We're dipping back into the college football water this week with Collegefootballnews.com's preseason rankings. Why not my rankings? Because I'm way too busy at the liquor barn to start breaking down stats and depth charts. I'll leave this to the pros. Here are CFN's 21-25 teams. We will continue tomorrow with 16-20. It should also be of note that Missouri is #30 and Texas Tech is #29 in CFN's poll. Here's the Tech breakdown.
29. Texas Tech 2009 Final CFN Ranking: 42
Will Tommy Tuberville really make sure the offense rolls like it did under Mike Leach? That’s the plan meaning the early question mark will be at quarterback where Taylor Potts and fan-favorite Steven Sheffield will wage a fantastic offseason battle. There are more than enough veterans back on offense to be explosive, while the defense should be solid if a shutdown corner can emerge to replace Jamar Wall and the holes on the defensive front can be filled in right away. Getting Iowa State and Colorado from the North is a nice break, even if those games are on the road, while the Missouri battle is at home. The toughest road game is at Oklahoma, but the second-toughest road trip is at Colorado.
25. BYU 2009 Final CFN Ranking: 11
Depending on those who take off on Church missions, this should be another good year. If Riley Nelson can hold off super-recruit Jake Heaps and be a steady leader at quarterback, the offense could be terrific with a strong receiving corps and with four starters returning to the offensive front. The defensive front seven needs an almost wholesale change, but the secondary should be terrific. Playing Washington and at Florida State in non-conference play will give the Cougars a shot to make a big splash, but the Mountain West games against the three other top teams in the league, Air Force, TCU, and Utah, are all on the road.
24. Arkansas 2009 Final CFN Ranking: 28
Last year was the stepping-stone to this year after Ryan Mallett chose to come back for another year. The junior bomber leads a devastating offense that returns ten starters and should be among the most dangerous in America. The defense has nowhere to go but up and should be more consistent with seven starters coming back. However, losing Malcolm Sheppard and Adrian Davis off the line hurts, and MLB Wendel Davis won’t be easily replaced. The Hogs aren’t going to win the West, but they’ll be in the thick of things getting Alabama, LSU and Ole Miss at home and catching a break getting Vanderbilt and South Carolina from the East.
23. Utah 2009 Final CFN Ranking: 23
Is Kyle Whittingham going to be able to get his Utes back to the BCS? The Mountain West breaks are there with BYU and TCU coming to Salt Lake City, and any team good enough to think about the BCS has to beat Air Force and Wyoming on the road. There are résumé builders in non-conference play with Pitt, at Iowa State, and at Notre Dame to deal with. QB Jordan Wynn got thrown to the wolves late last season, and it should pay off this year as the leader of an attack that gets back seven starts. The defense has to fill some big holes, but the line should end up being better even without top end Koa Misi. All the linebackers have to be replaced.
22. Florida State 2009 Final CFN Ranking: 44
It’ll be the dawn of a new era in Tallahassee as Bobby Bowden gives way to Jimbo Fisher, who finally has the authority to make key decisions. He needs to find a new defensive coordinator that can fix the mess on that side of the ball. The offense, on the other hand, has far fewer worries. QB Christian Ponder was evolving before suffering a season-ending injury and Jermaine Thomas gets to run behind a line that returns completely intact.
2009 Final CFN Ranking: 21
West Virginia recruits about as well as any other Big East school, which will be a boon to head coach Bill Stewart. The competition at quarterback begins with freshman Geno Smith, who benefited most when Jarrett Brown was injured. Obviously, the Mountaineers would’ve loved to have had Noel Devine back, and now the program could be left scrambling for a feature runner. If Stewart can’t bring a title back to Morgantown in his third year, the locals could start getting a little antsy.
No comments:
Post a Comment