1. Alabama Crimson Tide (0-0) – The defending national champions are back for more in 2010. Nick Saban and his crew are looking forward to the newly renovated Bryant-Denny Stadium, and also for another SEC title. Senior quarterback Greg McElroy is back for another season at the helm, after leading the team to 48 touchdowns (as a team) in 2009. The Crimson Tide kick off the season on September 4th with a home game against San Jose State. A week two match-up with Penn State will be a huge early season test for both teams. The Crimson Tide’s remaining schedule sees them make trips to Duke, Arkansas, South Carolina, Tennessee and LSU, with home games against Florida, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Georgia State and Auburn.
2. Ohio State Buckeyes (0-0) – The Buckeyes are back at the top of the college football world, and are looking for more than just a Big Ten title this season. Jim Tressel’s team is widely seen as a favorite to advance to the national title game, with quarterback Terrelle Pryor back. Pryor lost 10 pounds over the off-season, dropping to 225. The Buckeyes went 11-2 last season, winning their fifth straight Big Ten title, and then beat Oregon in the Rose Bowl. In 2010, Ohio State will start the season with four straight home games: Marshall, Miami, Ohio and Eastern Michigan. Following that, the Buckeyes will go to Illinois, host Indiana, play at Wisconsin, host Purdue, play at Minnesota, host Penn State, play at Iowa and host Michigan.
3. Boise State Broncos (0-0) – After winning the Fiesta Bowl in 2009, Chris Petersen and the Boise State Broncos have their eyes on the final prize in 2010. Kellen Moore threw for over 3,500 yards in 2009 and led the Broncos to over 450 total yards of offense per game. Over the off-season, the big news for Boise State came when they announced they would be moving from the Western Athletic Conference into the Mountain West. They also elected to end their long standing rivalry with state rival Idaho. Both of which caused waves through the college football world. The Broncos will face a huge early test in week when they play at Virginia Tech, against a solid Hokies team. The remaining schedule looks like this: @ Wyoming, with Oregon State, at New Mexico State, w/ Toledo, @ San Jose State, with Louisiana Tech, with Hawaii, @ Idaho, w/ Fresno State, @ Nevada and with Utah State.
4. Virginia Tech Hokies (0-0) – The Hokies look to be the leader in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2010. In 2009, the Hokies ranked 24th in all of college football with 31.8 points per game. They finished with a 10-3 record overall. Head coach Frank Beamer is beaming with excitement having quarterback Tyrod Taylor back behind center. In 2009, Taylor threw for 13 touchdowns and 2102 yards. The Hokies will start the season on Monday September 6th with Boise State. Following that, Virginia Tech will host James Madison and East Carolina before playing at Boston College and North Carolina State. The Hokies will then host four straight opponents: Central Michigan, Wake Forest, Duke and Georgia Tech. On November 13th Virginia Tech will go to North Carolina and November 20th at Miami. The Hokies will host Virginia for their final game on November 27th.
5. Texas Longhorns (0-0) – A season after falling one game short of a national title in 2009, Mack Brown and the Longhorns have unfinished business to take care of in 2010. The Longhorns will have to do so without their quarterback Colt McCoy, who is now in the NFL. Texas will also be without top receiver Jordan Shipley, who caught passes for nearly 1500 yards. Without those two, Coach Brown has mentioned his team will look to run the ball much more in 2010. Texas will have quite the battle within the Big 12 playing at Texas Tech, Nebraska and Kansas State. Texas’ only other road game is their season opener at Rice. Home or neutral games on the Longhorns schedule include: Wyoming, UCLA, Oklahoma, Iowa State, Baylor, Oklahoma State and Florida Atlantic.
6. TCU Horned Frogs (0-0) – A season after finishing 12-1, the Horned Frogs return their quarterback Andy Dalton, who threw for nearly 2500 yards, and completed 22 touchdown passes. The Horned Frogs offense scored 38.3 points per game, which ranked fifth in all of college football. One of the pieces that will have to be replaced for the Mountain West champions is Jeremy Kerley, who caught over 500 yards last season. On September 4th at Cowboy Stadium the Horned Frogs will open the season against Pac Ten member Oregon State. On September 11th and 18th TCU will host Tennessee Tech and Baylor. The first road game is September 24th at Southern Methodist. The remainder of the Horned Frogs schedule includes: @ Colorado State, with Wyoming, with Brigham Young, with Air Force, @ UNLV, @ Utah, with San Diego State and at New Mexico.
7. Iowa Hawkeyes (0-0) – The main challenger to the Ohio State Buckeyes within the Big Ten conference in 2010 appear to be the Iowa Hawkeyes. Iowa, led by head coach Kirk Frentz finished the 2010 season with an 11-2 record. Quarterback Ricky Stanzi is back for another season, after throwing for 2100+ yards and 15 touchdowns last season. His top receiver Marvin McNutt is also back. McNutt caught 34 passes last season, 7 of them for touchdowns. The Hawkeyes start the season with two home games; Eastern Iowa and Iowa State, before heading out to Arizona. Iowa will then host Ball State and Penn State, before heading to Michigan. An October 23rd game with Wisconsin and October 30th game with Michigan State will lead up to two road games; Indiana, Northwestern. The Hawkeyes biggest game will come November 20th with Ohio State, and then they will finish the season at Minnesota.
8. Oklahoma Sooners (0-0) – The Oklahoma Sooners, under Bob Stoopes appear to be back in the national title hunt, after faltering a bit last season. The Sooners finished with an 8-5 record, 5-3 in the Big 12. Quarterback Sam Bradford was injured through much of the season, but Landry Jones filled in well. Jones will be the starter this season, coming off his 2780 passing yards and 23 touchdowns. The Sooners scored 31.1 points per game last season. Oklahoma will open up the season with Utah State, Florida State and Air Force, before playing at Cincinnati. The Sooners will then start their Big 12 season against Texas in October, before hosting Iowa State, playing at Missouri, hosting Colorado, playing at Texas A+M, hosting Texas Tech, and finishing the season at Baylor and Oklahoma State.
9. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (0-0) - Josh Nesbitt is back as the quarterback for the Yellow Jackets in 2010. Nesbitt finished last season throwing for 1700 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was helped by the dynamic Johnathan Dwyer and receiver Demaryius Thomas; both of whom will be gone in 2010. The Yellow Jackets ranked second in the country, rushing for just under 300 yards per game. The Yellow Jackets will open the season on September 4th with South Carolina State. Following that, Georgia Tech will face two tough road tests; at Kansas and North Carolina. The Yellow Jackets will then host North Carolina State, travel to Wake Forest, host Virginia and Middle Tennessee State, then play at Clemson and Virginia Tech in the toughest stretch of the season. The final three games for Georgia Tech will be with Miami, with Duke and at Georgia.
10. Miami Hurricanes (0-0) – Rounding out the preseason top ten is Randy Shannon’s Miami Hurricanes. The Hurricanes finished last season 9-4, and 5-3 against Atlantic Coast Conference foes. Jacory Harris, as a true freshman completed 226 of 337 passes for 3164 yards and 23 touchdowns. Miami scored 30.3 points per game, which was 31st in the country. Miami will host Florida A+M on September 2nd, and then one of the toughest schedules in the nation begins. The Hurricanes play three straight road games; at Ohio State, at Pittsburgh and at Clemson. Following those games, Miami comes home to host Florida State, before going back on the road at Duke, and then home to host North Carolina. The final five games include trips to Virginia and Georgia Tech and home games with Maryland, Virginia Tech and South Florida.
11. Oregon Ducks (0-0) – Head coach Chip Kelly hopes to have all the off-field drama within his team taken care of and put behind them as they enter the 2010 season. Oregon comes in as the Pac Ten favorite, but barely, over Oregon State and USC. The Ducks finished last season 10-3, winning the Pac Ten, but falling to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. The 2009 quarterback Jeremiah Masoli was kicked off the team and now has enrolled at Ole Miss. Masoli threw for over 2000 yards and completed 15 touchdowns last season. The Ducks will start their 2010 season on Saturday September 4th when they host the New Mexico Lobos.
12. Penn State Nittany Lions (0-0) – Another Big Ten team entering the Top 12, as Joe Paterno enters yet another season at the helm. The Nittany Lions finished the 2009 season with an 11-2 record, winning six of eight Big Ten games. Penn State will miss Darryl Clark from 2009. Clark completed 214 of 346 passes for 2787 yards and 23 touchdowns. His replacement will be Kevin Newsome. The work-horse for Penn State will be running back Evan Royster. Coming into this season, he is compiled 2,918 career yards. Derek Moye will be the top receiver for Penn State. Last season, Moye caught 48 passes for 785 yards. The Nittany Lions will start the season September 4th against Youngstown State. Penn State’s other non conference games are at Alabama, with Kent State and with Temple.
13. Pittsburgh Panthers (0-0) – Another team from the state of Pennsylvania enters the rankings, with Dave Wannstedt’s Pittsburgh Panthers. The Panthers return their top two offensive starts; quarterback Bill Stull and running back Dion Lewis. Lewis rushed for 1640 yards and 16 touchdowns for a team that averaged 32.1 points per game. The Panthers, out of the Big East will certainly find plenty of quality opponents. The Panthers open up the season on September 2nd at Utah a tough team out of the Mountain West Conference. The Panthers first home game is on September 11th with New Hampshire. September 23rd’s game with Miami will certainly be a good test for the Panthers as well. The final non conference game for Pittsburgh is on October 2nd against Florida International.
14. Nebraska Cornhuskers (0-0) – In their final year in the Big 12, the Nebraska Cornhuskers would love to see a conference title come to Lincoln. The Cornhuskers had a huge year in 2009 for head coach Bo Pelini. The Cornhuskers finished the season 10-4, and went 6-2 in Big 12 action. Nebraska had the best statistical defense in the country, allowing just 10.4 points per game. The offense struggled a bit, scoring just 25 points, but that was plenty enough. Nebraska will start the season with two home games against Western Kentucky and Idaho. The other non Big 12 games are at Washington and with South Dakota State.
15. LSU Tigers (0-0) – LSU came just one win shy of double figures in 2009, as Les Miles crew won five of eight SEC games. LSU allowed just 16.2 points per game last season, which was 11th best in all of college football. The offense was inconsistent, scoring just 24.8 points per game, and just 181 passing yards per game. Coach Miles spent much of the off-season looking for ways to improve upon that offense. The Tigers will face some tough tests from their SEC – West brethren including Alabama and Mississippi, along with battles against SEC East foes Florida and Tennessee. The non conference slate for LSU includes a visit from North Carolina (opener), West Virginia, McNeese State and Louisiana-Monroe.
16. Georgia Bulldogs (0-0) – Another SEC team enters the rankings; this time the Georgia Bulldogs. Georgia went 8-5 last season, splitting their 8 SEC games. The Bulldogs scored just under 29 points per game last year, but saw their defense allow near 26. First year defensive coordinator Todd Grantham will look to improve upon that as the team prepares for the 2010 season. The Bulldogs will open the season on September 4th against Louisiana-Lafayette. After playing three conference games, Georgia will play October 2nd at Colorado. The other two non conference games for the Bulldogs are with Idaho State and the rivalry game against Georgia Tech.
17. Oregon State Beavers (0-0) – The Beavers are on the radar when looking at Pac-Ten contenders. The Beavers scored 31.5 points per game last season, which ranks them 18th in all of football. Oregon State will see their two headed monster duo of Jacquizz and James Rodgers return after compiling over 1600 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns, along with another 1100 receiving yards. The Beavers do not find themselves with an easy slate, and it starts right away. Oregon State opens the season with TCU and Louisville, and then a trip to Boise State, before the Pac-Ten slate begins.
18. Florida Gators (0-0) – In what may be an inaccurate ranking, the Florida Gators come in at # 18 in the country. Florida is losing the heart and soul of their offense in Tim Tebow. Sure, John Brantley may be a good quarterback and have a solid season, but without Tebow the Gators will not be the dominate force they were last season. Florida scored 35.9 points per game last season, 9th in the nation. They compiled 236 passing yards and 221 rushing yards per game. Defensively, Florida was solid as well, allowing just 12.4 points per game. The Gators play four non conference games: with Miami (OH), with South Florida, with Appalachian State and at Florida State.
19. USC Trojans (0-0) – The Trojans cannot play in a postseason game this year with their punishment from the NCAA. Despite that, USC should still put a solid team on the field under first year head coach Lane Kiffin. The Trojans will turn to quarterback Matt Barkley, who threw for nearly 2400 yards and 13 touchdowns last season. The Trojans finished 2009 with a 9-4 record; 5-4 in Pac-Ten play. USC’s defense was solid last season, allowing just 19.8 points per game. The Trojans do not see a real tough non conference schedule in 2010. The teams outside of Pac-Ten play include Hawaii, Virginia, Minnesota, Washington State and Notre Dame.
20. West Virginia Mountaineers (0-0) – Out of the Big East, the West Virginia Mountaineers will look to improve upon their 9-4 season of a year ago. Noel Devine returns for the Mountaineers, after rushing for 1300 yards and 12 touchdowns a year ago. West Virginia had the 27th best rushing offense, picking up 185 yards per game. The defense for the Mountaineers allowed just 21.7 points per game, which ranked them 31st in all of college football. The Mountaineers play their first five games of the season against non Big East schools. They open their season on September 4th with Coastal Carolina. Following that, the Mountaineers play at Marshall, with Maryland, at LSU and with UNLV.
21. Connecticut Huskies (0-0) – Another Big East team enters the Top 25, as the Connecticut Huskies look to mix it up at the top of the conference. The Huskies finished 2009 with a 8-5 record; 3-4 in conference play. Connecticut thrived on their offensive play that scored 31.2 points per game. Head coach Randy Edsall is very excited about his team, as Jordan Todley and Andre Dixon return from last year. Those two combined for 27 touchdowns during the 2009 season. The Huskies rushed for 170 yards per game last year, which was 39th in college football. The Huskies will head to Ann Arbor in week one to take on the Michigan Wolverines, and then host Texas Southern in week two. Non conference games at Temple and with Buffalo will lead into Big East play for the Huskies.
22. Arkansas Razorbacks (0-0) – The Razorbacks are excited for 2010. After an 8-5 season in 2009, Razorback fans expect big things from their hogs this year. Ryan Mallett returns and is an early candidate for the Heisman award. Mallett completed 210 of 367 passes last season for 3425 yards and 29 touchdowns. Arkansas as a team threw for just under 300 yards, which was 10th best in college football. The 36 points per game scored by Arkansas was 9th in the country. Arkansas sees a fairly weak non conference schedule, which they hope will parlay them four wins, as conference play in the SEC will not be easy. The Razorbacks host Tennessee Tech, Louisiana-Monroe, Texas A+M and UTEP in non-conference play.
23. Florida State Seminoles (0-0) – Life without Bobby Bowden has begun for the Seminoles. Expectations are high for Jimbo Fisher and his crew, despite a 7-6 2009 season. Christian Ponder returns for Florida State, after completing 227 of 330 passes for 2717 yards and 14 touchdowns. Florida State feels they can win their portion of the ACC – Atlantic, as the defending champion Clemson Tigers appear to be down a bit. The Seminoles last season threw for 271 yards, which ranked them 25th in college football. The Seminoles start the season with a home game against Samford, and then must travel to Norman to take on the Seminoles of Oklahoma. On September 18th the Seminoles will host Brigham Young, and then on September 25th start the ACC play against Wake Forest. The only other non conference game for Florida State comes at the end of the season, when they play the Florida Gators.
24. Utah Utes (0-0) – A season after finishing 10-3, 6-2 in Mountain West play, the Utes look to climb up the polls during the 2010 season. Utah welcomes quarterback Terrance Cain back to the mix, after throwing for 11 touchdowns last season. As a team, the Utes threw for 229 yards last season, and rushed for 160. The defense for Utah only allowed 20.2 points per game, which ranked them 23rd. Utah starts the season on Thursday September 2nd, when they take on the Pittsburgh Panthers, in what appears to be an early season test for both teams. September 11th the Utes host UNLV, to start conference play. Other non conference games for the Utes in 2010 are against San Jose State, Iowa State and Notre Dame.
25. Washington Huskies (0-0) – Rounding out the Top 25 are the Washington Huskies, out of the Pac-Ten conference. The Huskies finished 2009 5-7, and 4-5 in conference play. This ranking could be a bit of a stretch for a team that struggled most of last year. The Huskies will face a tough schedule throughout the season, starting on September 4th with Brigham Young. Following that game, the Huskies will host Syracuse and Nebraska, before heading to USC. Home games with Arizona State and Oregon State come before a trip to Arizona. On October 30th, Washington will host Stanford, followed by a trip to Oregon. The final three games of the season will be with UCLA, at California and at Washington State.
