College Football Week 5 - 2026

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Week 5 of the 2026 season features 59 FBS games. San José State carries the week's biggest travel burden at 2,414 miles more than its opponent. Hawai'i posts the week's top HFA at 3.8 points. Analysts focused on travel and venue edges will find the ranked sections below most actionable; casual viewers can use the at-a-glance table to scan results. See detailed weather forecasts for every game this week.

Date Away @ Home Away Power Home Power HFA Power Line Line O/U Line Implied Score
Oct 1
6:00 PM
Western Kentucky @ New Mexico State -5.5 -18.1 2.2 Western Kentucky -10.4 - - -
Oct 1
8:00 PM
North Texas @ Tulsa -0.3 -11.8 1.8 North Texas -9.7 - - -
Oct 2
7:00 PM
Liberty @ Delaware -7.9 -15.2 2.5 Liberty -4.8 - - -
Oct 2
7:00 PM
Pittsburgh @ Virginia Tech 7.2 2.5 2.5 Pittsburgh -2.2 - - -
Oct 2
7:00 PM
Penn State @ Northwestern 19.5 3.5 3.0 Penn State -13.0 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Boston College @ SMU -5.7 12.8 3.8 SMU -22.3 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Louisville @ NC State 11.6 6.5 3.4 Louisville -1.7 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Miami @ Clemson 21.6 10.2 2.3 Miami -9.1 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Notre Dame @ North Carolina 26.7 -3.4 2.1 Notre Dame -28.0 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Stanford @ Wake Forest -6.0 3.8 2.5 Wake Forest -12.3 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Virginia @ Florida State 6.7 8.7 3.0 Florida State -5.0 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Purdue @ Illinois -5.1 10.8 2.2 Illinois -18.1 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Ohio State @ Iowa 32.2 14.7 2.1 Ohio State -15.4 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Michigan @ Minnesota 17.2 5.6 2.8 Michigan -8.8 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Arkansas State @ Louisiana -9.0 -8.9 2.8 Louisiana -2.9 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Georgia Southern @ Coastal Carolina -9.9 -11.3 2.5 Coastal Carolina -1.1 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Bowling Green @ Miami (OH) -16.3 -5.3 2.5 Miami (OH) -13.5 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Temple @ South Florida -10.7 2.3 3.0 South Florida -16.0 - - -
Oct 2
10:00 PM
UTEP @ New Mexico -20.8 -4.1 1.4 New Mexico -18.1 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Akron @ Central Michigan -19.3 -10.7 2.9 Central Michigan -11.5 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Toledo @ Ball State -1.6 -22.1 3.2 Toledo -17.3 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Western Michigan @ Buffalo -4.0 -14.4 2.3 Western Michigan -8.1 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Eastern Michigan @ Massachusetts -16.5 -32.4 2.1 Eastern Michigan -13.8 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Ohio @ Kent State -4.8 -18.7 2.4 Ohio -11.5 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Army @ Louisiana Tech -1.4 -7.5 3.2 Army -2.9 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Old Dominion @ Georgia State 2.0 -18.6 1.3 Old Dominion -19.3 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Marshall @ James Madison -6.0 4.6 2.7 James Madison -13.3 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
UL Monroe @ South Alabama -19.4 -10.8 2.4 South Alabama -11.0 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Vanderbilt @ Georgia 12.1 25.7 2.5 Georgia -16.1 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Alabama @ Mississippi State 19.2 3.5 1.3 Alabama -14.4 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Florida @ Missouri 11.5 12.8 2.4 Missouri -3.7 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Kentucky @ South Carolina 3.9 10.2 2.4 South Carolina -8.7 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Auburn @ Tennessee 10.9 15.8 2.9 Tennessee -7.8 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Arkansas @ Texas A&M 5.2 19.9 3.0 Texas A&M -17.7 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Middle Tennessee @ Kansas -20.2 4.4 2.8 Kansas -27.4 - - -
Oct 2
9:00 PM
Baylor @ Arizona State 3.1 6.4 2.0 Arizona State -5.3 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
BYU @ TCU 15.6 9.4 3.3 BYU -2.9 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
UCF @ Houston 0.6 6.7 1.5 Houston -7.6 - - -
Oct 2
9:00 PM
Cincinnati @ Arizona 5.0 8.9 2.4 Arizona -6.3 - - -
Oct 2
10:00 PM
Texas Tech @ Colorado 20.9 -0.5 2.9 Texas Tech -18.5 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
West Virginia @ Iowa State -2.7 5.2 2.9 Iowa State -10.8 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Maryland @ Nebraska 1.7 6.9 2.8 Nebraska -8.0 - - -
Oct 2
9:00 PM
Washington @ USC 15.5 16.8 3.1 USC -4.4 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
Michigan State @ Wisconsin -1.1 4.7 2.0 Wisconsin -7.8 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 AM
Memphis @ Charlotte 0.4 -24.3 1.1 Memphis -23.6 - - -
Oct 2
11:00 PM
UTSA @ Rice 1.4 -15.3 2.7 UTSA -14.0 - - -
Oct 3
10:00 AM
Navy @ Air Force 3.2 -5.4 2.5 Navy -6.1 - - -
Oct 3
12:00 PM
Syracuse @ UConn -4.6 -9.0 3.5 Syracuse -0.9 - - -
Oct 3
12:30 PM
California @ UNLV 0.9 -0.7 2.3 UNLV -0.7 - - -
Oct 3
2:30 PM
Samford @ UAB -29.6 -15.4 2.8 UAB -17.0 - - -
Oct 3
2:30 PM
Wyoming @ North Dakota State -12.2 -12.8 2.5 North Dakota State -1.9 - - -
Oct 3
6:00 PM
Texas Southern @ Florida Atlantic -29.6 -9.9 2.3 Florida Atlantic -22.0 - - -
Oct 3
4:00 PM
Oregon State @ Colorado State -9.5 -13.8 2.0 Oregon State -2.3 - - -
Oct 3
5:30 PM
Utah State @ Boise State -6.3 5.2 2.9 Boise State -14.3 - - -
Oct 3
6:45 PM
McNeese @ LSU -29.2 16.8 3.0 LSU -49.0 - - -
Oct 3
8:00 PM
Indiana @ Rutgers 27.6 -0.5 1.9 Indiana -26.2 - - -
Oct 3
6:30 PM
Fresno State @ Washington State -3.9 0.8 2.3 Washington State -7.0 - - -
Oct 3
7:30 PM
Texas State @ San Diego State -2.2 -1.1 2.7 San Diego State -3.8 - - -
Oct 3
5:59 PM
San José State @ Hawai'i -14.8 -6.3 3.8 Hawai'i -12.3 - - -

Biggest Travel Disadvantages This Week

Teams ranked by how much further they travelled than their opponent. At a neutral site both teams travel, so the gap between them is the burden - not the raw trip. Body-clock offset and rest-day differential compound it.

2,414 miles · +3h body-clock shift · +6d rest edge
San José State travels 2,414 miles to face Hawai'i, arriving with a +3h body-clock shift.
2,307 miles · -3h body-clock shift · opponent +1d rest
Stanford travels 2,307 miles to face Wake Forest, arriving with a -3h body-clock shift.
1,555 miles · +3h body-clock shift · equal rest
Cincinnati travels 1,555 miles to face Arizona, arriving with a +3h body-clock shift.
1,543 miles · +1h body-clock shift · equal rest
Boston College travels 1,543 miles to face SMU, arriving with a +1h body-clock shift.
#5 Navy
1,519 miles · +2h body-clock shift · +1d rest edge
Navy travels 1,519 miles to face Air Force, arriving with a +2h body-clock shift.

Highest Weather-Risk Games This Week

Games ranked by combined wind, temperature, and precipitation impact. Thresholds: sustained wind ≥ 15 mph, gusts ≥ 25 mph, temp ≤ 32°F or ≥ 95°F, precipitation chance ≥ 60%.

68°F, 1 mph wind, 82% precip, Light rain shower
Eastern Michigan @ Massachusetts: 68°F, 1 mph wind, 82% precip, Light rain shower: conditions historically favor the home team when passing difficulty is elevated.
74°F, 13 mph wind, 2% precip, Clear
Maryland @ Nebraska: 74°F, 13 mph wind, 2% precip, Clear: conditions historically favor the home team when passing difficulty is elevated.

Strongest Home-Field Advantages This Week

Home teams ranked by stadium HFA rating. Higher values reflect stronger historical home performance at that venue. Venues above 4,000 ft are flagged for altitude disadvantage.

#1 Hawai'i
HFA 3.8 pts · Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex · 16,909 capacity
Hawai'i carries a 3.8-point HFA edge at Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex (16,909 capacity) against San José State.
#2 SMU
HFA 3.8 pts · Gerald J. Ford Stadium · 32,000 capacity
SMU carries a 3.8-point HFA edge at Gerald J. Ford Stadium (32,000 capacity) against Boston College.
#3 UConn
HFA 3.5 pts · Pratt & Whitney Stadium · 36,000 capacity
UConn carries a 3.5-point HFA edge at Pratt & Whitney Stadium (36,000 capacity) against Syracuse.

When to Skip This Week 5 Analysis

How We Ranked Week 5's Games

Each ranked section draws from the same enriched data that powers our per-game pages. Travel distances are calculated as straight-line (great-circle) distances from each team's home market to the game stadium. Body-clock offset is the signed time-zone difference the away team crosses, or both teams in case of neutral site games. Rest-day differential is the difference in days since each team last played. Weather scoring compounds wind, temperature, and precipitation against fixed thresholds, dome stadiums are excluded as weather is irrelevant indoors, see our Weather tool for the full methodology.

HFA ratings come from our Home Field Advantage tool, which estimates the per-venue point value based on historical margin-of-victory data. Stadiums above 4,000 ft are flagged; altitude creates a documented visiting-team disadvantage. Power ratings are from the Blue Chip power-rating model. The gap between the model's implied spread and the market line is a directional signal; it is not a betting recommendation.

The Vegas versus Prediction Markets section compares the bookmaker's spread with the spread implied by the Kalshi prediction market - converted from its win probability through a fixed logistic scale - with no model involved. The Model versus Market section sets the Blue Chip model line against both of those markets as a three-way read, and each gap is described with the same language the per-game pages use. ATS records are season-to-date.

Sources

Weather Data

Home Field Advantage

Frequently Asked Questions

How many games are in college football Week 5 2026?

Week 5 of the 2026 FBS season features 59 games tracked by Blue Chip Analytics. The full schedule, lines, and totals are listed in the game table on this page.

How does Blue Chip Analytics rank travel disadvantages?

Teams are ranked by how much further they travelled than their opponent, measured as straight-line distance from each home market to the game stadium. At a home game the host travels nothing, so this is simply the visitor's trip; at a neutral site both teams travel and the gap between them is the burden. Body-clock offset (time-zone hours crossed) is listed alongside distance as a compound fatigue indicator.

What weather conditions qualify as high-risk for this week?

Games are flagged when the kickoff-hour forecast meets at least one of: sustained wind ≥ 15 mph, gusts ≥ 25 mph, temperature ≤ 32°F or ≥ 95°F, or a precipitation chance ≥ 60%. Scores compound across all factors: a cold and windy game ranks higher than a mildly breezy one. Weeks with no game past these thresholds show no weather section at all.

What is a Home Field Advantage (HFA) rating?

Blue Chip's HFA rating estimates the point value of playing at home at a specific stadium, based on historical margin-of-victory data. A rating of 3.0 means the home team historically performs about 3 points better at that venue than their power ratings alone would predict.

What does the Vegas versus Prediction Markets section show?

It ranks games by how far the bookmaker's spread sits from the spread implied by the Kalshi prediction market. Kalshi's win probability is converted to a spread through a fixed logistic scale, and no model is involved - it is one market against another. A wide gap is a directional flag, not a betting recommendation.

What does the Model versus Market section show?

It sets the Blue Chip model line against both the bookmaker line and the Kalshi-implied line - a three-way read - and ranks games by the model's largest disagreement with either market. The size of each gap is described in the same language the per-game pages use. Both the model and the markets can be wrong: treat it as a directional flag, not a pick.

What qualifies as a notable ATS record?

Teams are flagged when at least 4 of their games this season have produced a decided ATS result and their cover rate is ≥60% (hot) or ≤40% (cold). Records are season-to-date and, especially early on, rest on small samples - a hot or cold streak here is context to note, not a demonstrated edge.

Week 5 of the 2026 season features 59 FBS games; the ranked sections above surface the travel, weather, HFA, market-vs-market, model-vs-market, and ATS-record edges most relevant to analysts and informed fans.