Each week, before the college football rankings come out, we at The Comeback will give you a look at our predictions for upcoming rankings. These aren’t just based on our opinion of what the Top 25 will look like. It’s also based on trends regarding how the voters have treated similar teams in the past.

Here’s the outlook on college football’s rankings after Week 4 action.

Biggest risers

Washington (No. 10 to No. 6)

It’s crowded at the top of the rankings, so Washington doesn’t make a massive jump up the rankings, but the Huskies gained more respect than anyone else in their 44-6 drubbing of Stanford… and it really wasn’t even that close. Any doubts about Washington have been thoroughly dispensed after demolishing the Cardinal on both sides of the ball, and the Huskies are the clear Pac-12 favorite in what looks like an otherwise mediocre league.

Oklahoma (unranked to No. 20)

Remember Oklahoma? That one-time College Football Playoff contender that got boat-raced by both Ohio State and Houston, dropping out of the top 25 in the process? Well, the Sooners aren’t going to make the Playoff this year, but thanks to a mess of mediocrity at the bottom of the top 25 rankings, the Sooners might be all the way back to the top 20 after beating TCU. This defense has a lot of flaws, but the offense still has a lot of weapons and should make the Big 12 race fun.

North Dakota State (unranked to No. 23)

This isn’t one of the biggest jumps this week, but we have to note that North Dakota State just might become the first FCS team to ever be ranked this week. It’s hard to find anyone else to rank above the Bison, who were just outside of the rankings this past week, and NDSU dominated fellow FCS power Illinois State this week. Look for the Bison to jump into the rankings.

Biggest fallers

Michigan State (No. 17 to unranked)

Michigan State’s big win over Notre Dame seems like forever ago. The Spartans’ offense has been off all year, except for that game (and the Irish defense has looked very shaky anyway), and that was on display in consecutive losses to Wisconsin and Indiana. The defense isn’t what it once was, either. Catching Michigan and Ohio State is a pipe dream, and now the Spartans just have to hope they can win more than six or seven games this season.

Florida State (No. 12 to No. 17)

Florida State should drop lower after losing at home to North Carolina, but as mentioned, there really isn’t anywhere for the Seminoles to drop, as none of the teams below them have proven that formidable. FSU has a nice win over Ole Miss on its resume, but the Seminoles have been maddeningly inconsistent on both sides of the ball. A slow start doomed them against UNC and allowed the Tar Heels to kick a game-winning field goal as time expired.

Wisconsin (No. 8 to No. 13)

Despite a valiant effort, Wisconsin couldn’t take advantage of a few lucky breaks (in the form of three missed field goals) in a 14-7 loss to Michigan. The Badgers’ defense proved to be the formidable force we’ve seen all year, but the offense faltered under true freshman quarterback Alex Hornibrook. UW will be in every game because of its defense, but the offense needs to produce with games left against Ohio State and Nebraska.

Projected rankings

  1. Alabama (no change from previous AP poll)
  2. Ohio State (no change)
  3. Clemson (+2)
  4. Michigan (no change)
  5. Louisville (-2)
  6. Washington (+4)
  7. Houston (-1)
  8. Texas A&M (+1)
  9. Tennessee (+2)
  10. Miami (+4)
  11. Baylor (+2)
  12. Nebraska (+3)
  13. Wisconsin (-5)
  14. Ole Miss (+2)
  15. Stanford (-8)
  16. Arkansas (+4)
  17. Florida State (-5)
  18. Florida (+5)
  19. Boise State (+5)
  20. Oklahoma (+6)
  21. Utah (-3)
  22. West Virginia (+4)
  23. North Dakota State (+3)
  24. North Carolina (+2)
  25. TCU (-4)

5 games to watch next week

1. No. 9 Tennessee at No. 8 Texas A&M

Texas A&M struggled with South Carolina this week, but Tennessee has a habit of playing pretty poorly in every single one of its games. The Vols can’t do that this week against the Aggies. A&M has a chance to extend a surprising start and maybe, just maybe, contend with Alabama in the SEC West.

2. No. 1 Alabama at No. 16 Arkansas

Arkansas has flown under the radar for much of this year, but the Razorbacks have a very capable offense, and they lost by just one the last time they met the Crimson Tide in Fayetteville. Alabama is more talented, but if Nick Saban’s team is looking ahead to Tennessee in two weeks, Arkansas could take advantage.

3. No. 17 Florida State vs. No. 10 Miami

Florida State has owned Miami in the Jimbo Fisher era, but this is the worst FSU team in half a decade, and probably the best Miami team in that timespan, too. The Hurricanes have quietly dominated opponents en route to an undefeated start, and they have a chance to prove they’re truly an ACC contender by beating the Seminoles.

4. Colorado at USC

This isn’t a great week of game, so you might as well watch Colorado, which is apparently a good team now. The Buffaloes’ only loss is at Michigan — and they even game the Wolverines a run — and they have a win over Oregon, plus a blowout win over Oregon State. This perennially terrible team could actually win the Pac-12 South. Beating USC would be its biggest accomplishment yet.

5. Indiana at No. 2 Ohio State

INDIANA GONNA DO IT AGAIN!?

No, probably not, but this is a bad week of games and this year of college football is very, very weird. So watch this and see what happens.

About Kevin Trahan

Kevin mostly covers college football and college basketball, with an emphasis on NCAA issues and other legal issues in sports. He is also an incoming law student. He's written for SB Nation, USA Today, VICE Sports, The Guardian and The Wall Street Journal, among others. He is a graduate of Northwestern University.