I made up a Top 25 Poll for the new site Keebler will be making. Tell me what you guys think. Teams that are too high/too low. Insight that you don't agree with. I know it's early, but I havn't had any good college football discussion in awhile. Let's see where it takes us.
2010 Preseason Top 25
1. Alabama: The defending National Champions return many of their offensive starters, including Heisman winner Mark Ingram. Can Julio Jones stay healthy and show the country what we’ve been waiting for? Nick Saban will have his hands full with a depleted defense. Luckily for the Rolling Tide, Saban has a knack for reloading instead of rebuilding.
2. Ohio State: The Buckeyes get it done with defense, but the tide has turned, and now the offense is the more experienced group. Can Terrelle Pryor take the next step and become a Heisman candidate on one of the nation’s elite squads? Is this the year Ohio State gets back to winning the big one?
3. Boise State: Coming off an undefeated season and quite possibly their highest preseason ranking ever, the Broncos may have what it takes to bust the BCS. A win over VaTech early in the season may be enough to keep them atop of the rankings all year. If they can go unblemished, watch out.
4. Texas Christian: Will the Horned Frogs use the momentum of last year to keep themselves in the National title hunt? Going undefeated doesn’t seem to be much of a stretch once you look at the 2010 schedule. Last year’s lost to Boise may hurt them shall they both go undefeated.
5. Texas: Colt McCoy, wait… He finally graduated. But just as Colt made the transition from Young easier than anticipated, Gilbert could do the very same. The Longhorns have to replace several key players from last year’s squad. They will need more production from their stable of running back’s to replace the yardage they’re so used to McCoy giving them.
6. Florida: The Gators must replace A LOT of production, but if there is anybody that can do it, it’s Urban Meyer. The Gators may have more of a vertical game this year, but one thing if for certain, speed WILL kill. The winner of the Bama/UF game may find themselves in the National Championship game. One last thing… Tim Tebow.
7. Oregon: Had their not been turmoil and offseason issues, the Ducks would have found themselves much higher. With 19 returning starters, they will be one of the more experienced teams in the nation. However, can they get the production they’re used to seeing from the quarterback position?
8. Wisconsin: I must have jumped in a time machine back to the Barry Alvarez days. It’s been awhile since a Wisconsin team ranked among the top 10. The Badgers snuck up on people last year, and they could possibly disappoint this year with such a high ranking. But I do know this much, the big uglies will be opening holes up for John Clay at ease this year.
9. Nebraska: Is Big Red back? The Cornhuskers may have what it takes to sneak up on the powerhouses of the Big 12 (as we know it) while they break new quarterbacks in. If they can get consistent performances from Zac Lee, they could be the dark horse in the National Championship title hunt.
10. Iowa: Will the Hawkeyes find the few plays here and there to make the 2-3 game difference like they did last year. You can’t argue against their success of last year, but how confident can you be in their ability to pull games out like they did last year?
11. Miami FL: The Canes are on the rise. They will get tested early (Ohio State) and often in the ACC. The defense will be fast. The swagger will be there. But can Harris reduce the mistakes to become one of the nation’s elite signal callers?
12. North Carolina: Butch Davis has built himself one stellar defensive crew. The Tarheels defense may give people fits all year long. But will that be enough in the ACC? TJ Yates must improve and lead this team if they want to find themselves in a BCS game.
13. Virginia Tech: The Hokies may challenge the Crimson Tide for the best 1-2 punch in the backfield if Evans is fully healthy. They must reload on defense if they want to win the ACC (which may turn out to be the best race in college football). Taylor’s improvement is the difference between BCS and 3rd best in the ACC.
14. Oklahoma: No team lost more playmakers to the NFL Draft than Oklahoma. Bob Stoops is blessed with the opportunity to reload once again. The Sooners are rich in talent and may have the biggest chip on their shoulder. A date with Texas may set the stage in the Big 12.
15. Southern California: Lane Kiffin may have his hands full this year in trying to get back to where USC is so used to being. But couldn’t the same be said for the USC fans in relation to Kiffin being their new HC? The talent is there, no question about it. But do all the puzzle pieces come together?
16. West Virginia: The Mountaineers return a lot of starters. However, it comes down to one player—Geno Smith. Depending upon his production, this team has the ability to be playing in a BCS game or on the outside looking in to the top 25.
17. South Carolina: This is the team I’m most interested in watching throughout the year. The Gamecocks return a lot of starters. If Garcia and the defense can meet expectations, they could find themselves challenging Florida for the SEC East crown.
18. Arkansas: The Razorbacks may have the most potent offense in the SEC this year, as well as one of the best quarterbacks. They’ll score points and play at their pace, but can the defense step it up and allow for them to make some real noise in the SEC?
19. Georgia Tech: This may be a bit low, but I think the NFL Draft impacts them enough to be passed up by a team or two in the ACC. Paul Johnson is a good coach, but he doesn’t get his 3rd ACC Coach of the Year Award.
20. Missouri: It seems like each year a team outside the top 25 puts the pieces together for a nice run. I don’t think they reach the level of success as the past few teams, but this is my dark horse team. Gary Pinkel returns a lot of starters from an 8-4 team. Gabbert has one more year of experience and may be ready to become one of the Big 12’s elite signal callers. If the defensive backs can improve, Mizzou could finds themselves playing for the Big 12 title.
21. Cincinnati: There’s a new HC and a new QB, but I don’t see that slowing down the offense at all. The Bearcats need to replace some guys on defense, but the last time they were faced with the problem, they knocked it out of the park. There are a few teams that can win the Big East this year. Cincinnati is one of them.
22. Florida State: This will be the first time in a long time that FSU will be lead by somebody other than Bobby Bowden. The Seminoles whole offensive unit returns (which isn’t hard to do when your whole offensive line held their stance the entire offseason and didn’t move from the field). If FSU can get back to being a stingy defense, their stock will rise high this year.
23. Stanford: The Cardinals lose Heisman candidate Toby Gerhart, but bring back promising young quarterback Andrew Luck. Coach Harbough has this team going in the right direction. My money is on him pushing them into the same direction.
24. Oregon State: This may be a bit low for the Beavers. The Rodgers’ will continue to carry this team as far as they can. But they do need to replace Sean Canfield from last year. That’s what worries me. The defense will once again be solid, but they may need more from them to overcome the QB situation.
25. Houston: It was a tough call, but Houston rounds out the poll. I think there are more talented teams out there, but it was a battle of talent vs. production, with production winning. Of course, nobody has produced a single thing yet, but that shouldn’t stop us from guessing who will
Just Missed:
Utah
PSU
LSU
jpake1
Senior Member
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posts
jpake1
Senior Member
2,389
posts
Tue, Jun 8, 2010 9:50 PM
Jun 8, 2010 9:50 PM
Jun 8, 2010 9:50pm
