Ohio Chatter DEV

jpake1

I made up a Top 25 Poll for the new site Keebler will be making. Tell me what you guys think. Teams that are too high/too low. Insight that you don't agree with. I know it's early, but I havn't had any good college football discussion in awhile. Let's see where it takes us.

2010 Preseason Top 25
1. Alabama: The defending National Champions return many of their offensive starters, including Heisman winner Mark Ingram. Can Julio Jones stay healthy and show the country what we’ve been waiting for? Nick Saban will have his hands full with a depleted defense. Luckily for the Rolling Tide, Saban has a knack for reloading instead of rebuilding.

2. Ohio State: The Buckeyes get it done with defense, but the tide has turned, and now the offense is the more experienced group. Can Terrelle Pryor take the next step and become a Heisman candidate on one of the nation’s elite squads? Is this the year Ohio State gets back to winning the big one?

3. Boise State: Coming off an undefeated season and quite possibly their highest preseason ranking ever, the Broncos may have what it takes to bust the BCS. A win over VaTech early in the season may be enough to keep them atop of the rankings all year. If they can go unblemished, watch out.

4. Texas Christian: Will the Horned Frogs use the momentum of last year to keep themselves in the National title hunt? Going undefeated doesn’t seem to be much of a stretch once you look at the 2010 schedule. Last year’s lost to Boise may hurt them shall they both go undefeated.

5. Texas: Colt McCoy, wait… He finally graduated. But just as Colt made the transition from Young easier than anticipated, Gilbert could do the very same. The Longhorns have to replace several key players from last year’s squad. They will need more production from their stable of running back’s to replace the yardage they’re so used to McCoy giving them.

6. Florida: The Gators must replace A LOT of production, but if there is anybody that can do it, it’s Urban Meyer. The Gators may have more of a vertical game this year, but one thing if for certain, speed WILL kill. The winner of the Bama/UF game may find themselves in the National Championship game. One last thing… Tim Tebow.

7. Oregon: Had their not been turmoil and offseason issues, the Ducks would have found themselves much higher. With 19 returning starters, they will be one of the more experienced teams in the nation. However, can they get the production they’re used to seeing from the quarterback position?

8. Wisconsin: I must have jumped in a time machine back to the Barry Alvarez days. It’s been awhile since a Wisconsin team ranked among the top 10. The Badgers snuck up on people last year, and they could possibly disappoint this year with such a high ranking. But I do know this much, the big uglies will be opening holes up for John Clay at ease this year.

9. Nebraska: Is Big Red back? The Cornhuskers may have what it takes to sneak up on the powerhouses of the Big 12 (as we know it) while they break new quarterbacks in. If they can get consistent performances from Zac Lee, they could be the dark horse in the National Championship title hunt.

10. Iowa: Will the Hawkeyes find the few plays here and there to make the 2-3 game difference like they did last year. You can’t argue against their success of last year, but how confident can you be in their ability to pull games out like they did last year?

11. Miami FL: The Canes are on the rise. They will get tested early (Ohio State) and often in the ACC. The defense will be fast. The swagger will be there. But can Harris reduce the mistakes to become one of the nation’s elite signal callers?

12. North Carolina: Butch Davis has built himself one stellar defensive crew. The Tarheels defense may give people fits all year long. But will that be enough in the ACC? TJ Yates must improve and lead this team if they want to find themselves in a BCS game.

13. Virginia Tech: The Hokies may challenge the Crimson Tide for the best 1-2 punch in the backfield if Evans is fully healthy. They must reload on defense if they want to win the ACC (which may turn out to be the best race in college football). Taylor’s improvement is the difference between BCS and 3rd best in the ACC.

14. Oklahoma: No team lost more playmakers to the NFL Draft than Oklahoma. Bob Stoops is blessed with the opportunity to reload once again. The Sooners are rich in talent and may have the biggest chip on their shoulder. A date with Texas may set the stage in the Big 12.

15. Southern California: Lane Kiffin may have his hands full this year in trying to get back to where USC is so used to being. But couldn’t the same be said for the USC fans in relation to Kiffin being their new HC? The talent is there, no question about it. But do all the puzzle pieces come together?

16. West Virginia: The Mountaineers return a lot of starters. However, it comes down to one player—Geno Smith. Depending upon his production, this team has the ability to be playing in a BCS game or on the outside looking in to the top 25.

17. South Carolina: This is the team I’m most interested in watching throughout the year. The Gamecocks return a lot of starters. If Garcia and the defense can meet expectations, they could find themselves challenging Florida for the SEC East crown.

18. Arkansas: The Razorbacks may have the most potent offense in the SEC this year, as well as one of the best quarterbacks. They’ll score points and play at their pace, but can the defense step it up and allow for them to make some real noise in the SEC?

19. Georgia Tech: This may be a bit low, but I think the NFL Draft impacts them enough to be passed up by a team or two in the ACC. Paul Johnson is a good coach, but he doesn’t get his 3rd ACC Coach of the Year Award.

20. Missouri: It seems like each year a team outside the top 25 puts the pieces together for a nice run. I don’t think they reach the level of success as the past few teams, but this is my dark horse team. Gary Pinkel returns a lot of starters from an 8-4 team. Gabbert has one more year of experience and may be ready to become one of the Big 12’s elite signal callers. If the defensive backs can improve, Mizzou could finds themselves playing for the Big 12 title.

21. Cincinnati: There’s a new HC and a new QB, but I don’t see that slowing down the offense at all. The Bearcats need to replace some guys on defense, but the last time they were faced with the problem, they knocked it out of the park. There are a few teams that can win the Big East this year. Cincinnati is one of them.

22. Florida State: This will be the first time in a long time that FSU will be lead by somebody other than Bobby Bowden. The Seminoles whole offensive unit returns (which isn’t hard to do when your whole offensive line held their stance the entire offseason and didn’t move from the field). If FSU can get back to being a stingy defense, their stock will rise high this year.

23. Stanford: The Cardinals lose Heisman candidate Toby Gerhart, but bring back promising young quarterback Andrew Luck. Coach Harbough has this team going in the right direction. My money is on him pushing them into the same direction.

24. Oregon State: This may be a bit low for the Beavers. The Rodgers’ will continue to carry this team as far as they can. But they do need to replace Sean Canfield from last year. That’s what worries me. The defense will once again be solid, but they may need more from them to overcome the QB situation.

25. Houston: It was a tough call, but Houston rounds out the poll. I think there are more talented teams out there, but it was a battle of talent vs. production, with production winning. Of course, nobody has produced a single thing yet, but that shouldn’t stop us from guessing who will

Just Missed:
Utah
PSU
LSU

KnightRyder

wisconsin and miami have no business in the top 20

Pick6

I think pretty good list. Im not sure about TCU at 4 though, but i couldnt tell you who should be there. I also think PSU and LSU should be on there. Maybe take Missouri out. Maybe South Carolina too. The always underachieve it seems.

mattinctown

Not sure about TCU at #4 or UNC at #12 considering their offense is suspect at best. No problem with the Canes or Wisconsin being where they are at, and I think USC will be higher at the end of the year.

karen lotz

KnightRyder;383508 wrote:wisconsin and miami have no business in the top 20

They are both on OSU's schedule aren't they?

OSU is ranked about 4 spots too high.

Pick6

karen lotz;383691 wrote:They are both on OSU's schedule aren't they?

OSU is ranked about 4 spots too high.

way to show your knowledge, or lack of.

jpake1

KnightRyder;383508 wrote:wisconsin and miami have no business in the top 20

I just had a hard time finding 20 other teams that I perceive to better than them. I think they're pretty worthy.

jpake1

Pick6;383533 wrote:I think pretty good list. Im not sure about TCU at 4 though, but i couldnt tell you who should be there. I also think PSU and LSU should be on there. Maybe take Missouri out. Maybe South Carolina too. The always underachieve it seems.

I think there may be a few more talented teams than TCU, but I've also done my rankings with a bit of perceived talent and how I think they'll finish. I see TCU with less loses that will make up for an easier schedule. I know that PSU and LSU would be head scratchers, but I'm not high on either at all. I think PSU will really struggled at QB and I don't think the defense will be as good as others think. I think LSU might be .500 or a game above. I'm just not seeing the offense (like last year at times) and I think the defense will have weak moments. I think this is a bad year for Les. Mizzou and SC were the two teams I actually put in their place. I think Mizzou benefits from a Big 12 that won't be as good and I think SC just has a solid all around team.

jpake1

ccrunner609;383614 wrote:Florida and Texas will not be that high nor should be at the beginning of the year.

Who should be then? I'm sure I and others could find a fault with those teams you mention. Not saying we'd be right though.

jpake1

mattinctown;383674 wrote:Not sure about TCU at #4 or UNC at #12 considering their offense is suspect at best. No problem with the Canes or Wisconsin being where they are at, and I think USC will be higher at the end of the year.

I don't know about UNC this year. I get the vibe they will be like a few OSU teams. Awesome defense, but the offense is painful to watch. I think they're capable of a 10-2 year if Yates can limit TO's.

And yes I just had 4 straight posts, ha.

goosebumps

Both Cincinnati and Oklahoma are too low.

Oklahoma lost a lot of playmakers, but a few of them didn't even really play last year. They return a lot more than people realize.

Cincinnati will have one of the best 5 offenses in the country still largely intact and with the addition of Vidal Hazelton (USC transfer) and Kembrell Thompkins (Best Juco WR in the country) they may be even better at the WR spot this year than they were last year. They're deeper at RB (Pead, Williams, Goebel) than they were last year and QB shouldn't be an issue, Collaros is probably better than Pike was. They are switching back to a 4-3 defense which should help shore up the run (which is what really killed us last year).

Pittsburgh should definitely be included in the Top 25. I follow the Big East very closely and they should be better than WVU this year.

I could also make the argument for UConn squeezing into the top 25, they return nearly everyone and they lost all of their games by less than one score last year.

Pick6

Yea, I say definitely take WVU out and put Pitt in.

goosebumps

In the Big East this year I rank them like this:

Cincy-- best until proven otherwise
Pitt-return alot of great defensive players
Uconn
WVU
Rutgers
USF
Syracuse
Louiville

karen lotz

Pick6;383694 wrote:way to show your knowledge, or lack of.

did you not see the edit for sarcasm? way to show your reading comprehension, or lack of.

Pick6

karen lotz;383805 wrote:did you not see the edit for sarcasm? way to show your reading comprehension, or lack of.

looks simultaneous to me. both 11:14

sleeper

You forgot Notre Dame.

goosebumps

I won't be surprised at all if ND finishes in the top 20 at the end of this season. They finally got a decent coach who knows how to turn around a program

sleeper

goosebumps;383820 wrote:I won't be surprised at all if ND finishes in the top 20 at the end of this season. They finally got a decent coach who knows how to turn around a program

SMH.

goosebumps

Look at their schedule and tell me they can't win 9 games...

karen lotz

Pick6;383807 wrote:looks simultaneous to me. both 11:14

You are literally too stupid to insult.

sleeper

goosebumps;383832 wrote:Look at their schedule and tell me they can't win 9 games...

Oh they definitely have one of the easiest schedules in the country(they always do), but they will go 5-7 or 6-6(6-7 with inevitable bowl loss should they choose to accept it) and that doesn't get you in the top 20.

karen lotz

sleeper;383842 wrote:Oh they definitely have one of the easiest schedules in the country(they always do), but they will go 5-7 or 6-6(6-7 with inevitable bowl loss should they choose to accept it) and that doesn't get you in the top 20.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/sagarin/fbt09.htm

ND's schedule was ranked 37 last year, well ahead of Go Bucks at #50. OSU has beefed up this years schedule however.

jpake1

goosebumps;383750 wrote:Both Cincinnati and Oklahoma are too low.

Oklahoma lost a lot of playmakers, but a few of them didn't even really play last year. They return a lot more than people realize.

Cincinnati will have one of the best 5 offenses in the country still largely intact and with the addition of Vidal Hazelton (USC transfer) and Kembrell Thompkins (Best Juco WR in the country) they may be even better at the WR spot this year than they were last year. They're deeper at RB (Pead, Williams, Goebel) than they were last year and QB shouldn't be an issue, Collaros is probably better than Pike was. They are switching back to a 4-3 defense which should help shore up the run (which is what really killed us last year).

Pittsburgh should definitely be included in the Top 25. I follow the Big East very closely and they should be better than WVU this year.

I could also make the argument for UConn squeezing into the top 25, they return nearly everyone and they lost all of their games by less than one score last year.

Cinci has a new HC. Not saying that's a bad or good thing, just different. A few things will be different, it may cause some bumps in the road. They also lose a few guys on defense. Just because it worked well last year doesn't mean it will this year. Cinci still has a bit more respect to earn from me before I give them the benefit of reloading and not rebuilding.

Oklahoma lost a few guys that did play and had huge impacts on games. They still have a lot of weapons on offense, but I still don't know if Landy is ready to lead an elite team. I'm more worried about the defense. They lose some key guys. They will still be a good group, I just can't put this any higher after seeing how they played last year. Like you mentioned, people were injured, and the guys that will play this year were the ones that stepped in for them.

Pitt loses half of their starters, including their QB. That worries me. Stull played great last year. Now he's gone, and the QB's best friend (TE) is gone as well. I think Pitt will face a lot of teams that will put 8 in the box to stop Lewis. Another team I thought of is this-- their HC hasn't been real consistent. Last year was a great year, I'm not banking on him having that same type of year. Pitt would probably be in my top 30.

Uconn is another team I thought about. They did have some close games last year. They do bring a lot of starters back. I actually had them at 25, then changed at last second. I just couldn't put them in my top 25. I couldn't agree if anybody did think of them that highly.

3reppom

jpake1;383899 wrote:Cinci has a new HC. Not saying that's a bad or good thing, just different. A few things will be different, it may cause some bumps in the road. They also lose a few guys on defense. Just because it worked well last year doesn't mean it will this year. Cinci still has a bit more respect to earn from me before I give them the benefit of reloading and not rebuilding.

Oklahoma lost a few guys that did play and had huge impacts on games. They still have a lot of weapons on offense, but I still don't know if Landy is ready to lead an elite team. I'm more worried about the defense. They lose some key guys. They will still be a good group, I just can't put this any higher after seeing how they played last year. Like you mentioned, people were injured, and the guys that will play this year were the ones that stepped in for them.

Pitt loses half of their starters, including their QB. That worries me. Stull played great last year. Now he's gone, and the QB's best friend (TE) is gone as well. I think Pitt will face a lot of teams that will put 8 in the box to stop Lewis. Another team I thought of is this-- their HC hasn't been real consistent. Last year was a great year, I'm not banking on him having that same type of year. Pitt would probably be in my top 30.

Uconn is another team I thought about. They did have some close games last year. They do bring a lot of starters back. I actually had them at 25, then changed at last second. I just couldn't put them in my top 25. I couldn't agree if anybody did think of them that highly.

Cincinnati is fine where they are, maybe a spot or two higher. The offense will be great. It isn't quite right to call Zach Collaros a new starter, he has already staked his claim as one of the best, if not the best, QB's in the Big East in his time last year. If he is 80 percent as good as he was in his starts last year UC should pop 30 on everyone. As for the defense they are bringing back 6 starters and have a spine of young talented players. Derek Wolfe and Dan Giordano up front, JK Schaffer and Walter Stewart at linebacker and Dominique Battle and Drew Frey in the secondary. The UC defense wore down as the season progressed because they played more defensive snaps than 110 other schools combined with the 3-4 alignment forcing everyone but Derek Wolfe to do a little bit more than their skill sets allowed. This year they are back in a 4-3 and I think that will be a major boon for the defense. UC has some questions, granted. But they are in much better shape defensively than they are getting credit for.

As for Pitt I agree with you on the Stache, he is not a big game coach in the least. He will find a way, probably multiple ways, to blow games. That being said losing Bill Stull is completely irrelevant to the success or failure of that team. Bill Stull had a tremendous senior season not because he was actually good. For most of his career he meandered between horrific and below average. He benefited tremendously from the presence of Lewis as well as Frank Cignetti Jr who was the only competent QB coach and Offensive Coordinator Dave Wanstead has ever hired. There are plenty of reasons to discount Pitt heading into this season, like their secondary issues, but losing Bill Stull isn't one of them.

Pick6

karen lotz;383841 wrote:You are literally too stupid to insult.

wasnt trying to insult dumbshit. what I am saying is that while I was posting, you were editing. Simultaneous= at the same time.