : Nice comeback against Wisconsin, but they fell very far in the first half
23. Louisville Cardinals (5-0) [23] :  Too tight against Southern Miss
24. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (4-0) [24]
25. Michigan State Spartans (3-2) [25] : What's a 3-2 team doing here?  How about a team that nearly beat a Top Ten?

On the Edge
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (5-0), Ohio Bobcats (5-0), Oregon State Beavers (3-0), Northwestern Wildcats (5-0), Texas A&M Aggies (3-1), Utah State Aggies (4-1), Purdue Boilermakers (3-1), Middle Tennessee State Blue Hens (3-1), Nevada Wolf Pack (4-1), San Jose State Spartans (4-1), Penn State Nittany Lions (3-2), Boise State Broncos (3-1), BYU Cougars (3-2), Michigan Wolverines (2-2)

Big Ten Report
Point spread surprises abounded this week.  Penn State demolished Illinois, Wisconsin led for most of the game against Nebraska, Iowa slaughtered Minnesota, and Ohio State squeaked by with a single point victory.

LEGENDS Division:
1.  Northwestern Wildcats (5-0) : The only unbeaten in the division, they seem to have a good control on their peformance
2.  Michigan State Spartans (3-2) : They have a conference loss, but their defense is in order, and the offense looked pretty good against the stingy Buckeye defense
3.  Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-1) : They gave Wisconsin too much of a lead in the first half
4.  Michigan Wolverines (2-2)
5.  Iowa Hawkeyes (3-2) : The Hawkeyes struggled outside the conference, but they seem to have found new life with the start of conference play
6.  Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-1) : Once again, the Gophers can't perform when conference play begins

LEADERS Division:
1.  Ohio State Buckeyes (5-0) : The Spartans bent them, but they held
2.  Penn State Nittany Lions (3-2) : They continue to improve each week
3.  Purdue Boilermakers (3-1) : Currently the best bet to advance to the conference championship, as both Ohio State and Penn State are on probation
4.  Wisconsin Badgers (3-2) : Their running game still needs consistency, as Nebraska stopped them in the second half
5.  Indiana Hoosiers (2-2)
6.  Illinois Fighting Illini (2-3) : The only conference team with a losing record