As part of BCS Know How’s 2010 college football season preview, we will be breaking down each week’s most important games that could have BCS and postseason implications in the “Road to Glendale 2011″.

Let’s move on to week five, where the Red River Shootout is among the many fantastic conference match ups during the first week of October.

Florida at Alabama: Oct. 2, TBA

A rematch of last season’s SEC Championship Game and a game which will feature Nick Saban, Alabama’s defending Heisman trophy winner running back Mark Ingram, and the defending national champion Crimson Tide doesn’t need much hyping.

However, added storylines, including Urban Meyer’s near-retirement, Florida’s new quarterback in John Brantley and the chance for a preview of the 2010 SEC Championship Game only adds to the appeal of this match up.

It’s not a stretch to expect both teams to be undefeated when the Gators travel to Tuscaloosa, although tough match ups do exist for both teams in trips to Arkansas for Alabama and Tennessee for Florida.

Regardless, the strength on both sides of the ball for both squads could make this another classic SEC tussle that have been the most exciting in college football these past few years — and there’s no reason to expect any less.

Texas vs. Oklahoma: Oct. 2, TBA

Alright, lets be truthful, 2009′s edition of the Red River Shootout was a sloppy game.

The 16-13 victory by Texas was marred by injuries, tons of turnovers and Oklahoma rushing for minus-16 yards. Even Colt McCoy, who played the whole game, passed for a measly 127 yards and just one touchdown.

Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford, in his second game back from a shoulder injury in the Sooners’ season opener, was injured in the first quarter and replaced by then-freshman Landry Jones, who struggled.

This year’s edition will hopefully be a better-controlled game, especially since this one game — as has been the case many times in the past decade — will likely decide who has the upper hand in the volatile Big 12 South Division.

Despite the injury that ruined Sam Bradford’s final collegiate year and likely cost Oklahoma a shot at a national title bid, the Sooners were able to help groom Jones for the 2010 season. The sophomore now comes into this season looking ready to lead the Sooners back to the top of the college football landscape.

McCoy’s replacement and Jones’s counterpart at the helm of the Longhorn defense, sophomore Garrett Gilbert also benefited from playing time filling in for McCoy, however his playing time came in the BCS National Championship Game, pressure Jones did not deal with.

So both programs are led by quarterbacks that have unexpected experience, and by the time this year’s edition of the Red River Rivalry arrives, both will have played a full slate of non-conference games. The unplanned extra grooming, along with the annually reloaded roster of both the Sooners and Longhorns could make this a can’t-miss Big 12 battle.

Washington at USC: Oct. 2, 8:00 p.m. ET

Despite not being able to participate in postseason play for 2010 and 2011, USC is still considered among the favorites in the very unpredictable Pac-10 in 2010.

Washington too is considered a strong choice to make their way back to the top of the conference, in large part because of the hype surrounding senior quarterback and Heisman hopeful Jake Locker.

The two teams will meet for the first time in week five since a tussle in Washington state last season where the Huskies knocked off a then-No. 3 Trojan group who seemed to be angling for a Pac-10 championship once again. The loss put a large hole in that hope, and the Trojans would end up missing a BCS bowl bid for the first time in eight years.

Washington, on the other hand, took the victory and ran with it, improving upon a winless 2008 and finishing ’09 with a respectable 5-7 record. Following the season it was expected that Locker would leave for the NFL, but the returning senior gives the Huskies a true hope at a conference crown.

USC will counter at the Coliseum with sophomore Matt Barkley, who won the starting job at ‘SC as a true freshman, and now returns to the field with an extra year of experience. However, Barkley and the Trojans will have to deal with the loss of players transferring out because of the NCAA sanctions.

A victory here would give either team an upper hand in the Pac-10 race, which is sure to be undecided until the end of the season.

Penn State at Iowa: Oct. 2, 8:05 p.m. ET

Although both teams are expected to be chasing Ohio State for the Big 10 crown this season, the conference is shaping up to be a possible two-bid BCS bowl league this season, so a victory here could be very beneficial to that goal for either team.

And who knows? Ohio State might slip up somewhere down the line, leaving the winner of this game in prime position to take over the conference crown if the Buckeyes falter down the stretch.

Iowa quarterback Ricky Stanzi is back to lead the Hawkeye offense against Penn State’s defense, while Penn State’s offense is in a period of transition at the QB spot, looking at Kevin Newsome and Matt McGloin to plug the hole left by Daryll Clark.

Whoever does step up to take the reigns of the Nittany Lion offense will be helped by running back and Big 10 Player of the Year candidate Evan Royster.

By the time this game rolls around, Penn State will have gone through a tough non-conference schedule, where they will be tested against Alabama and Temple. Iowa on the other hand seems to have a pretty simple road to 4-0 when they welcome Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions to Iowa City.

Other Games of Note: Navy at Air Force, Stanford at Oregon

Big 10

Conference Leader: Iowa (7-0, 3-0)

Lurking: Michigan State (4-3, 3-1)

Game of Last Week: Michigan State 24 vs. Northwestern 14. The Spartans and quarterback Kirk Cousins have emerged as a legitimate Big 10 contender, and trailing at half to the Wildcats, were able to make the comeback and sneak into a tie for second place in the conference

Game of Next Week: Michigan vs. Iowa. Two of the leaders of this year’s Big 10 resurgence which has come mostly without the help of Ohio State, the only Big 10 team to play in the BCS National Championship game.

Bowl Eligible Teams: Iowa Hawkeyes.

Big 12

Conference Leaders: Kansas State (North Division; 4-3, 2-1), Texas (South Division; 6-0, 3-0)

Lurking: Oklahoma State (South Division; 5-1, 2-0)

Game of Last Week: Texas 16 vs. Oklahoma 13. The Red River Shootout lived up to its hype, and although Sam Bradford was knocked out early in the game, the teams played close, and a game-saving tackle by Colt McCoy on his own interception likely preserved the Longhorn’s season and national title hopes.

Game of Next Week: Texas vs. Missouri. Although Missouri is winless in conference play as of yet, they look to matchup well with the Longhorns, and the recent struggle of the Texas offense may hold the key for a Tigers upset bid.

Bowl Eligible Teams: None yet.

Big East

Conference Leader: Pittsburgh (6-1, 3-0)

Lurking: Cincinnati (6-0, 2-0)

Game of Last Week: Cincinnati 34 vs. South Florida 17. A matchup of the class of the Big East turned into a national coming out party for the strong Cincinnati offense, and although Tony Pike was injured in the contest, a statement was made about the legitimacy of the Big East teams.

Game of Next Week: South Florida vs. Pittsburgh. Now looking to avenge the loss to Cincinnati, the Bulls will now have to travel to Pittsburgh to try their luck against the Panthers, who lead the Big East conference.

Bowl Eligible Teams: None yet.

There are always good weekends and bad weekends during the course of the college football season.

We suffer through the weekends where the matchups are between two top 20 teams with no national implications, and no game is within two touchdowns, so we can savor a weekend like the one we’re about to see with even more happiness.

What makes it even better, the BCS rankings are just two days away and will finally clear up the national title picture that has been so muddled during the first portion of the college football season.

Rivalry games between Texas and Oklahoma, the Red River Shootout, and Notre Dame and USC highlight a weekend filled with important midseason conference battles for assertion of dominance in very tight conference battles.

Even games that have already been played, Cincinnati-South Florida and Tulane-Boise State were tough battles between good teams that gave some much-needed excitement to the midweek ESPN scheduling.

Move past those traditional crowd-pleasers and you get better than expected conference matchups like Iowa-Wisconsin, Alabama-Ole Miss, Virginia Tech-Georgia Tech, Missouri-Oklahoma State, and even Penn State-Minnesota.

The BCS rankings loom. The college football season is headed into overdrive.

What will the first BCS standings bring? What will the weekend’s slate of games do to the national title picture? Will there be a return to the upset-filled ways of the first few weeks of the season? Or will favorites prevail once again and leave the landscape unchanged?

Many questions indeed on this first BCS weekend of the season, but there doesn’t seem to be a better way to answer them all than to enjoy this what should be this year’s best college football weekend so far.

Big 10

Conference Leader: Ohio State (5-1, 3-0)

Lurking: Iowa (6-0, 2-0)

Game of Last Week: Ohio State 31 vs. Wisconsin 13, a match up of two Big 10 unbeaten teams turned instead into a rout and likely reaffirmed some voter’s confidence in Ohio State, who may still have a shot at the BCS National Title game if enough pieces fall into place.

Game of Next Week: Wisconsin vs. Iowa, Wisconsin will again get a shot at a Big 10 unbeaten, hoping this time to knock off the team with the second longest winning streak in the nation.

Bowl Eligible Teams: None yet.

Big 12

Conference Leaders: Kansas (North Division; 5-0, 1-0) Texas (South Division; 5-0, 2-0)

Lurking: Nebraska (North Division; 4-1, 1-0)

Game of Last Week: Nebraska 27 vs. Missouri 12, a Thursday night game that featured one of the three match ups between ranked teams turned into a national coming out party for the Cornhuskers, now a legitimate contender for the Big 12 crown.

Game of Next Week: Texas vs. Oklahoma. Red River Shootout, need we say more?

Bowl Eligible Teams: None yet.

Big East

Conference Leader: Pittsburgh (5-1, 2-0)

Lurking: Cincinnati (5-0, 1-0)

Game of Last Week: Pittsburgh 24 vs. Connecticut 21. A match up of two one-loss Big East teams at the time, this close match up was among the best of the weekend, ending on a late 18-yard field goal to give the Panthers the win, and the conference lead.

Game of Next Week: Cincinnati vs. South Florida. A ranked match up in the Big East is unusual these days, so this Thursday night match up between two 5-0 teams will likely be these teams only chance to impress until bowl season.