The USC Trojans are the top ranked college football program according to the USA Today 25 coaches’ poll. Not much of a surprise there considering John David Booty is set to embark on his senior campaign and is highly regarded as one of the top quarterbacks in the nation.
LSU is ranked second, which isn’t a huge surprise considering the Tigers defense is going to be nasty again next year. Losing quarterback JaMarcus Russell and defensive leader LaRon Landry doesn’t help, however, so it wouldn’t be a total shock if LSU slips as the season wares on and they face stiffer opponents.
Out of the rest of the top five, (#3) Florida, (#4) Texas and (#5) Michigan, I think I’m most excited to see how the Long Horns will fare. Colt McCoy was something special last year as a freshman and if he can stay healthy, I believe he could potentially lead UT to a national title, whether it be this year or next. Of course, the defending champion Gators rarely get the respect they deserve and it’s evident once again with the way they’re ranked third in these preseason polls. The Wolverines are going to be tough too with Chad Henne, Jake Long and Michael Hart all returning to try and finish what they couldn’t last year when they lost to rival Ohio State in the regular season finale.
To see the entire USA Today ranking, click here.
USC…why shouldn’t they be #1 every year? With their high school schedule and monster recruits, it’s a shame they ever lose a game.
I don’t understand why we need a preseason “opinion” poll to begin with? There should’t be a ranking until after week 6 to give everybody a shot at the top 10, not just the media darlings like Pete Carroll.
I’ll throw Charlie Weiss in with Pete Carroll for all you anti-golden domers although it’s more the school that gets the ranking than the coach.
USC is the logical choice. Get over it.
Florida deserves respect, but they are replacing 9 starters on defense. That will be tough.
Michigan will fold at some point, but they should beat Notre Dame.
Who did USC beat in 2007?? Did I miss a game?
G,
If you think I’m sweating over a preseason popularity contest, your sorely mistaken my west coast compadre.
I have no problem with my Gators at #4 or the variety of athletic titles we’ve won over the last 18 months.
Relax, kick back, and enjoy your cake walk. A popularity ranking will only get you so far, Mr. Prom King. I can’t wait for this season’s choke…UCLA.
T-Bone – USC beat unranked Oregon State, right? I think they also beat unranked UCLA. Wait a minute…
Let’s be “logical” USC’s ranking is completely justified.
No worries, they will trip again.
All of these comments have reminded me why I love the NFL more than college.
I enjoy Saturday’s just as much as the next guy, but there is rarely any “strength of schedule” talk in the NFL and even less chatter about who’s the best once the season is over…
Your momma….wasn’t that last year? Read the posts…I’m criticizing even having a preaseason poll, not who they ranked. Who cares who they beat last year? It’s idiotic to rank a team for the current season when nobody’s even taken a snap. It’s not fair to the smaller schools when the pollsters all have man-crushes on coaches like Carroll and Barney Fife at Michigan. You want proof that preseason polls are a joke? How does THEE Overrated State University even make the top 10 after proving they probably should have played in a dot-com bowl rather than against a real team for the national title?
Don’t give me a poll until after week 6.
AS…good point. I thought I was going to have to throw Ball Freakin’ State out at you!! The NFL has its drawbacks but at least their champion is determined on the field, not on a piece of paper.
Your Momma…my bad. Maybe I should read the posts next time to see that you were being sarcastic. My apologies.
T-Bone – Yes, man. We are on the same page, I appreciate the apology.
I could add to the list of over-rated media darlings by throwing two infamous letters into the mix – ND. Now, here’s a team that didn’t come within 20 points of any ranked opponent they played all season yet somehow made a BCS bowl. In my opinion, this is just as bad as USC losing to two unranked Pac-10 teams and still making a BCS bowl.
Meanwhile, some not-so Big Ten teams used ND as a platform to justify their schedules in addition to their own self-created “Game of the Century”. We all know what happened to those boys in the bowls – ouch! Sorry OSU and Michigan – keep your heads high.
I know that I’m bound to hit a sensetive note with this post, but please keep the comebacks clean or Momma will wash your mouth out with a bar of soap!
T-Bone – No need to throw B.State at me this year!
I think this will be the first year I just enjoy the games and not “stress” out about all the other crap. It’s not going to be a perfect system this year or next year, or…so why not just enjoy the games and keep an eye on the top prospects for the draft?
Your Momma – do you use Zest fully clean to get the job done or is there another brand you employ?
I’m an ND fan however blast me in my golden dome 9 consecutive times on New Year’s day and I realize we’re just not that good. It’s time to see what Weis can do with his own players now and we get to see what kind of coach he really is. The man-love the media has for him is the same as with Mangini with the Jets even though they have won nothing as head coaches. Speaking of Belichick’s disciples, how come Romeo Crennel doesn’t get the same love from the media?
**Speaking of Belichick’s disciples, how come Romeo Crennel doesn’t get the same love from the media?**
Because he flips a coin to determine who his starting quarterback will be for a preseason game…
I hear ya AS but even before Romeo started doing his own pre-game coin flip he never got any respect from the writers. Mangini hadn’t been a head coach in a single NFL game and they dubbed him “Mangenius”, which is the single dumbest nickname for a coach next to “Tuna”. You would have thought Charlie Weis was the 2nd coming of Knute Rockne before he even won his first game against a service academy. But Romeo gets no love…