Some of the best things about being a college student – other than the hours of studying we engaged in, of course – were the times we bonded with our friends and, if one of them had a car on campus, going on random road trips. (Why do you think a whole lot of us tried to not sign up for any classes on Fridays when registering for every new semester after freshman year?) No matter what we saw or what trouble we got into during our excursions, heading back to campus and recounting the good times and occasional debauchery was one of the things that made being a collegian so indelibly memorable.
This week, a good number of ranked college football teams will be taking road trips and hoping for happy stories on their way back to campus on Saturday night/Sunday morning. Eight teams in the top 15 of the AP Poll play on the road this week, and 12 of them altogether are heading into hostile territory (not counting Arizona State’s game in Arlington, Texas against Notre Dame). Some of the games should be routine victories (e.g. Oregon at Colorado) while others might prove to be more sticky propositions, including tonight’s game in Salt Lake City, with UCLA taking on a 3-1 Utah team that has defeated BYU and Utah State, and with their only loss being a 51-48 overtime shootout to 4-1 Oregon State.
Here are our rankings and comments heading into Week 6, and as a reminder, here are our six pollsters: Lisa Horne (CFB/NASCAR writer and on-air personality), Basil Mitchell (former TCU and Green Bay Packers running back), T.J. Basalla (super fan, marketing professional, WJPZ Alumni Association President), Matty J. (ThrowTheFlagBlog.com, gifsection.com), Adesina Koiki (A Lot Of Sports Talk reporter/writer) and an anonymous staff member at a Division I-FBS school.
1. 
Oregon (146 points, 2 first-place votes)
Can anyone stop the Ducks? Another week, another rout. This Saturday, Oregon travels to Colorado. R.I.P. Buffs. (Lisa Horne)
Since “Clemson-ing” already exists, I think “Oregon-ing” should describe anytime a team scores points in bunches to knock out an opponent. (Anonymous FBS D-1 staffer)
2. 
Alabama (144, 3 first-place votes)
If Oregon’s signature is quickly stunning an opponent with a flurry of points, Alabama’s is slowly suffocating an opponent for four quarters. (Anonymous D-1 FBS staffer)
3. 
Clemson (136, 1 first-place vote)
The last time a top-10 team went on the road to play Syracuse during its homecoming, No. 8 Florida State barely got away with a 17-13 victory (2004). The unfamiliarity of playing a true away game indoors, playing on artificial turf and going up against an improved Syracuse football program – and a somewhat revitalized fan base – should make this game a very tricky affair for the Tigers. (Adesina Koiki)
4. 
Stanford (130)
The Cardinal took the swing out of Mike Leach’s sword, winning 55-17 against Washington State. The Cardinal host Washington this week, and this contest could determine which Pac-12 North heavyweight bows out of the race to win the North. (Lisa)
5. 
Ohio State (120)
The Buckeyes’ first big test of the season (Wisconsin) resulted in a win but by seven points. Are they a top five team? We’ll find out shortly when they travel to Northwestern. (Lisa)
6. 
Georgia (115)
Beating LSU through the air without dynamic wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell? Check. Defeating the Tigers without the services of Todd Gurley in the second half? Check. Confirmation that Aaron Murray can’t win the big game(s)? Umm, best to leave that box blank. (Adesina)
7. 
Florida State (110)
The scoreboard/opponent may not show it, but winning in Chestnut Hill was a good and important win for FSU and Jameis Winston. They took a punch in the mouth and responded very well on the road against the Eagles. Don’t trip up against Maryland and we get our ACC dream match-up in Death Valley. (T.J. Basalla)
8. 
Louisville (104)
While the Cardinals were on their bye, their fans were rooting hard for fellow American Athletic Conference member UCF against South Carolina, hoping a Knights win would help Louisville’s strength of schedule down the road. Alas, the Knights lost, but being in the Top 10 and undefeated is not a bad way to begin your October if you have national title aspirations. (Adesina)
9. 
LSU (98)
I have two takeaways from their game last weekend. Zach Mettenberger is really good. His growth from the first half of last season to this season has been really impressive. Their defense, especially on the back end, needs a lot of improvement. They are obviously very young, but I saw three or four coverage busts that turned into huge plays when Georgia went to their trips look. When we saw them two years ago, I could count the number of communication errors they had on the back end on one hand. (Anonymous FBS D-1 staffer)
10. 
Texas A&M (95)
The Aggies’ defense continues to be a concern but as long as the team scores at least one more point than their opponents, does it really matter? (Lisa)
11. 
UCLA (92)
The Bruins had a bye week to prepare for their road trip to Utah. UCLA’s defense will be severely tested. (Lisa)
12. 
Miami, Fla. (79*)
I have really liked this Miami squad since day one. I am a huge fan of Al Golden. His attention to detail and focus on keeping everything in line with the program’s philosophy is Saban-esque. They have a tricky game vs. Georgia Tech coming up. (Anonymous FBS D-1 staffer)
13. 
Baylor (79)
The Bears average 751 yards of total offense per game. Their competition has not been great but that is simply unreal. Bryce Petty is averaging 15 yards per attempt. Not per completion, but per attempt. These guys are scary on offense. (Anonymous D-1 FBS staffer)
14. 
South Carolina (74)
It will be interesting to see what happens if they have to go forward without Connor Shaw. The guy is incredibly underrated, in my opinion. (Anonymous FBS D-1 staffer)
15. 
Oklahoma (73)
Traveling to South Bend and spanking Notre Dame is no easy feat. Big Game Bob can put a feather in his cap, because that was a big win for the Sooners. (Lisa)
Oklahoma got gashed in the run game, but the good news is that they wont face an offensive line as big and physical as Notre Dame’s until November, when they face Baylor on a Thursday night. (Anonymous FBS D-1 staffer)
16. 
Washington (72)
Keith Price struggled a bit in the rain, so they decided to let Bishop Sankey carry the rock 40 times. I guess they were not worried about letting him rest up before they face Stanford. (Anonymous FBS D-1 staffer)
17. 
Northwestern (53)
Ohio State and College Gameday will be in Evanston this weekend. The Wildcats have a chance to prove they deserve this lofty ranking. Don’t sleep on them. (Lisa)
Biggest game since the 1996 Rose Bowl? I think so. (T.J.)
18. 
Michigan (52)
Over/under on Devin Gardner turnovers against Minnesota: 1.5. Dare you to take the under. Seriously. I dare you. (T.J.)
19. 
Florida (36)
Typical Muschamp-coached Florida win. They held Kentucky to two yards per carry and controlled the clock for nearly 40 minutes. I really like this squad but I don’t know if they have the weapons to beat LSU, Georgia, and FSU. (Anonymous FBS D-1 staffer)
20. 
Fresno State (35)
The Bulldogs called off the dogs in the fourth quarter at Hawai’i and had to hang on to win 42-37 last week. Don’t let that score sway you—Fresno State is a very good team. (Lisa)
21. 
Texas Tech (29)
The word “defense” may sound like Swahili to many fans in Lubbock, but the Red Raiders, “Air Raid Offense” and all, have held opponents to 13 points or fewer in three of its four wins, including only allowing 10 points vs. TCU. (Adesina)
22. 
Oklahoma State (27)
The defense was a big question mark and that was the reason why I did not have the Cowboys ranked as high as other pollsters had them. Losing to a very pedestrian West Virginia is a big setback for Oklahoma State. Baylor and Oklahoma look like the two top teams in the Big 12. (Lisa)
23. 
Maryland (16)
Remember when Terps head coach Randy Edsall was feeling the heat after a 6-18 start to his tenure, a slew of players transferring out of the program and his comments that indirectly took swipes at predecessor Ralph Friedgen? A win at high noon in Tallahassee would officially erase all of that. (Adesina)
24. 
Ole Miss (13)
Tough game against Alabama. They could have definitely scored some points through field goals, but Hugh Freeze sent a message to his young players that they traveled to Tuscaloosa to win, not to simply keep the score close. In the long run, the lesson learned could be more important than whether the score was 25-0 or 25-9. (Anonymous D-1 FBS staffer)
25. 
Arizona State (11)
We have the Sun Devils to thank for ridding the college football world of Lane Kiffin. So thanks for that, ASU! (T.J.)
Others receiving votes:
Virginia Tech (4 points), Missouri (3), Northern Illinois (3), Notre Dame (1)
* – To break ties, we used a three-step criteria; 1) higher number of first-place votes, 2) higher number of ballots (out of six) the teams appeared in, 3) highest single ranking by an individual pollster (e.g. if Team A and Team B are tied cumulatively and appeared in all six polls, but Team A’s highest ranking by an individual pollster was No. 7 and Team B’s highest ranking by an individual pollster was No. 9, Team A wins tiebreaker)
