CFN Rankings No. 1 to 119 - Week Six (Oct. 7)

There's one very important distinction in the CFN rankings: these are based on how good the teams are and NOT how they're going to finish. Some teams have easier schedules than others, some get tougher road games and some will need a little bit of time to jell meaning they might be better than their final record might indicate.

Preseason | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5
Coaches | AP

1. Ohio State (6-0)
W, Bowling Green 35-7
next game: Michigan State
It might not seem fair, but eventually, style points are going to count. Ohio State doesn’t blow teams out, but it should’ve been able to sleepwalk its way to 50 points against Bowling Green. This is the number one team in the nation, but has it faced anyone who can throw? Has it faced a fully jelled offensive unit? It’s not OSU’s fault, but there’s not going to be a test until Michigan. 

2.  Florida (6-0)
W, LSU 23-10
next game: at Auburn
If Florida beats Tennessee at Tennessee, LSU, Auburn at Auburn, Georgia, Alabama, Florida State at Florida State and the SEC title, if might be hard to keep it from the top spot. Everyone’s going to assume the Gators are going to roll over a struggling Auburn team: watch out. All the national love could go away in a big hurry.

3. Tennessee (5-1)
W, at Georgia 51-33
next game: Alabama (Oct. 21)
The Vols are playing with frightening precision and explosion on both sides of the ball. Georgia might not be a world-beater at the moment, but cranking out 51 points in Athens is as impressive as it gets. How great does the win over Cal look now?

4. Michigan (6-0)
W, Michigan State 31-13
next game: at Penn State
More and more, this is looking like the nation’s number two team. The defense has been terrific and the trio of Chad Henne, Mike Hart, and Mario Manningham is playing better than any threesome in the nation.

5. Texas  (5-1)
W, Oklahoma 28-10
next game: Baylor
This is a different Texas team than the one that lost to Ohio State earlier in the year. Colt McCoy is more poised and the D showed against Oklahoma how good it can be. Now the problem will be big games. Since few will have much of an interest in a rematch with the Buckeyes, only blowouts the rest of the way will get the Longhorns close.

6. California (5-1)
W, Oregon 45-24
next game: at Washington State
Yeeeeeesh. The Bears look as good as their yellow uniforms are ugly. That was a strong Oregon team that just got its doors blown off by DeSean Jackson and the Cal attack. Right now, Jeff Tedford’s bunch is playing better than anyone in the Pac 10.

7. USC (5-0)
W, Washington 26-20
next game: Arizona State  
Call this a temporary slide until the offense proves it can be more consistent. Two straight games of needing a late stop to win doesn’t exactly inspire confidence considering the offensive machines ahead on the slate.

8. Missouri (6-0)
W, at Texas Tech 38-21
next game: at Texas A&M
Missouri needed a signature win to prove it’s for real, and it got it in Lubbock. Most impressive about the victory over Texas Tech was the way the Tigers overcame the momentum swing to win in a blowout. Everything was humming for the Red Raider passing game early in the second half, but the Mizzou D put an end to all the drama.

9. Louisville (5-0)
W, at Middle Tennessee 44-17
next game: Cincinnati
Yawwwwwn. Whoopee, Louisville will push itself this week against Cincinnati. This might be a top ten team with plenty of explosion and firepower, and more is on the way with the return of Brian Brohm, but does it actually deserve to be this high? The win over Miami is looking less and less impressive with each passing week.

10. Notre Dame (5-1)
W, Stanford 31-10
next game: UCLA (Oct. 21))
The Irish did what it needed to do going through the motions to beat Stanford, and now the problem will be complacency with no one on the schedule likely to come within double-digits until the USC game. Meanwhile, it’ll keep moving up and up and up as other teams keep losing.

11. West Virginia (5-0)
W, at Mississippi State 42-14
next game: Syracuse  
The Mountaineers are doing what they’re supposed to against the mediocre teams while waiting patiently for the one real shot at national respect against Louisville on November 2^nd. Will that be enough?

12. Arkansas  (4-1)
W, at Auburn 27-10
next game: SE Missouri State
Auburn’s was just about everyone’s number two team, and the Hogs came into Jordan-Hare and ran wild with a near-perfect performance. Now we’ll see how the team plays with the bull’s-eye on its back. Can it handle the pressure of being the hunted in the West race?

13. Auburn (5-1)
L, Arkansas 27-10
next game: Florida
After two straight bad performances, the Tigers need to redeem themselves and get back in the SEC race with a splashy win. The timing couldn’t be better to play Florida to get right back on the horse and focus after the Arkansas fiasco. The Gators can’t run like the Hogs.

14. LSU (4-2)
L, at Florida 23-10
next game: Kentucky
LSU is great at home against the mediocre, but 0-2 against good teams on the road. Yes, we all know what’ll happen next week against Kentucky and then against Fresno State, but will a running game emerge in time for the road trip to Tennessee?

15. Clemson (5-1)
W, at Wake Forest 27-17
next game: at Temple (Oct. 12) 
Give Clemson credit for finding a way to beat Wake Forest even when things weren’t working the way they were supposed to. The offense was making mistakes, the Demon Deacons were coming up with a nice offensive day, and then the Tigers came through with the big plays they needed to have to get the road win.

16. Oregon (4-1)
L, at California 45-24
next game: UCLA  
Getting blasted at Cal might not be anything to be ashamed of at the moment. Now the Ducks have to gear it back up and blow through the rest of the Pac 10 slate until the USC game at November 11^th. Winning the title is still possible, but there can’t be any mistakes the rest of the way.

17. Georgia Tech (5-1)
W, Maryland 27-23
next game: at Clemson (Oct. 21)
Georgia Tech showed against Maryland what kind of a heart it has. The running game got going this week, but it can’t lose its momentum with two weeks off before dealing with Clemson. 

18. Oklahoma (3-2)
L, Texas 28-10
next game: Iowa State
OU’s lines couldn’t handle Texas, but the overall team speed is good enough to get through the rest of the Big 12 slate, other than the date with Missouri. 10-2 still gets might be enough to be considered in the at-large BCS mix, but the Sooners had better start blowing everyone out and they’d better do it starting this week.

19.  Nebraska (5-1)
W, at Iowa State 28-14
next game: at Kansas State
Don’t get too excited about the win at Iowa State; the Cyclones aren’t playing all that well. Even so, it was a nice victory after the close call against Kansas.

20. Georgia (5-1)
L, Tennessee 51-33
next game: Vanderbilt
Can you figure this team out? If you have told Georgia it would get 33 points against Tennessee, it would’ve assumed it would’ve won in a blowout. The SEC title is still a possibility, but everything needs to be tuned up over the next two weeks against Vanderbilt and Mississippi State or Florida and Auburn will be ugly losses.

21. Virginia Tech (4-1)
Didn’t Play This Week
next game: at Boston College  
Can the Hokies get their mojo back this week against Boston College? The ACC title is still there for the taking, but the team has to prove it can handle adversity and start making the big plays needed to get through the next few weeks. Beat BC and Miami, and things get interesting.

22. Iowa  (5-1)
W, Purdue 47-17
next game: at Indiana
Purdue was a better win than it might appear to be on paper. Give credit to Drew Tate and the boys for playing a sharp game a week after the mega-disappointment against Ohio State.

23. Boston College (4-1)
Didn’t Play This Week
next game: Virginia Tech  
Losing on a last second play to NC State doesn’t look so bad now. A win over Virginia Tech would prove that the Eagles belong back in the ACC title discussion.

24. Boise State (6-0)
W, Louisiana Tech 55-14
next game: at New Mexico State
Boise State did what it’s supposed to do blowing away a bad Louisiana Tech team. The numbers will keep on piling up the rest of the way with no one able to stay within 30 of the Broncos until the date at Nevada.

25. Wisconsin (5-1)
W, Northwestern 41-9
next game: Minnesota
Shhhhhh, this is a big-time sleeper in the Big Ten race. There’s no Ohio State on the schedule and the toughest game left is at Iowa. Winning the title might be too tough to do considering the one loss was at Michigan, but things are starting to come together for a possible run at a 10-2 season..

26. NC State (3-2)
27. BYU (4-2)
28. Pitt (5-1)
29. Rutgers (5-0)
30. Florida State (3-2)
31. Penn State (4-2)
32. Utah (4-2)
33. Texas Tech (4-2)
34. Washington (4-2)
35. Alabama (4-2)
36. UCLA (4-1)
37. South Carolina (4-2)
38. Washington State (4-2)
39. Miami (3-2)
40. Wake Forest (5-1)
41. Arizona State (3-2)
42. Texas A&M (5-1)
43. Michigan State (3-3)
44. Purdue (4-2)
45. Minnesota (2-4)
46. Tulsa (4-1)
47. Colorado State (4-1)
48. Navy (5-1)
49. TCU (3-2)
50. Maryland (3-2)
51. Southern Miss (3-2)
52. Hawaii (3-2)
53. Air Force (2-2)
54. South Florida (4-2)
55. Syracuse (3-3)
56. Oregon State (2-3)
57. Iowa State (3-3)
58. North Carolina (1-4)
59. Kansas (3-3)
60. Kansas State (4-2)
61. Oklahoma State (3-2)
62. Ole Miss  (2-4)
63. Kent State (4-2)
64. Arizona  (2-4)
65. Central Michigan (3-3)
66. Nevada (3-3)
67. Cincinnati (3-3)
68. Ohio (3-3)
69. Western Michigan (3-2)
70. Akron (2-4)
71. Connecticut (2-3)
72. Kentucky (3-3)
73. Colorado (0-6)
74. Vanderbilt (2-4)
75. UL Lafayette (3-2)
76. Baylor (3-3)
77. East Carolina (2-3)
78. New Mexico (2-4)
79. Wyoming (2-4)
80. Toledo (2-4)
81. Houston (4-2)
82. UTEP (3-2)
83. Virginia (2-4)
84. UAB (3-3)
85. Indiana (3-3)
86. Troy (1-4)
87. Memphis (1-4)
88. Mississippi State (1-5)
89. UCF (1-4)
90. Illinois (2-4)
91. Northwestern  (2-4)
92. SMU (3-3)
93. San Jose State (3-1)
94. San Diego State (0-5)
95. Northern Illinois (3-2)
96. Army (3-3)
97. Marshall (1-4)
98. Tulane (2-3)
99. Idaho (3-3)
100. Ball State (3-3)
101. Rice (1-5)
102. Bowling Green (3-3)
103. New Mexico State (2-3)
104. Louisiana Tech (1-4)
105. UNLV (1-4)
106. Duke (0-5)
107. Stanford (0-6)
108. Eastern Michigan (0-5)
109. Middle Tennessee (3-3)
110. Arkansas State (3-2)
111. North Texas (2-4)
112. Miami Univ. (0-5)
113. Utah State (1-5)
114. Fresno State (1-4)
115. FIU (0-6)
116. Florida Atlantic (1-4)
117. UL Monroe (1-4)
118. Buffalo (1-4)
119. Temple  (0-6)

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