NSAwins.com’s Preseason College Football Top 25
RK, LW, TEAM, RECORD
#1 – Florida Gators 0-0 Easy schedule, Urban Meyer, plus Tim Tebow. What else do they need? The Gators are the favorite.
#2 – Texas Longhorns 0-0 Colt McCoy and the Horns are on a mission after last season’s Big 12 Championship snub.
#3 – Oklahoma Sooners 0-0 Sam Bradford is back, but the o-line is unproven and Stoops has to prove he can be “Big Game Bob” once again after going 0-5 last 5 BCS bowl appearances.
#4 – LSU Tigers 0-0 The Tigers defense was atrocious last season. Gave up 30 plus points 5 times. Things will be different in 2009 under new defensive coordinator John Chavis. The Tigers defense should be vastly improved.
#5 – USC Trojans 0-0 Pete Carroll’s coaching will be tested this season as USC will start freshman QB Matt Barkley. However, reports out of LA say the kid is the REAL DEAL and the Trojans are loaded elsewhere. Expect USC to be in the BCS Title game hunt all season.
#6 – Alabama Crimson Tide 0-0 The Tide will be a work in progress offensively, but the defense should be stout from the get go. Nick Saban is probably a year away from really making a run at the SEC and BCS titles, but the Tide have the ability to play in another BCS bowl game this season.
#7 – Ohio St Buckeyes 0-0 We’ll find out just how good the Buckeyes and Trojans are on September 12th when they matchup in Colombus. Sophomore QB Terrelle Pryor is a stud and should find his name in the Heisman mix all season long.
#8 – Virginia Tech Hokies 0-0 15 starters return for head coach Frank Beamer from a 10-4 team last season. The Hokies are once again the class of the ACC and get much respect from NSAwins.com for playing a tough non-league schedule(Alabama(neutral), Nebraska, at East Carolina).
#9 – TCU Horned Frogs 0-0 Gary Patterson might be the most underrated head coach in the nation and the TCU program might be the most unappreciated football program in the nation. TCU las led the nation in total defense three times since 2000. TCU very well could be this season’s Utah and run the table from the Mountain West.
#10 – Boise St Broncos 0-0 Sophomore QB Kellen Morre returns after throwing for 25 TD’s as a freshman. Boise St kicks off the season at home versus Oregon so we will find out early just how good Boise St and Oregon both are.
#11 – Oklahoma St Cowboys 0-0 14 starters return from a 9-4 outfit last season. The Cowboys kick off the season against Georgia, play at home vs Texas(10/31), and at Oklahoma(11/28). If they win 2 of the 3, than we could be talking about a BCS team. Keep an eye on Mike Gundy’s crew this season.
#12 – Penn St Nittany Lions 0-0 If Joe Paterno’s team wants to get taken seriously, than they need to play a better non-league slate. The 2009 cast of Akron, Syracuse, Temple, and Eastern Illionis is embarassing. Having said that, Penn St is talented and should duke it out with Ohio St for the league title.
#13 – Florida St Seminoles 0-0 The Noles are still far away from their 90’s heyday when they were annually a Top 5 team, but they are ready to make a jump in 2009 and be a bonafide Top 15 club. The talent is there and they could possibly be 8-0 heading into November if they can win at BYU(9/19) and at North Carolina(10/22).
#14 – Georgia Bulldogs 0-0 13 starters return to Athens from a team that went 10-3 last season. The only problem is the NFL Draft’s #1 pick(Matthew Stafford) isn’t among them. However, 5th senior Joe Cox should fill in well and Mark Richt’s crew should once again find itself in the double digit win column.
#15 – Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 0-0 Paul Johnson’s debut season in Atlanta was a huge success, as the Jackets went 9-4 overall and beat rival Georgia to snap a seven-game skid to their top rival. 17 starters return for 2009 including stud RB Jonathan Dwyer.
#16 – Mississippi Rebels 0-0 Houston Nutt’s debut season in Oxford was a smashing success, as the Rebels shocked the Gators in Gainesville and crushed an 11-1 Texas Tech team in the Cotton Bowl. 14 starters return in 2009, but the Rebels won’t be able to sneak up on anyone this season.
#17 – California Bears 0-0 Keep an eye on Cal running back Jahvid Best this season as a potential Heisman Trophy darkhorse pick. Best was 2nd in the nation last season in all-purposes yards and should win Pac 10 offensive player of the year.
#18 – Oregon Ducks 0-0 The Ducks have their hands full in September, as they play at Boise St(9/3), at home versus Purdue(9/12), at home versus Utah(9/19), and at home versus Cal(9/26). If somehow they can win all 4, than the Ducks will find themselves in the Top 10 by November.
#19 – Utah Utes 0-0 11 starters return from the 2008 team that shocked the nation by going undefeated and finishing #2 in the final national polls. Going undefeated in 2009 will be tough do, however, as the Utes have away games at Oregon(9/19), at TCU(11/14), and at BYU(11/28).
#20 – North Carolina Tar Heels 0-0 Butch Davis is on the cusp of turning the Tar Heels program into a perennial ACC title contender. The Heels went 8-5 last season, but 4 of the 5 losses were by 3 or fewer points. With 15 starters returning in 2009, look for the Heels to turn a couple of them losses into wins this go around.
#21 – BYU Cougars 0-0 BYU QB Max Hall returns to lead the Cougars in 2009 after throwing for 3,957 yards and 35 TD’s last season. The Cougars return 12 starters from last seaon’s 10-3 team and should be in the mix with TCU and Utah to take the Mountain West crown this season.
#22 – Nebraska Cornhuskers 0-0 The Cornhuskers found the right man for the job in head coach Bo Pelini. Pelini’s debut season in Lincoln produced a 9-4 record and a renewed sense of pride among previously disenchanted Nebraska fans and alumni. Expect big things in the future out of this storied program under Pelini.
#23 – Kansas Jayhawks 0-0 The Jayhawks struggled last season against the heavyweights of the Big 12 conference and eventually wound up finishing with an 8-5 record. That’s a far cry from their 11-1 record and BCS berth team of 2007. What will the 2009 team produce? Probably something in the middle.
#24 – Iowa Hawkeyes 0-0 Iowa went 9-4 in 2008, but lost 4 games by a combined 12 points. Expect the Hawkeyes to be rock solid once again in 2009 and win 8-9 games, but road trips at Penn St and at Ohio St will be too tough to overcome for us to consider Iowa a legitemate Big 10 championship contender.
#25 – Pittsburgh Panthers 0-0 The Big East is wide open and the Panthers should have the inside track at the league title. The defense should be the best in the Big East and the schedule lines up well with only 5 road games that are all winnable. |
