College football Marty McFly Rankings Week 5: Is UCLA back? Is Chip Kelly back? Do they even qualify for being back?

I think we’re going to need to redefine what is a lost program. For example, if Virginia Tech returns to the form that Frank Beamer consistently had them at, would they be back? I ask because schools that were trying to get back this year are disappearing like Spider-Man in Infinity War. (I can’t remember if Marty McFly ever disappeared in a Back to the Future movie, so if that’s a more apt reference, use that one.)

I didn’t realize this until Troy Aikman pointed it out, but during his time as a Bruin, UCLA was the No.1 team in the country (and I’m sure other times as well). They didn’t win the national championship or anything, so does that count? I guess you’ll have to read on to see because a couple of the McFly candidates took L’s this weekend, and even though Washington and Florida State could still run the slate, if you watched their games, you know that’s unlikely to be the case.

So let’s see who’s still hanging around the outside of the Back bar, hoping a friend, or a string of luck, will gain them entrance.

Mike Norvell’s team started off strong in its attempt at ending Wake Forest’s three-game winning streak against them, zipping right down the field for an early 7-0 lead. However, the ’Noles didn’t score again until they cut Wake’s lead to 15, 28-13. Like Washington, they tried to make a comeback, closing the gap to 28-21 in the fourth. It was not to be though. Wake QB Sam Hartman played well, and Justice Ellison finished off the game during an 18-play 66-yard drive that resulted in three points and pushed the lead to 10.

I do empathize with Florida State though. The Demon Deacons are so frustrating to play, with Hartman reading the mesh for eons while opposing fans scream at their D-line to get pressure. Winning was so much easier when teams still employed pre-Revolutionary War tactics and just lined up armies across from each and fired ammunition until the team with the biggest army was left standing. (I don’t know how historically accurate that is, but smaller countries using guerrilla strategies while countries with superior strength bitch about them feels applicable.)

The Huskies were on their way to getting boat-raced by UCLA right out of the top 25 on Friday night, but made it respectable late and saved face. Michael Penix’s two interceptions were the difference in the game as the Washington defense didn’t show up until UCLA was in run-out-the-clock mode. They shot up the charts due to the Michigan State win that looks less impressive by the week, but could remain ranked throughout October because the schedule (at Arizona State, Arizona, and at Cal) is cake.

Outside of the defense getting run and passed on to the tune of 499 yards, the Husky ground game also no-showed. Wayne Taulapapa was bottled up the most of the night (48 yards), and Penix wasn’t a threat with his legs (-1 yard), though he still finished with 345 yards in the air to keep his top spot for total passing yards this year (1,733) among FBS quarterbacks. No. 12 Oregon (and probably a tiebreaker) is all that stands between them and a trip to the Pac-12 title game.

Shame on you if you sold off your Chip Kelly stock. All he needs is five years with a quarterback to turn him into a legit star. Yes, I know that’s a little harsh and, no, I wasn’t serious. I watched the entire UCLA-Washington game Friday, and the Huskies are fortunate to still be ranked after they turned a 40-16 deficit late in the third quarter into a more palatable 40-32 defeat.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson has been Kelly’s starter since both got to the LA campus, and it’s finally paying off. He’s got an 11-1 TD-interception ratio, has added three more scores on the ground, and is completing a staggering 74 percent of his throws. His command of the offense and the system was on full display against the best team UCLA has faced this year, and good for him. The program kept his coach, he didn’t transfer, and this team has the type of skill players to compete with any team in the Pac-12.

It’s going to take more than beating a head coach-less team for the Trojans to get back to the No. 1 spot in the McFly rankings. Hell, if we’re ranking them according to the standard that they’ve been playing to, Caleb Williams’ first interception of the season Saturday — the team’s lone turnover on the year — was enough for them to remain stagnant. (And let’s be honest, with the schedule Tennessee plays over the next month, they won’t have to wait too long to get back on top.)

This week’s opponent, Washington State, might be the best opponent Lincoln Riley’s team has faced all season, and hopefully, the Cougars’ bid to upset the Ducks, plus their win over the Badgers in Madison, has USC’s attention. With a visit to Utah next week, it’s a trap game in every sense of the cliche.

There’s nothing like a bye week after a big win to prepare you for a letdown. With the Gators vanquished, the Vols are onto the rest of their schedule, and, umm, it’s not exactly Cleveland that they’re onto. The trek to Baton Rouge for a top-25 showdown with LSU isn’t as bad as it could be. It’s not a night game, and the Tigers are still trying to figure out an offense under first-year coach Brian Kelly.

If I believed LSU was capable of taking advantage of Tennessee’s biggest weakness, its defense, then I might be more concerned. As it stands, the Tigers haven’t looked like Alabama, Georgia, or even Kentucky, and that’s a good thing because those are three of the next four schools on the Vols’ schedule after Saturday.