Eliminator Week 5: Nothing is what we expected

ByMARK SCHLABACH
October 5, 2015, 11:27 AM

— -- Florida leads the SEC East.

Cal is tied for the Pac-12 North lead, and Utah sits atop the Pac-12 South.

Just how we drew it up back in August.

After what has been a very unpredictable start to the 2015 season, only 15 teams from Power 5 conferences have unblemished records after five weeks. Iowa and Northwestern are among them.

It's been that kind of season so far.

Week 5 was relatively quiet for The Eliminator, which is narrowing the 127-team field (Charlotte is ineligible as a transitional member) to four for the College Football Playoff. Only four teams -- Arizona, Minnesota, Mississippi State and Texas Tech -- were eliminated this week.

So far, we have eliminated 83 teams from consideration, leaving 44 in the mix for the four playoff spots with two months to go in the regular season.

Here's where FBS stands after Week 5:

Jump to sections: Better luck next season | Previously eliminated | Who's in | Still in contention | On the fence

Better luck next season

Trending: DOWN

Hey, look on the bright wide, Wildcats: The Arizona Bowl is really happening!

Trending: DOWN

After Northwestern's defense shut out the Gophers 27-0, Minnesota receiver KJ Maye called them "average." He must think Minnesota's offense is "fantastic."

Trending: DOWN

Yes, Dak Prescott, this is exactly how Bryce Harper felt the past couple of months.

Trending: DOWN

Death, taxes and over the total in the Texas Tech game.

Previously eliminated

Eliminated in Week 1 (30 teams):  Akron Zips, Arkansas State Red Wolves, Army Black Knights, Bowling Green Falcons, Central Michigan Chippewas, Charlotte 49ers (not bowl-eligible),  Colorado Buffaloes, Eastern Michigan Eagles, Florida Atlantic Owls, Georgia Southern Eagles, Georgia State Panthers, Idaho Vandals, Kansas Jayhawks, Kent State Golden Flashes, Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns, Louisiana Monroe Warhawks, New Mexico State Aggies, SMU Mustangs, Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles, Texas San Antonio Roadrunners, Texas State Bobcats, Troy Trojans, Tulane Green Wave, UCF Knights, UNLV Rebels, UTEP Miners, Vanderbilt Commodores, Washington State Cougars, Western Michigan Broncos, Wyoming Cowboys

Eliminated in Week 2 (27 teams): Appalachian State Mountaineers, Arkansas Razorbacks, Ball State Cardinals, Buffalo Bulls, Cincinnati Bearcats. Colorado State Rams, East Carolina Pirates, Florida International Golden Panthers, Fresno State Bulldogs, Hawaii Rainbow Warriors, Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, Louisville Cardinals, Marshall Thundering Herd, Maryland Terrapins, Massachusetts Minutemen, Miami (OH) RedHawks, Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, Nevada Wolf Pack, New Mexico Lobos, North Texas Mean Green, Rice Owls, San Diego State Aztecs, San Jose State Spartans, South Alabama Jaguars, South Florida Bulls, Utah State Aggies, Virginia Cavaliers.

Eliminated in Week 3 (14 teams): Air Force Falcons, Auburn Tigers, Boston College Eagles, Connecticut Huskies, Iowa State Cyclones, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Northern Illinois Huskies, Old Dominion Monarchs, Purdue Boilermakers, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, South Carolina Gamecocks, Texas Longhorns, Tulsa Golden Hurricane, Western Kentucky Hilltoppers.

Eliminated in Week 4 (nine teams): Arizona State Sun Devils, BYU Cougars, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Ohio Bobcats, Oregon State Beavers, Tennessee Volunteers, Virginia Tech Hokies, Wake Forest Demon Deacons, Washington Huskies.

Who's in

To be honest, your guess is as a good as mine at this point. Nobody looks overwhelmingly impressive. A team that looks good one week looks not so good the next. I think two Big 12 teams -- Baylor and TCU -- are playing as well as anybody, but both of them probably aren't getting into the playoff. I'll go with Alabama, Baylor, Clemson and Ohio State for now. I think Clemson has the clearest path to the playoff, and I suspect Alabama and Ohio State will be much better teams when the CFP selection committee makes its selections in early December.

Still in contention

Trending: UP

Alabama's being an underdog to Georgia made about as much sense as the Bulldogs picking a fight with the Crimson Tide before Saturday's game. Sure, give them another reason to want to kick your rear ends.

Trending: UP

The over/under total for Saturday's game between the Bears and Red Raiders closed at 90 at the Las Vegas Superbook, the highest total in an FBS game during the past 10 seasons. Baylor's team total in next week's game at Kansas might be 90.

Trending: UP

Cal coach Sonny Dykes watched his team come from behind to beat his mentor, Washington State's Mike Leach, on Saturday. About their pregame handshake, Leach said, "There's no memory lane. There's no leisure time and sing 'Kumbaya.' I'll shake his hand before the game and play."

Trending: UP

Somebody please tell me why Oklahoma didn't want to keep defensive coordinator Brent Venables around anymore? The Tigers held Notre Dame tailback C.J. Prosise to a season-low 50 yards in Saturday's 24-22 win.

Trending: UP

Yep, the Gators look like the best team in the SEC East -- and maybe in the state of Florida. In only a few short months, first-year coach Jim McElwain taught the Gators how to run with the ball, throw it and even catch it. In unrelated news, the Gators have banned flu shots in Gainesville until further notice.

Trending: DOWN

The Seminoles were able to survive the opening third of their schedule without much offense. It won't be as easy in a three-game stretch against Miami (home), Louisville (home) and Georgia Tech (road).

Trending: EVEN

Tigers tailback Leonard Fournette has already run for 864 yards, the most by an FBS player through four games since at least 2000. LSU might not pass for 864 yards this season, though.

Trending: DOWN

Coach Mark Dantonio thanked fans for braving 40-degree temperatures and rain in Saturday's 24-21 win over Purdue. He should have bought them all coffee for having to watch that second-half offense.

Trending: DOWN

Notre Dame's Brian Kelly and Tennessee's Butch Jones are obviously using the same two-point conversion charts.

Trending: DOWN

Who would have thought Ohio State coach Urban Meyer's former teams, Florida and Utah, would be playing better football than the Buckeyes at this point in the season?

Trending: UP

Don't look now, but the Sooners are back in the AP top 10. They've been ranked in the top 10 every season under coach Bob Stoops but one: his first season in 1999.

Trending: UP

Talk about a turnaround. The Pokes have now won seven straight games dating to last season, after losing five in a row during the 2014 season.

Trending: UP

Maybe it was actually the Horned Frogs who were tweeting the Longhorns at halftime on Saturday: "Yo, brah, we just scored again."

Trending: UP

Hey, Mr. Trump, can't we just put Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall on the Mexican border?

Trending: EVEN

On Thursday night, USC's Steve Sarkisian coaches against Washington for the first time since leaving the Huskies for the Trojans in 2013. He'd better not lose to the coach the Trojans really wanted -- current Washington coach Chris Petersen.

Trending: UP

Example A of the season's unpredictability: ESPN's College GameDay is headed to Salt Lake City for Saturday's game between undefeated Cal and undefeated Utah, neither of which was ranked in the preseason.

On the fence

Trending: EVEN

We thought the Broncos might be in trouble after losing quarterback Ryan Finley to a broken ankle. True freshman Brett Rypien has thrown six touchdowns and no interceptions since taking over. He threw for 271 yards with three TDs in Saturday's 55-0 rout of Hawaii.

Trending: EVEN

Talk about playing small ball. The Blue Devils kicked three field goals to beat Boston College 9-7 on Saturday. It was the first time Duke won a game without scoring a touchdown since defeating Wake Forest 3-0 in 1978.

Trending: DOWN

Remember that Michael Douglas flick from the 1990s called "The Game," in which the plot was so obvious it was painful to watch? If you don't, it's very similar to watching the Bulldogs play in a big game. It's like you know what's going to happen before the ball is even kicked off.

Trending: UP

Maybe this is what's wrong with Ohio State's offense: Former offensive coordinator Tom Herman is now Houston's head coach. Cougars quarterback Greg Ward Jr. is the only player in the FBS to average more than 200 passing yards (264.5) and more than 100 rushing yards (118.0).

Trending: UP

Yo, Illinois, what are you waiting for? Give interim coach Bill Cubit a contract. He just led you to a 14-13 victory over Nebraska. Yeah, you heard me: that Nebraska.

Trending: UP

No, College GameDay isn't coming to next week's game at Penn State because we don't think the Hoosiers can keep that one close, either. You're welcome, Kevin Wilson.

Trending: UP

Man, what are we going to do if we can't criticize Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz on a weekly basis? The Hawkeyes are 5-0 after beating No. 19 Wisconsin 10-6 on Saturday. Finally, Ferentz is earning his bloated salary (sorry, we couldn't resist).

Trending: EVEN

The Big 12 on Sunday acknowledged an officiating mistake in Kansas State's 36-34 loss to Oklahoma State, which incorrectly awarded the Pokes a first down on a scoring drive. In a statement from supervisor of officials Walt Anderson, the Big 12 said: "accuracy and adherence to Conference policies and officiating mechanics are vital to the proper administration of the rules in all games." Ironically, in its initial release, the Big 12 misspelled "accuracy" in its statement.

Trending: DOWN

You might laugh about the Wildcats needing overtime to defeat FCS member Eastern Kentucky 34-27 on Saturday. But those teams really don't like each other. In fact, they've had barroom brawls to settle their differences.

Trending: EVEN

The Tigers had to come from behind to beat South Florida 24-17 on the road on Friday night, which extended their winning streak to 12 games. Memphis might have been looking to its next game: a home date against Ole Miss in two weeks.

Trending: DOWN

After bungling the final minutes of the Hurricanes' 34-23 loss to Cincinnati on Thursday night, embattled coach Al Golden might need to beat Florida State next week to save his job. At least that's what I read on a banner trailing an airplane in South Florida.

Trending: UP

Hey, Ohio State fans: Remember what I told you last week about Jim Harbaugh hiding under your beds? He's not hiding anymore. The Wolverines are good, and it's becoming pretty scary.

Trending: UP

We know one thing about Missouri: Its freshman quarterback is better than South Carolina's. Drew Lock led the Tigers to a 24-10 win over the Gamecocks, and freshman quarterback Lorenzo Nunez on Saturday. It was the first time in SEC history that two true freshman quarterbacks started in the same game.

Trending: UP

The Midshipmen got a leg up on the fight for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy with a 33-11 win over Air Force on Saturday.

Trending: UP

Message to Tar Heels coach Larry Fedora: Leave quarterback Marquise Williams alone. He led UNC to a three-touchdown comeback -- the largest in school history -- in a 38-31 win at Georgia Tech, a week after he was benched.

Trending: DOWN

Little-known fact: Ron Prince won his first three games as Kansas State's coach. Then the Wildcats started playing real opponents. After playing four overmatched opponents out of the gates, the Wolfpack lost to Louisville 20-13 on Saturday.

Trending: UP

Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said he believes his defense could be deeper and more athletic than the 1995 unit that led the Wildcats to the Rose Bowl. Fitzgerald should know -- he was the star linebacker.

Trending: DOWN

Come on, Rebels, didn't you learn anything about handling success last season? You can't beat a good team when you turn the ball over in bunches -- ask Alabama.

Trending: DOWN

At this point, I'd just move Bralon Addison to quarterback. Seriously.

Trending: DOWN

Army fumbled the ball seven times, losing three. Penn State won by six points. You figure it out.

Trending: UP

What kind of effect has first-year coach Pat Narduzzi had on Pitt's defense? The Panthers rank No. 2 in sacks per game (4.25), No. 4 in rushing defense (71.3 yards) and No. 4 in total defense (243.8). Pitt surrendered only 100 yards of offense in a 17-13 victory at Virginia Tech on Saturday.

Trending: UP

Talk about getting up off the mat. Stanford looks like one of the best teams in the Pac-12 after throttling Arizona 55-17 on Saturday. There's a lot to be said for improving every week.

Trending: EVEN

DixonForHeisman

Trending: EVEN

We knew Temple's football history wasn't too glorious. But the Owls just won back-to-back road games for the first time in school history. Let that sink in for a minute.

Trending: EVEN

After beating Ball State 24-10 on Saturday, the Rockets are ranked No. 24 in the AP poll. Toledo's highest ranking was No. 12 in 1970.

Trending: DOWN

Bruins coach Jim Mora doesn't like that his team is playing back-to-back Thursday night games against Stanford on Oct. 15 and California on Oct. 22. Hey, Saturday night didn't work out too well, either.

Trending: DOWN

See: Ole Miss. You can't beat Oklahoma when your quarterback turns the ball over five times.

Trending: DOWN

The Badgers didn't let Iowa score in the second half and still lost 10-6. Wisconsin quarterback Joel Stave turned the ball over four times, including a fumble at Iowa's 1-yard line. Ouch.