College Football Risers and Fallers After Week 5 - 2024 College Football

Week 5 brought us what will go down as one of the most memorable college football games of all time between second-ranked Georgia and fourth-ranked Alabama. The Crimson Tide led 30-7 going into halftime, and 33-15 heading into the fourth quarter. This game was over until it wasn’t, as the rest is now fresh history.

A thrilling week of college football started hot with Miami narrowly escaping Virginia Tech after a game-winning touchdown was overturned on Friday night. That was just the beginning of the madness. Ole Miss fell to Kentucky at home in the noon slate, as Michigan slithered by Minnesota. In the middle of the day, Notre Dame took care of Louisville and USC battled back against Wisconsin. Oklahoma dodged Auburn with a late pick-six, and Duke rallied back to beat North Carolina.

The night concluded with a Penn State win at home, the instant-classic Georgia-Bama matchup, and an after-dark Arizona upset over Utah. Let’s dig into this week’s stock report.

Stock Up

Colorado Buffaloes' Bowl Hopes

As two-touchdown underdogs on the road against a strong UCF squad, Deion Sanders’ team was fearless. The Buffaloes took the lead early in this one and never looked back, traveling across the country to win 48-21. 

Keeping plays alive outside of structure and using his legs to limit negative plays.

Some areas that Shedeur Sanders has shown growth in so far this year. Multiple examples vs. UCF last week. pic.twitter.com/JZgsZUCEHm

— Jordan Reid (@Jordan_Reid) September 30, 2024

Shedeur Sanders was dealing, completing 28-of-35 passes for 290 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception in the win. Colorado improved to 4-1, remaining unscathed in Big 12 play heading into a bye week. It already has as many wins as it had a year ago. It now sits two wins away from bowl eligibility.

The schedule has no “gimmes,” but this team has momentum right now and should be able to play itself into a bowl game coming off this win.

Iowa State Cyclones

Iowa State has quietly played itself into the driver’s seat of the Big 12, a conference full of surprises weekly. The Cyclones shut out Houston this past week, coming away with a 20-0 road win. 

While the team they were playing wasn’t the most impressive, other contenders in the conference fell. The Cyclones do not play any of the six teams that are undefeated in conference play, giving them one of the cleaner paths to a conference title in what will continue to be a competitive conference every week.

Ryan Williams, WR, Alabama

Alabama’s true freshman phenom very well could be the best wide receiver in college football, and he is 17 years old. Ryan Williams made one of the most impressive plays you will see late in the biggest game of the week and maybe the entire regular season to ultimately win the game for the Crimson Tide.

Ryan Williams is 17 years old out there making grown men look silly on 75 Yard Touchdown catch and RUN.

Think I saw him “Moss” a guy then go for a find 2-split 2 into a Reggie Bush step back to a Tyreek Hill sprint down the sideline. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/z0Xt3iUvfy

— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) September 29, 2024

If freshmen could go to the league, Williams would be a surefire first-round selection immediately. He’s that good, and he should still be in high school. This guy could hold out for the next two seasons and would probably still be a top-5 selection in the 2027 NFL Draft. Williams will be a joy for college football fans to watch over the next three seasons.

Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State

Boise State’s running back is the best running back in college football, and maybe even the most important player to his team in college football. Boise State isn’t Boise State without Ashton Jeanty.

Jeanty’s latest feat was a 259-yard, four-touchdown performance on the ground in a 45-24 win over Washington State. The 20-year-old has 845 yards and 13 touchdowns on the ground through just four games. The Broncos are 3-1, ranked 21st in the nation, and are one of the top contenders to make the College Football Playoff out of the Group of 5. This guy is single-handedly making this team appointment television.

Stock Down

Ole Miss Rebels' Playoff Hopes

With how strong the SEC appears to be this season, there is a reasonable belief that the conference could send five teams to the College Football Playoff. Lane Kiffin’s team was one of those that was commonly projected inside of the field. Following a home loss to Kentucky, the playoffs seem far less feasible.

The Rebels still have to play LSU on the road as well as Oklahoma and Georgia at home. A loss in any of those games likely knocks them out of playoff contention, and after falling to Kentucky, it is not unreasonable to believe that South Carolina, Arkansas, or Florida could sneak out a win over this team and bury their championship aspirations for good.

The narrow loss to Kentucky is going to hurt this team in the long haul.

College Football Officials

It seems that the referees wind up in this “stock down” column at least once a season, but they were particularly bad on game-altering calls this past week.

Starting on Friday night, Virginia Tech’s game-winning Hail Mary was overturned without indisputable evidence. The ACC had to make a statement following the call with the reasoning behind the decision to overturn the score.

VIRGINIA TECH'S HAIL MARY WAS RULED INCOMPLETE 😱 pic.twitter.com/J2pK4IY5y5

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 28, 2024

Going into Saturday, Minnesota recovered an onside kick late into the game against Michigan down three points. It was overturned after an offsides flag that ended up prompting the Big Ten to swiftly change the rules around onside kicks. Let’s just say the officials were not up to par last week.

Big Ten officiating on the offsides call during the onside kick the Minnesota vs Michigan game:

“With 1:37 remaining in the fourth quarter of Saturday's game between Michigan and Minnesota, Minnesota attempted an onside kick and was flagged for an offside penalty.

Offside… pic.twitter.com/IXWmdn7Ebr

— The Big Ten Huddle 🎙️ (@TheBigTenHuddle) September 30, 2024

Utah Utes

Still without Cam Rising, Utah struggled offensively in the after-dark window against Arizona. Isaac Wilson tossed two interceptions and the Utes only scored 10 points as opposed to Arizona’s 23 as the Utes dropped their first game of the season.

The loss wasn’t ideal for Utah, as it would have been in a much better position had it come away with a win, but the Utes are still afloat in the Big 12 title and playoff races. If they keep rolling with Wilson over Rising, their postseason hopes are all but over.

Northern Illinois Huskies

Despite falling to Buffalo in overtime, Northern Illinois’ College Football Playoff hopes were wildly alive entering last week with another power conference opponent awaiting it. 

The Huskies fought, but could not fend off North Carolina State and backup quarterback CJ Bailey. The loss effectively ended Northern Illinois’ playoff hopes after the program-altering win over Notre Dame in South Bend.

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