21. UCLA
What I Like: 10 starters return on the offense, both Ben Olson and Patrick Cowan can win for the Bruins, and Chris Markey is a 1000 yard back. If our friends at Bruins Nation are correct, this team has a good chance of being undefeated when they face USC at the end of the year.
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| I am also a big fan of this young lady. |
What I Don't: Karl Dorrell, for starters, and the fact that Bob Connelly is the new o-line coach out there. They are also on their fourth OC in five years, and there's a good bit of turmoil going on the program right now.
22. Nebraska
What I Like: Callahan has had enough time to recruit the talent he needs for his system, Sam Keller has quite an arm on him, and the Big 12 North is a cakewalk.
What I Don't: They travel to Wake in week two, USC comes to visit in week three, and they face Texas and Missouri (which should be the deciding game for the North) on the road. Only five starters return on defense, and the second half collapse against Auburn in last year's Cotton Bowl was hard to watch.
23. TCU
What I Like: Nine starters return from one of the best defenses in the nation, and Aaron Brown (MWC Freshman Player of the Year) is a monster RB running behind an experienced line. Gary Patterson's Frogs have posted double digit wins in four of the last five seasons, and will likely do so again this year. A late season matchup with BYU will likely decide the Mountain West.
What I Don't: A trip to Austin in week two could provide a thrilling upset for TCU, but I doubt it.
24. Auburn
What I Like: Quentin Groves and Sen'Derrick Marks anchor one of the best D-lines in the country, and the Teagles have recruited particularly well the last few years.
What I Don't: Brandon Cox has had too many ups and downs over the past two seasons, and he's counting on an o-line with only one starter back to protect him. The schedule doesn't help them either. Kansas State and USF coming calling the first two weeks of the season, and they face Florida, Arkansas, LSU and Georgia on the road.
25. Miami
What I Like: No more Uncle Fester on the sidelines, and the 'Cane D will continue it's fine tradition of swirling, monstrous evil. They return 9 starters on offense, and new OC Patrick Nix should improve them immediately.
What I Don't: Road games at Oklahoma, Florida State, Virginia Tech, and Boston College, plus a visit from Texas A&M gives new HC Randy Shannon an incredibly tough schedule to face. They'll likely finish second in their division.
Also considering:
Arkansas: McFadden and Jones are probably the best backfield in the nation, but the offseason troubles, loss of Gus Malzahn (and therefor any semblance of a passing game), a defense that returns only four starters and lost all of it's stars, and the loss of Marcus Monk to injury for at least the first few weeks of the season aren't good things.
Arizona State: Dennis Erickson will have the Sun Devils winning quickly, but probably not enough to challenge for the Pac-10 until next year.
Rutgers: Will win a lot of games, but Leonard Pope is gone (and yes, I know Ray Rice is still there, but even he needs someone to block from time to time), and will wind up with at least one (but probably two or three) mind boggling losses this year.
Boise State: I'll probably wind up bumping them into the top 25 by the time I draw up my final ballot, but I just couldn't stand to put two WAC teams in there.
BYU: Beck is gone, and they'll probably be runner up to TCU in the MWC.
Georgia Tech: Reggie Ball is gone, so that should guarantee them at least three more wins than usual.