Through five weeks of college football, we continue to welcome the chaos that is the NIL era. It makes the jobs of predictors and analysts a lot harder, since no team is completely dominant, and every matchup now has millions of dollars poured into it.  

This article will be shorter than previous weeks due to a bye week in Tennessee’s schedule following an overtime win against Mississippi State. 

We will see the rekindling of a classic rivalry in the Sunshine State, along with a rematch of a classic upset from just a year ago. 

*All stats and standings are pulled from https://www.espn.com/college-football/stats, https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://www.ncaa.com/stats/football/fbs.* 

The U makes its presence known against the Seminoles

Following a red-hot start to the season, the Florida State Seminoles have cooled down. Following a loss to a mediocre Virginia team, Florida State will look to bounce back against a top-five Miami team. 

Leading the Hurricanes is junior defensive end Rueben Bain Jr., who is making his case for a Heisman spot. The stats might not jump out at you, but I can promise you, with great certainty, that Florida State will feel Bain’s presence on Oct 4.

On the other side of the ball, Miami is led by senior transfer quarterback Carson Beck, who has taken his game to another level since transferring from Georgia over the offseason. Beck’s 972 yards and seven touchdowns have been more than enough to lead the Hurricanes to wins over Notre Dame, USF and Florida already. 

Florida State, on the other hand, has been up and down following an upsetting win over Alabama. Following some easy matchups against East Texas A&M and Kent State respectively, the Seminoles faced better competition in the Virginia Cavaliers and fell dramatically as Virginia students rushed the field. 

Now, with much harder competition ahead, it is up to the Seminoles to decide whether they bounce back or crumble under the pressure. 

Miami establishes their dominance over the sunshine state in a 31-24 victory over Florida State. 

The Tide exact revenge on an SEC up and comer

Despite my doubts, the Crimson Tide have rebounded quite well following an upset loss to the previously mentioned Florida State at the start of the season.  

Starting junior quarterback Ty Simpson has found a rhythm in the Alabama offense under head coach Kalen Deboer and seems to improve as each game passes. This improvement headlined by a three touchdown and 288-yard performance against the #12 Georgia Bulldogs. 

However, the Tide is not the only team allowed to improve in the modern era of college football. Vanderbilt, led by head coach Clark Lea, has built themselves into a force to be reckoned with by any team in the country—including Alabama. 

Vanderbilt senior quarterback Diego Pavia, who led the Commodores in their upset over Alabama last season, returns with an even bigger chip on his shoulder in his final season of college football. Pavia’s 1,211 yards and 15 touchdowns, along with his elite senior tight end Eli Stowers, has been an engine for this Vanderbilt offense who continues to dominate opposing defenses. 

The Commodores will have their hands full when they float into Tuscaloosa on Saturday.  

Simpson avenges the Tide in a 38-24 statement win over Pavia and the Commodores.