Unmissable Showdowns and Shocking Upsets: Your Ultimate Guide to College Football Week 5

As the leaves start to change and the air gets a little crisper, Week 5 of the 2025 college football season is ramping up with some serious fireworks ready to explode across the gridiron. This weekend isn’t just about the usual showdowns — it’s a full-throttle, no-holds-barred collision of ranked giants, with a stunning four games pitting top-tier teams against each other on Saturday alone. And let’s not forget Friday’s plated contests, sprinkled with high-stakes battles that could redefine the conference landscapes, especially in the SEC where whispers of upset surprises are already stirring among fans and analysts alike.

I can’t help but feel the electricity in the air — it’s the kind of weekend where a single turnover or a breakout performance can rewrite the storylines we’ve been following all season. Whether it’s the high-octane offenses lighting up scoreboards or defenses clawing to keep pace, these matchups are teetering on the edge of unforgettable. If you’re like me, you’re gearing up for every snap, every tackle, every dramatic fourth-quarter surge that makes college football the pulse-pounding spectacle we crave.

So buckle up — the final weekend of September is serving a tantalizing feast of football stories just waiting to unfold, and you’re gonna want to be right there, feeling every moment. LEARN MORE

Week 5 of the 2025 college football season is loaded.

Saturday features four matchups between ranked teams and three of those four feature games involving top-five opponents.

Those aren’t the only fascinating matchups, either. Friday’s slate includes two games involving ranked teams and there are a couple of matchups in the SEC that could be upset watches.

Let’s get to it. Here’s what you need to know ahead of the final weekend of September.

No. 21 USC at No. 23 Illinois

Is USC for real? The Trojans are averaging over 52 points per game so far this season and have scored 78 combined points in their Big Ten wins over Purdue and Michigan State. If the Trojans beat Illinois, they’ll already be one win shy of their Big Ten win total in all of 2024.

Former UNLV QB Jayden Maiava has been fantastic in his first full season as the Trojans’ starter. He’s 68-of-96 passing for 1,223 yards and has thrown nine touchdowns without an interception. Junior college transfer Waymond Jordan has rushed for 443 yards on just 57 carries. Overall, the offense is averaging a staggering 9.2 yards per play.

Granted, the schedule hasn’t been exceptionally tough. Illinois is set to be the biggest test of the season so far for the Trojans even after the way the Illini were drubbed by Indiana. And beware of the time zones for the Trojans too. The win against Purdue snapped a 15-game losing streak east of Colorado for USC that dated back to 2012.

Nearly everything that could go wrong did go wrong for Illinois in Week 4. After a great start to the season, the Illini were gashed for 579 total yards and 312 rushing yards. Oh, Indiana scored eight offensive touchdowns too.

As the defense got ripped apart, the offensive line had a hard time holding up. Indiana had seven sacks as RB Kaden Feagin and Ca’Lil Valentine combined to rush 11 times for 29 yards.

No. 1 Ohio State at Washington

The Buckeyes were off in Week 4 ahead of their longest road trip of the season. Saturday’s game is the only one further west than Madison, Wisconsin, for Ohio State.

Ohio State’s defense has given up 16 points across three games. Redshirt freshman QB Julian Sayin is the early-season completion percentage leader in college football; he’s completing 78.9% of his passes. That’s over 2% more than Indiana QB — and new Heisman favorite — Fernando Mendoza.

After not playing against Texas, freshman running back Bo Jackson has surpassed 100 yards in the last two games while having just nine carries in each. He’s already Ohio State’s leading rusher.

Washington had a case to be ranked after its demolition of Washington State in Week 4. The Huskies put up 49 points as QB Demond Williams was 16-of-19 passing for 298 yards and four touchdowns while rushing 13 times for 88 yards and a score. Saturday’s game will be the first time many casual fans have seen Williams; a big game could make the sophomore a potential breakout star.

Williams and Washington’s offense could hang with Ohio State. It’s going to be up to the defense to force a turnover or two to keep any upset hopes alive.

No. 4 LSU at No. 13 Ole Miss

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin said Monday his team’s starting quarterback is Austin Simmons when Simmons is 100% healthy. Simmons hasn’t started each of the last two games after suffering a left ankle injury in the Rebels’ win over Kentucky.

And it appears he won’t be 100% for at least another week. According to On3, Trinidad Chambliss is set to make his third straight start for the Rebels.

The offense hasn’t missed a beat with Chambliss in the starting lineup. He’s thrown for 719 yards and four touchdowns this season while also rushing 36 times for 195 yards and two scores. A former starter at Division II Ferris State, Chambliss transferred to Ole Miss after the 2024 season.

LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier may not be at 100% either. Ahead of the Tigers’ Week 4 win over FCS Southeastern Louisiana, coach Brian Kelly said that Nussmeier was dealing with a torso injury. Against the Lions, Nussmeier was 25-of-31 passing for 273 yards and had four total touchdowns.

Could that game be the spark that LSU’s offense needed? The Tigers hadn’t scored more than 23 points in any of their first three games of the season and that Week 1 win over Clemson looks less and less meaningful now that Clemson is 1-3. Saturday’s game could be a far better barometer for where LSU sits in the pantheon of top college football teams.

No. 6 Oregon at No. 3 Penn State

The Big Ten title-game rematch headlines a prime-time slate that will have many college football fans frantically going back and forth between NBC and ABC.

If the Ducks pull the (slight) upset on Saturday, they’ll have a fantastic chance of going undefeated for a second straight season. Though the regular season ends with a trip to Washington, the only ranked teams on Oregon’s remaining schedule — No. 11 Indiana and No. 21 USC — both visit Eugene.

Oregon QB Dante Moore has become an early-season Heisman favorite as he’s completed nearly 75% of his passes for 962 yards and 11 TDs with just one interception. Without Evan Stewart in the lineup, Moore is really spreading the ball around, too. Malik Benson leads the Ducks with 14 receptions through the first four games of the season and nine players have at least three catches.

As Moore has shined, Drew Allar needs a stellar game to jumpstart his 2025 season. Allar was 22-of-26 for 217 yards and a TD in Penn State’s win over Nevada but since then has gone just 35-of-62 passing for 409 yards and three touchdowns and an interception in blowout wins over Florida International and Villanova.

The Nittany Lions haven’t needed Allar to be excellent in those games thanks to their backfield combination of Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen. That’s unlikely to continue on Saturday night. Penn State is going to need Allar to play well to avenge their Big Ten title-game loss.

No. 17 Alabama at No. 5 Georgia

The Crimson Tide’s Week 1 loss to Florida State took some of the luster off this matchup, but it also makes it even more critical for Alabama. Can the Tide afford a second loss before October with five more matchups against ranked teams remaining?

Alabama also simply needs to play well on the road against a power conference opponent. After blowing out Wisconsin last September, Alabama has gone 1-5 away from Bryant-Denny Stadium under Kalen DeBoer. The only victory came against LSU in November as Alabama won 42-13 and moved back into the top 10.

After a rough start against Florida State, QB Ty Simpson has been excellent against both Louisiana-Monroe and Wisconsin as Germie Bernard and Ryan Williams have formed a stellar receiving duo. Alabama should also have running back Jam Miller and defensive lineman Tim Keenan III for the first time on Saturday. Miller missed the first three games of the season with a collarbone injury while Keenan has been sidelined with a high ankle sprain.

Like Alabama, Georgia was also off in Week 4 following its 44-41 overtime win over Tennessee. After two milquetoast games to start the season, QB Gunner Stockton had his best game of the year against the Volunteers as he was 23-of-31 passing for 304 yards and scored three total touchdowns.

Georgia’s defense will want to avoid a second straight shootout, especially after what Alabama did to the Bulldogs in 2024. The Tide scored 30 points in the first half of their 41-34 win a season ago before Georgia fought back to take the lead late in the fourth quarter.

Other games to watch

No. 8 Florida State (-7) at Virginia, 7 p.m. ET Friday, ESPN: The Cavaliers are 3-1 and scoring over 45 points per game. FSU heads to Charlottesville on a short week after QB Thomas Castellanos got rolled up on by defenders in the Seminoles’ Week 4 win over Kent State. Castellanos should be good to go on Friday night.

No. 24 TCU at Arizona State (-2.5), 9 p.m. ET Friday, Fox: The defending Big 12 champions are slight favorites despite TCU’s hot start. The Horned Frogs took down SMU in Week 4 as QB Josh Hoover has thrown for exactly 1,000 yards over TCU’s first three games of the season.

No. 22 Notre Dame (-4.5) at Arkansas, Noon ET, ABC: A win for Arkansas may be desperately needed after the way the Razorbacks blew an 18-point lead in their Week 4 loss to Memphis. An Arkansas victory also assuredly knocks Notre Dame out of playoff contention.

Auburn at No. 9 Texas A&M (-6.5), 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN: The Aggies were off in Week 4 after their 41-40 win over Notre Dame while Auburn tries to bounce back from its 24-17 defeat at Oklahoma. Protecting QB Jackson Arnold is the Tigers’ biggest priority. Oklahoma sacked him 10 times. The Aggies have nine sacks through their first three games.

No. 15 Tennessee (-7.5) at Mississippi State, 4:15 p.m. ET, SEC Network: Can Mississippi State pull a second September home upset? The Bulldogs took down Arizona State in Week 2 as Jeff Lebby’s squad has already doubled its 2024 win total.

No. 25 BYU (-6.5) at Colorado, 10:15 p.m. ET, ESPN: It’s the first road start for BYU true freshman QB Bear Bachmeier. The Cougars are leaning heavily on their run game as Bachmeier gets his feet wet; the Cougars are averaging 41 carries per game to just 24 passes. The Buffaloes are allowing over 194 yards per game on the ground. QB Kaidon Salter should get his fourth start of the season after he accounted for three scores against Wyoming in Week 4.