GTM’s Top 25 College Football Week #5

September 21, 2025
go trucking magazine college football top 25 week 5 2025
go trucking magazine college football 2025
1. Georgia (3-0)
2. Ohio State (3-0)
3. Penn St (3-0)
4. Miami (4-0)
5. Oregon (4-0)
6. LSU (4-0)LSU Tigers football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine football rankings
7. Texas A&M (4-0)Texas A&M football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
8. Tennessee (3-1)
9. Ole Miss (4-0)
10. Florida State (4-0)Arizona Sundevils football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
11. Oklahoma (4-0)Oklahoma Sooners football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
12. Texas (3-1)
13. Alabama (2-1)Alabama Crimson Tide football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine football rankings
14. USC (4-0)USC Trojans football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine football rankings
15. Indiana (4-0)Indiana Hoosiers football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
16. Auburn (2-1)Auburn Tigers football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
17. Iowa State (3-0)Iowa State football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
18. Notre Dame (1-2)
19. Michigan (3-1)Michigan Wolverines football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine football rankings
20. Vanderbilt (4-0)Florida State Seminoles football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
21. Texas Tech (4-0)Texas Tech football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
22. Georgia Tech (4-0)Vanderbilt football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
23. Missouri (4-0)Missouri Tigers football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine
24. Illinois (3-1)Illinois football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine football rankings
25. Maryland (4-0)Maryland Terrapins football ranked in the top 25 on Go Trucking Magazine

Week 4 Delivers Statement Wins, Shake-ups in GTM’s Top 25

September 22, 2025 — Week 4 of the college football season was anything but quiet. Dominant performances, blowout upsets, and fierce rivalry games reshaped perceptions and led to noticeable shifts in the bottom of Go Trucking Magazine’s Top 25 for Week 5. Opening conference play will begin to shake-up the Top 25 as teams will begin to sort themselves out when head-to-head results can provide more evidence of who deserves a chance at the playoffs!

Big Games & Results: Who Made a Statement

Several teams entered Week 4 with something to prove — and many delivered in commanding fashion. Key outcomes include:

  • Indiana dismantles Illinois 63-10, a Big Ten opener that looked more like a playoff preview for the Hoosiers. Illinois was ranked in the Top 10 in the AP.com and Coaches polls, however, GTM did not. Indiana came in with less fanfare however, the scale of the win stunned many.
  • Texas Tech beats Utah on the road 34-10, another upset of two Top-25 teams, shaking up expectations in the Big 12. GTM’s top 25 saw Utah’s visit into the Top 25 as a brief stint at #24.
  • Florida State over Kent State 66-10 — dominance from the Seminoles, especially on the ground. The less than competitive game helps Florida State stay healthy and prepared to visit Virginia on Friday night.
  • Miami takes Florida 26-7 in a defensive-slanted rivalry game that underlined Miami’s stability in big spots. Normally, a marquee matchup, there wasn’t really much worth noting from this typically exciting and which results normally have national implications.

Michigan 45, Nebraska 21

The Wolverines flexed their depth and discipline in Lincoln, controlling the line of scrimmage from start to finish. Nebraska showed flashes of progress on offense, but turnovers and stalled drives in key moments proved costly. For Michigan, the win reinforces its place in the Big Ten’s upper tier, while the Cornhuskers are still searching for a breakthrough that will translate effort into victories.

Oklahoma 34, Auburn 27

In a back-and-forth clash, Oklahoma escaped with a narrow win that exposed Auburn’s inconsistency. The Tigers hung close thanks to a strong ground attack but failed to close late drives. The Sooners, meanwhile, leaned on clutch quarterback play in the fourth quarter. The victory steadies Oklahoma’s Top 25 footing, while Auburn faces questions about finishing games against elite opponents. Go Trucking Magazine did not remove Auburn out of the Top 25. We feel that BYU is overrated and TCU has the makings of being a Top 25 team, but just not quite there as of yet!

Auburn’s Poll Drop Sparks Outrage After Oklahoma Loss

Auburn’s fall out of the Coaches Poll, Top 25, has stirred heated debate across the college football landscape. The Tigers’ narrow road loss to a Top 10 Oklahoma squad hardly looked like grounds for such a drastic downgrade, especially given the quality of opponent. What makes the move more controversial is the game’s defining play — a “second and 22” conversion in which the Sooners deployed a rarely seen trick known as the “hideout the wideout” formation. The tactic allowed a receiver to linger near the sideline before slipping unnoticed into the play, leading to a touchdown that proved pivotal in the outcome. Many argue the maneuver should have drawn a penalty for deception, but officials let it stand. Auburn fans and analysts alike insist that punishing the Tigers in the coaches poll for circumstances largely outside their control is not just unfair, but morally wrong in shaping the narrative of the season.

Oregon 41, Oregon State 7

The Ducks left no doubt in the Civil War rivalry, storming to an emphatic win over the Beavers. Oregon’s defense smothered Oregon State’s offense, while the Ducks’ balanced attack piled on points early and never looked back. The rout not only keeps Oregon firmly in the national conversation but also underscores the growing gap between the two in-state programs.

Washington 38, Washington State 20

The Apple Cup had plenty of emotion but ended with a familiar result. Washington’s offense, powered by a sharp passing game, proved too much for Washington State to contain. The Cougars struck first but couldn’t keep pace as the Huskies methodically pulled away. For Washington, the rivalry win is another brick in their playoff push; for WSU, it’s a reminder of how far they must climb to catch their in-state rival.

Other noteworthy outcomes: Ole Miss beat Tulane, Tennessee won handily vs. UAB, Oklahoma edged Auburn in a closer Top-25 matchup, and Georgia Tech posted a win over Temple.

GTM’s Week 5 Top 25: Who Rises, Who Falls

Based on those results, Go Trucking Magazine revised its Top 25 in Week 5. While I don’t have all the exact rank-by-rank shifts, it’s clear who climbed and who slipped:

  • Indiana likely jumped significantly after the explosive win at Illinois.
  • Texas Tech also gets a bump, as road wins over ranked opponents carry serious ranking juice.
  • Teams like Florida State, Oregon, and Miami likely held steady or improved due to dominating performances.
  • On the flip side, Illinois and Utah suffered damage to their ranking profiles with those decisive losses.

GTM’s Top 25 is based on this question only, if Team A played Team B, what would the result be? We answer that and our rankings follow that line of reasoning. Sometimes a key injury or change in performance may result in a negative result despite the record. We feel that Notre Dame’s losses to Miami and Texas A&M, given the margin of loss, would literally put them right behind A&M. But then we ask ourselves, who can beat them and they drop to the point they fall behind teams that could beat them on a neutral site. Auburn for instance, is the best example of that. They were beating Oklahoma, at Oklahoma with less than five minutes left in the game. This, including the controversy, leaves one to question, how could they ever be out of the Top 25? On a neutral site, would the play in question have been flagged? So, we ask the question, would Auburn beat BYU, TCU, when they just lost to Oklahoma by one score and who is ranked 10th in the new Coaches poll? The answer to that, is a resounding, “YES!”

Top 25 Recap: Results That Aligned GTM Rankings

Here are some results that particularly validate GTM’s updated Top 25:

  • Indiana’s blowout of Illinois: Moves them from perceived underdog status to serious Big Ten threat.
  • Texas Tech’s road win over Utah: Confirms the Red Raiders deserve a higher place among the Big 12 elite.
  • Oregon, Florida State, Miami dominance: These teams didn’t just win; they won convincingly, reinforcing their ranking positions.

Implications for the Rankings & Beyond

  • Ranking volatility is real: Middle of the Top 25 is where most movement happened. Statement wins and blowout losses are the difference between week-to-week shifts.
  • Perception matters: Not just wins, but how teams win — margin, opponent strength, road vs home — is feeding into GTM’s evaluations.
  • Momentum vs. expectations: Teams like Indiana and Texas Tech are riding momentum. Established powers need to avoid surprising losses or being one-dimensional lest they lose their footing.

Looking Ahead: What to Watch in Week 5

  • Can Indiana sustain this level of dominance? Next defensive test will be key.
  • How will Utah respond after such a road beatdown? Their next game will say a lot about their resilience.
  • Top-10 teams like Oregon, Miami, Florida State have fewer easy matchups coming. Any slip-ups could result in rapid drop.
  • Mid-tier teams looking to rise (or re-rise) in GTM’s list will be under pressure to perform convincingly — the margin for error is shrinking.

Final Word

Week 4 delivered more than just scores: it delivered clarity. Go Trucking Magazine’s Week 5 Top 25 reflects this clarity — those who proved themselves rose, those who faltered fell. As college football hits its stride, every game matters more, and every victory or loss becomes part of a larger narrative about which programs are building for greatness and which are being exposed. The next few weeks could define what this season is going to mean for many of these Top 25 teams.