Week five of the college football season is almost here and there are a lot of storylines to follow and questions that need to be answered. Let’s breakdown five questions that will be answered by the weekend and make sure you check out our college football predictions for week five if you’re having a wager.

1. Is this a Nebraska team that can compete with the big boys?

Coming into the season everyone talked about how Nebraska was back and they could win the Big Ten title. After four games it feels like there are more questions than answers for this team and now they go on the road as 17.5 underdogs against Ohio State. There is still optimism around this team, but plenty of questions, including the kicking game. This is a team that had a hard time getting by Illinois last week, and they are going to have to play a lot better to keep this game close. It’s going to be hard to pull the upset, but if they can lose by seven points or less that should keep the buzz around this team, and prove they can still be a force in the Big Ten.

2. Where does Washington State go from here?

When I went to bed last Saturday Night Washington State was blowing out UCLA, much like I expected and the game was over. When I woke up on Sunday morning I was shocked to read that the Cougars had blown a 32 point lead and let UCLA come back and get their first win of the season. That is a loss that can really blown up an entire season and now they have to go on the road and try to beat a Utah team that has been tough at home and are 6.5 point favorites. Can Washington State forget about what happened against UCLA and pull off an upset against the Utes?

3. Is this a trap game for Auburn?

The Auburn Tigers are coming off an emotional win on the road against Texas A&M and now return home to face the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Next week the Tigers play Florida in Gainesville and a couple of weeks later they face off against Georgia. The Bulldogs are coming off a big win against Kentucky and the if the Tigers aren’t careful, they could drop this and all hopes for a National Title are out the window. 

4. Is USC really only going to be good at home this year?

USC has looked good at home winning all three games including in their last game against a very good Utah team. Now they go on the road and take on a tough Washington team who dominated BYU on the road in their last game. The only loss for USC this year came on the road against BYU in overtime. Can they keep this game close? Or will they lose their second road game of the season on Saturday. 

5. Can Virginia be a threat to Clemson? 

There really isn’t a team I see being a threat to Clemson in the ACC but if there is one, it could be the Virginia Cavaliers, but the only chance they could play would be in the ACC title game. The Cavaliers go on the road in this game to take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and we should have a good idea on Saturday night how good this Cavaliers team actually is. If they can pull off the upset on the road against Notre Dame, maybe the Tigers will have a threat.

We discuss more college football talking points here so make sure you check them out before the weekend. 

Let’s dive into five more questions that will be answered by the weekend which should give us a better picture of where teams are going as they try to win conferences and compete for a national title. If you’re placing a wager this weekend then check out our college football picks against the spread for week five.

6. How good are Maryland?

One of the more interesting questions that will be answered revolves around the Maryland Terrapins. Maryland dominated their first two games of the season, and then fell flat on their face against Temple. They now face off against Penn State at home and if they get blown out, it will prove they are pretenders and not contenders. If they can find a win, maybe the Temple game was a fluke and they can make some noise in the Big Ten.

7. Does Texas Tech actually have a good defense?

Alan Bowman is out for Texas Tech so this might not be a good old fashion shootout against the Sooners, but this should be a good test to see how good Texas Tech’s defense is. Texas Tech is giving up only 13.7 points per game and if they want any chance to keep this game close, the defense is going to need to be good. Has it been a fluke are times changing with the Red Raiders. 

8. Is Will Muschamp’s seat on fire after Saturday?

The South Carolina Gamecocks have been mediocre since Muschamp has taken over and now fans are calling for his job after a blowout loss against the Missouri Tigers. They return home to face Kentucky and this is really a must win for the Gamecocks. If they lose this game there are going to be even more calls for him to lose his job.

9. How do Michigan players respond to the Wisconsin loss?

The Wolverines playoff chances are probably dead and now they face a Rutgers team they should beat by at least 40 points on Saturday. Are they going to be motivated? Or will they let the Scarlet Knights hang around in a game they shouldn’t. 

10. Are Cal legit?

Cal looks legit after beating Ole Miss on Saturday but they have been involved in a lot of close matchups and that could be the case against Arizona State on Saturday. Cal’s next game is against Oregon and this is a game they can’t overlook, or the Oregon game won’t mean as much. 

Check out more college football talking points we discussed in our other article.