CFN 2009 Pre-Preseason Rankings
Top 25
- 2009
No. 1 to 10 |
No. 11 to 25 |
No. 26 to 50
No. 51 to 75 | No. 76 to 100 |
No. 101 to 120
- 2007 CFN Pre-Preseason Rankings
- 2008 CFN Pre-Preseason Rankings
These are
the teams that'll be the leaders in the national title chase, and at the
very least, will be in the mix for their respective conference titles.
The ranking is based on how good the team should be in 2009, while the
Final CFN Season Ranking is based on how good a season the team had in
2008.
Teams that should be better than last year,
teams that should be worse,
team that should be about the same.
What was
2008's Pre-Preseason Top 10?
1. Ohio State
2. Georgia
3. Oklahoma
4. Florida
5. USC
6. LSU
7. Wisconsin
8. Missouri
9. West Virginia
10. Texas Tech |
1. Florida
2008 Record: 13-1
2008 Final CFN Season Rank: 1
The defending
national champion was 2008’s most dominant team in the country in all
phases, and now the pressure will be on to put together one of the
greatest seasons in the history of college football. Want pressure? To
be blunt, if Florida doesn’t win the national title for the third time
in four years, the season will be a failure. Is that an unfair standard
to set? Not for a team that gets back all 11 starters and all 11 backups
to a defense that held the Oklahoma juggernaut to 14 points and finished
ninth in the nation in total defense and fourth in scoring D. WR Percy
Harvin left early for the NFL, and PK Jonathan Phillips was a steady
weapon, but the special teams should still be among the best in the
nation strong-legged Caleb Sturgis stepping into the placekicking job, P
Chas Henry returning to the nation’s eighth best punting game, and
Brandon James back as the nation’s best all-around returners. Oh yeah,
and then there’s that beefy quarterback who wants a second Heisman and a
third national championship. Tim Tebow needs to be steady early on with
three starters on the offensive line gone along with his two top
receivers, Harvin and Louis Murphy, also gone. The Gators are loaded at
running back with Chris Rainey, Emmanuel Moody, and Jeff Demps forming a
good rotation. Yes, there might be holes, but Florida is getting all the
top recruits and Urban Meyer won’t be afraid to play his young prospects
right away.
2. Oklahoma 2008 Record: 12-2 2008 Final CFN Season
Rank:2
The Sooners are going to be a punchline, or will at least take the PR
hit that Ohio State suffered over the last three years, but they’re
going to be good … national title level good. This was going to be a
good team no matter who was at the helm, but Sam Bradford’s shocking
decision to return, and not be a top three pick, means the offense will
have its moments when it resembles the juggernaut that ripped through
the Big 12 over the second half of last season. However, don’t expect 60
points per game again with so much turnover on the O line that loses
four starters. On the plus side, OT Trent Williams decided to come back
for his senior year, as did TE Jermaine Gresham. A No. 1 wide receiver
needs to be found, but the running tandem of Chris Brown and DeMarco
Murray are back. The defense will carry the offense early on, and it
should be fantastic, with nine starters returning including DT Gerald
McCoy. The only losses are at safety with Nic Harris and Lendy Holmes
gone.
3. Texas 2008 Record: 12-1 2008 Final CFN Season
Rank: 3
With Colt McCoy coming back for his final year, and with his top target,
Jordan Shipley, getting a sixth year of eligibility, the offense has its
identity. It also has an upgrade with the young players of last year
ready to step up and play bigger roles, like Dan Buckner and Malcolm
Williams. Fozzy Whittaker, Vondrell McGee, and thumping scorer Cody
Johnson are back to run the ball behind a line that gets four starters
back. The defense is the issue, even with some good prospects waiting to
come through. All four starters are gone off the offensive front, and
while LB Sergio Kindle decided to come back his senior year, his running
mate, Rashad Bobino, is gone. Starting corner Ryan Palmer will be
replaced by Curtis Brown, and the other three spots are set. There will
be a battle to replace PK Ryan Bailey, but punters John Gold and Justin
Tucker are back.
4. USC 2008 Record: 12-1
2008 Final CFN Season Rank: 5
It’s USC, so there are always superstar prospects waiting in the wings,
but the recruiting classes of the past few years will be put to the test
with so much turnover from last season’s all-timer of a defense. S
Taylor Mays is back, when he probably would’ve been a top ten pick, but
nine starters are gone. Even USC can’t handle these many replacements.
Meanwhile, the offense will be just fine, even with QB Mark Sanchez
taking off early to the NFL. Mitch Mustain was a top-shelf QB recruit
for Arkansas, while Aaron Corp is no slouch and will be in the mix. The
defense will be fine in the secondary, loaded up front, and in trouble
at linebacker with Rey Maualuga, Brian Cushing, and Kaluka Maiava gone.
To make matters worse, both kickers are gone.
5. Oklahoma State 2008 Record: 9-4 2008 Final CFN
Season Rank: 30
Last year OSU had a breakthrough season with one of the nation’s most
dynamic offenses and a defense that, well, the offense was fantastic.
The struggles at the end of last season should only serve as motivation
going into this year for a veteran squad that should be good enough to
knock off either Texas or Oklahoma. TE Brandon Pettigrew is off to the
NFL, but WR Dez Bryant is back along with QB Zac Robinson, RB Kendall
Hunter, and in a shocker, OT Russell Okung, who might be the Big 12’s
best blocker. The nation’s No. 6 offense gets back eight starters, and
almost all the depth, with the one potential problem area up front with
C David Washington gone. Defensively, the Cowboys weren’t horrific, at
least compared to the rest of the Big 12, but only six starters are back
with major changes needing to be made in the secondary. The team’s
biggest loss could be P Matt Fodge, who helped OSU next over 39 yards
per try.
6. LSU 2008 Record:
8-5 2008 Final CFN Season Rank: 40
This isn’t the national title-caliber team of a few years ago, but it’s
not all that far off from maturing into a possible SEC champion with the
right breaks. Was the 38-3 Peach Bowl win over Georgia Tech an
aberration, or was the mediocre season a proper indicator? Jordan
Jefferson appears to be the answer at quarterback, and he gets a big
break with WR Brandon LaFell changing his mind about leaving early. LG
Herman Johnson and C Brett Helms are gone, but LT Ciron Black returns
along with two other starters on the line to pave the way for RB Charles
Scott and the great group of backs. The defensive back seven should be
fantastic, even with the loss of LB Darry Beckwith, but the line is a
problem with all the starters gone. And there’s the issue. LSU has been
able to reload on the defensive front, but it’s asking a log to replace
everyone.
7. Oregon 2008 Record: 10-3 2008 Final CFN Season
Rank: 24
Mike Bellotti has had some strong teams over the past few years, and his
Ducks probably would’ve been playing for the national title in 2006 had
Dennis Dixon not injured his knee, but this should be among his best
teams yet. There will be a wee bit of a quarterback derby, but Jeremiah
Masoli appears to be a burgeoning star to lead the way, while LeGarrette
Blount will get more of the rushing workload with Jeremiah Johnson gone.
Some key stars are gone off the defense, including S Patrick Chung and
pass rushing terror Nick Reed, but six good starters return to a group
that needs to be better against the run.
8. Ole Miss 2008 Record: 9-4 2008 Final CFN Season
Rank: 15
Ed Orgeron set ‘em up, and Houston Nutt knocked ‘em down. Orgeron had
his faults, but he was a strong recruiter and last year’s team proved it
with its fantastic lines. While OT Michael Oher and DT Peria Jerry will
be tough to replace, the return of star pass rusher, Greg Hardy, and
three starters on the offensive line will help. The big story will be QB
Jevan Snead, who got better and better as last season went on. He has
good players around him in WR Shay Hodge and RBs Cordera Eason and
Dexter McCluster, but he’ll have to be the leader and star throughout.
The defense was so strong against the run last year won’t be quite as
good with Jerry gone, but it’ll still be nasty.
9. North Carolina 2008 Record:
8-5 2008 Final CFN Season Rank: 26
Of the five losses last year, there was a sloppy 41-10 blasting from NC
State while the other four losses were by a grand total of nine points.
Those four close defeats were all by three points or fewer, and now the
team is far more mature and should be even better as long as a receiver
can be found. Hakeem Nicks left early and Brandon Tate hurt his knee and
is off to try to make it in the NFL, so Greg Little and Kenton Thornton
have to try to get the passing game going. The great recruiting classes
of the last few years should start paying off with better depth, while
six starters return on offense and nine starters are back on defense
including strongside star, Bruce Carter.
10. Alabama 2008 Record:
12-2 2008 Final CFN Season Rank: 7
This was supposed to be the season Alabama became a national power again
as the great recruiting classes were due to mature. Obviously, the
timetable moved up a year early and now there’s no turning back. A
quarter away from playing for the national title in 2008, the Tide has
to show it’s ready to be a consistent superpower again with stars like
WR Julio Jones and NG Terrence Cody to work around. The defense was the
star throughout last year, especially against the run, and it gets back
nine starters. Offensively, QB John Parker Wilson will be sorely missed,
and now it’ll be a battle this spring for the starting job with
junior-to-be Greg McElroy getting the first look. All-Everything left
tackle Andre Smith is gone, along with C Antoine Caldwell, but enough
talent returns to the offense to be at least as good as last year.