So we here at FTRS have put on our polling hats, and this is what I have come up with for my preaseason Top 25. It should be noted that this poll can definitely change, and that I hold no allegiance to it once week 2 rolls around. Here it is - Dane's preseason Top 25 (with a few extras)!
01 Florida
02 Texas
03 Oklahoma
04 Virginia Tech
05 OKSU
06 USC
07 Alabama
08 Oregon
09 Penn State
10 Ole Miss
11 LSU
12 Georgia Tech
13 Cal
14 TCU
15 WVU
16 Ohio State
17 uga
18 Miami
19 Boise State
20 BYU
21 Clemson
22 FSU
23 Utah
24 UNC
25 Tenn
(26 Texas Tech
27 Michigan State
28 Oregon State
29 Pitt)
Notes
Oklahoma State - Is probably going to try to win by grossly outscoring opponents, with defense as an afterthought. A dangerous game... but makes them the most interesting team in the Top Ten.
Ole Miss - This team reminds me of uga in 2007. They had some not-so-great losses at the beginning of the season, but improved tremendously and were playing at the top of their game during bowl season. However, if they show that they were just cresting and are indeed unworthy of this position, their rank will plummet quickly.
#'s 11-15 - We belong here, but consider these teams tied for 13th place. One thing about all of these teams is that under good circumstances, they should be able to move the ball at will. However, they all have big questions in some corps or roles that may lead to some L's.
TCU - Could be a top 10 very quickly, should they show off that serious D against UVA and Clemson in the first three weeks of the season. If they drop those games, they get cast back into the mid-major mire.
#16 onward - A crapshoot. I'm expecting Miami to be a thorn in the side of anyone they go up against this season (see VPI/Miami last season). uga has too much to overcome to start off the season in the top 15. This region is also home of the mid-majors... other than TCU, I'm not expecting anyone else to show up that big this season; however, these mid-majors will also be the quickest moving teams should they actually prove themselves.
Biggest things that could change - WVU would move down, Boise moves up. Tennessee, which is basically just a hunch, could go away. FSU (I'm not buying the hype yet) could move up, but only if someone does a really good job of convincing me they should.
Thing that won't change - UNC. They are stuck up there, at the very, very top. Also, I'm not voting for Nebraska.