College Football Playoff picks after Week 5
On the final Saturday of September, the nation’s No. 1 team got a bit of a scare.
Georgia fell behind 10-0 at Auburn and didn’t have the game in hand until the final 90 seconds of a 27-20 win. Tight end Brock Bowers proved to be the difference for the Bulldogs, scoring on a 40-yard go-ahead touchdown with 2:52 to play. Bowers had six catches for 148 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter and finished with eight catches and 157 yards overall.
Elsewhere, after pulling ahead 34-14 at halftime, USC had to hold on against coach Deion Sanders and Colorado. The Trojans got six touchdown passes from quarterback Caleb Williams in the 48-41 win. Williams became just the second USC player with six touchdown passes and more than 400 passing yards in a game, joining Matt Barkley in 2011.
Michigan only needed quarterback J.J. McCarthy for three quarters and had four different QBs attempt passes during a 45-7 win at Nebraska. Michigan has scored 30-plus points and allowed 7 or fewer points in all five games this season. It was the fourth-worst home loss by Nebraska since 2000.
Texas piled up 661 yards of offense in a surprisingly smooth victory over previously-ranked Kansas, though the Jayhawks were missing quarterback Jalon Daniels. The total yards were the most by Texas in a Big 12 game. The 26-point win was the largest by Texas against an AP-ranked team since 2009.
Washington turned to its ground game in the first half against Arizona, getting touchdowns from Dillon Johnson, Will Nixon and Germie Bernard. Johnson would add another score in the third quarter in a 31-24 victory.
Playoff contenders Florida State and Ohio State had the week off.
With all that in mind, here’s a look at how our ESPN college football writers ranked their top four this week.
Andrea Adelson: 1. Georgia 2. Michigan 3. Florida State 4. Washington
Blake Baumgartner: 1. Georgia 2. Michigan 3. Florida State 4. Texas
Kyle Bonagura: 1. Georgia 2. Washington 3. Michigan 4. Texas
Bill Connelly: 1. Michigan 2. Washington 3. Georgia 4. Texas
Heather Dinich: 1. Florida State 2. Texas 3. Georgia 4. Washington
David Hale: 1. Georgia 2. Florida State 3. Texas 4. Ohio State
Chris Low: 1. Georgia 2. Michigan 3. Florida State 4. Texas
Harry Lyles Jr.: 1. Georgia 2. Washington 3. Michigan 4. Texas
Adam Rittenberg: 1. Michigan 2. Georgia 3. Texas 4. Washington
Alex Scarborough: 1. Georgia 2. Michigan 3. Florida State 4. Texas
Paolo Uggetti: 1. Michigan 2. Washington 3. Georgia 4. Texas
Tom VanHaaren: 1. Georgia 2. Michigan 3. Texas 4. Florida State
Dave Wilson: 1. Georgia 2. Washington 3. Michigan 4. Texas
