Projected college football rankings after USC survives against Colorado, Penn State pulls away, Florida upset

The Saturday slate for Week 5 of the college football season got off to an exciting start, to say the least. The headlining game was between the No. 8 USC Trojans and Colorado Buffaloes, the latter of whom were blown out by the Oregon Ducks last week. It sure looked like there would be a repeat of the last week, as the Trojans took a commanding 34-14 lead at halftime. Instead, it was a stressful time for USC fans, thanks to Colorado attacking their defense.

In the end, it was USC who held on, winning 48-41. Even six touchdown passes from Heisman Trophy winner and perennial No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams wasn't enough to put the Buffaloes away. But, it was enough to escape with a narrow victory.

Also taking place in the noon slate on Saturday was the No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions pulling away from an "upset alert" prior to halftime and picking up the 41-13 win over the Northwestern Wildcats.

But there was an upset, as the No. 22 Florida Gators lost 33-14 to the Kentucky Wildcats. Running back Ray Davis played a huge role in the win, rushing for 280 yards and three touchdowns on 26 carries.

With this, the Associated Press Top 25 rankings are going to change. Let's take a look at what the college football rankings could look like after the noon slate of games on Saturday.

College Football Rankings: Projected Top 25 after USC survives against Colorado, Penn State pulls away, and Florida upset by Kentucky

1. Georgia Bulldogs
2. Michigan Wolverines
3. Texas Longhorns
4. Ohio State Buckeyes
5. Florida State Seminoles
6. Penn State Nittany Lions
7. Washington Huskies
8. Oregon Ducks
9. USC Trojans
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
11. Alabama Crimson Tide
12. LSU Tigers
13. Oklahoma Sooners
14. North Carolina Tar Heels
15. Washington State Cougars
16. Duke Blue Devils
17. Miami Hurricanes
18. Oregon State Beavers
19. Utah Utes
20. Ole Miss Rebels
21. Tennessee Volunteers
22. Missouri Tigers
23. Kansas Jayhawks
24. Fresno State Bulldogs
25. Kentucky Wildcats

Yes, USC escaped with the win, but they could very well drop. It makes sense to rank them behind Oregon, who had no issues against Colorado last week. The fact that the Trojans defense had to scratch and claw to a win shows that Oregon is the more superior team over them.

As for Penn State, they stay in their same spot, as they got past a 10-10 halftime tie and scored 31 more points in the second half.

Florida, meanwhile, will fall outside of the Top 25 with their second loss of the season. With that, a new spot opens up. Kentucky is a prime candidate, as they beat Florida. It only makes sense.