2010 CFN Preview - Unit Rankings, Defenses

CFN 2010 Preview Unit Rankings from top to bottom - Defenses

Preview 2010 - Unit Rankings

Defenses

2010 CFN Preseason Rankings
- 1 to 5 | 6 to 10 | 11 to 20 | 21 to 30 | 31 to 40 | 41 to 50 | 51 to 60
- 61 to 70 | 71 to 80 | 81 to 90 | 91 to 100 | 101 to 110 | 111 to 120
- CFN Preseason Rankings 2009 | 2008 | 2007

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CFN 2010 Unit Rankings
- Offenses | Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Receivers | Offensive Lines
- Defenses | Defensive Lines | Linebackers | Secondaries  | Special Teams

Note: This is based on talent, returning starters, and skill. It’s not necessarily based on what the final total defense statistics will be.

1. North Carolina
Sometimes a mob mentality isn’t such a bad thing. All six of Carolina’s defensive all-stars put off the NFL Draft for one more season, ensuring that the program will again boast one of the nation’s nastiest and stingiest defenses. The group that allowed 17 points and an ACC-low 269 yards brings back All-America candidates at every level, Robert Quinn and Marvin Austin up front, Quan Sturdivant and Bruce Carter at linebacker, and Deunta Williams and Kendric Burney in the secondary. From creating turnovers to creating pressure, there’s nothing this veteran unit doesn’t do well, meaning the only offseason objectives are to build more depth and guard against overconfidence.

2. Texas
The Will Muschamp-led defense led the nation in run defense, finished third in total defense, and 12th in scoring D, and there won’t be much of a drop-off. It might be a bit of a reach to finish second in the nation in sacks without Sergio Kindle, but there are more than enough good defensive end options, and speed at outside linebacker in Keenan Robinson and Emmanuel Acho, to get into the backfield on a regular basis. The tackle situation is a wee bit iffy, for Texas, but only because there might need to be some shuffling done, and the backup middle linebacker situation is a bit of a question mark, but that’s nitpicking. The secondary is loaded with NFL talent and might be the best in America (even without ball-hawking superstar Earl Thomas at safety), there’s a slew of pro talent waiting in the wings from the latest recruiting class, and there’s an elite coaching talent in Muschamp, who has gushed over the potential of this ultra-talented, ultra-athletic D.

3. Oklahoma
The defense flew under the radar last season with all the attention paid to the issues on offense. This will once again be a good enough defense to finish in the top ten nationally as long as the defensive interior is solid. There’s star power to work around if DT Adrian Taylor’s broken leg isn’t a big deal and DE Jeremy Beal is the pass rushing terror he has been over the last two seasons. Replacements are needed at linebacker and corner, but the safeties, Quinton Carter and Sam Proctor, are solid, and Travis Lewis is an All-America caliber weakside playmaker who can clean up everything the other linebackers don’t get to.

4. Nebraska
The defense went from soft in Bo Pelini’s first year to a killer in Year Two. The Pelini brothers, Bo and defensive coordinator, Carl, will have everyone flying around and being disruptive. While there’s no Ndamukong Suh to be the star of the show, and losing four of the top five tacklers is a problem for any defense, there’s no reason to expect much of a drop-off after finishing seventh in the nation and No. 1 overall in scoring D. Jared Crick and Pierre Allen are back to star up front, but they have to show the can handle life without Suh. The defensive back seven will be the story as it’ll often go into a five defensive back set called the Peso. The corners could end up being the best in the Big 12, and while there might not be a lot of star power at safety, there will be plenty of stats. The linebacking corps should be excellent with Sean Fisher about to blow up.

5. Iowa
The Norm Parker defense continues to work. The pass rush is fine, but nothing special, and the secondary doesn’t gamble and keeps the big plays to a bare minimum … and the results continue to be terrific. Everyone hits, everyone goes full-tilt all the time, and everyone goes for the takeaway and gets around the ball. While there are a few key losses in linebackers Pat Angerer and A.J. Edds, and corner Amari Spievey, everyone else is back from the nation’s tenth ranked defense including All-America playmakers Adrian Clayborn on the end and Tyler Sash at safety. The reserves are a bit green and there will be major problems if injuries strike, but if everything is working, this should once again be one of the nation’s top defenses. 

6. Georgia
The Georgia defense picked off ten passes and forced two fumbles, but worse yet, it got bombed on by the better quarterbacks and was good, but not phenomenal against the run. Even with all the issues, finishing 38th in the nation in total defense isn’t that bad. Changes needed to be made, though, and in comes Todd Grantham as the new defensive coordinator. With a pro background, most recently as the Dallas Cowboy defensive line coach, he’s going to install a 3-4 with the idea to get even more aggressive. That means pass rushing terror Justin Houston will move to outside linebacker, while the huge front three will be in charge of shooting gaps to get into the backfield. The secondary loses three starters, but it has a world of upside with big safeties, speedy corners, and the potential to be far better and far more consistent with more pressure into the backfield.

7. Miami
With an all-star at each level and eight returning starters, Miami gets to build on the defensive success it had a year ago. The ‘Canes don’t lose a ton from a group that ranked 29th and 37th nationally in total and scoring defense, respectively. From front to back, DE Allen Bailey, LB Colin McCarthy, and CB Brandon Harris will form the backbone, with a smattering of veterans and underclassmen building on that support. Barring injuries, this is a solid crew. However, elevating to higher ground will require someone, like Adewale Ojomo or Marcus Robinson, to support Bailey in the pass rush, and the defensive backs to parlay more tipped balls into takeways. The Hurricanes were No. 10 in the ACC in sacks and No. 9 in picks, results the team plans to address this fall.

8. Florida
Former Arizona Cardinals secondary coach Teryl Austin will take over the defensive coordinator duties from Charlie Strong, who took off to take over the Louisville head coaching gig, and he has a little bit of work to do. There might not be the star power of last year’s defense with LB Brandon Spikes, CB Joe Haden, S Major Wright, and ends Carlos Dunlap and Jermaine Cunningham are gone, but there’s no reason to cry poor for a D that should still be great after finishing fourth in the nation in total and scoring defense, 12th in run defense, and second in pass defense. The excitement surrounds the freshmen with a loaded haul of defensive linemen, led by end Ronald Powell, coming in, and safety Matt Elam in the secondary, but they’ll mostly work as key backups. The tackles are loaded with, arguably, the best depth in America, and there are enough solid linebackers to assume the overall production of the last few years won’t fall off the map. The corner situation is a wee bit of a concern, and it could actually be a bit of a problem with no sure-thing pass rusher up front to hit the quarterback. Austin will make sure all the speed and athleticism across the defense swarms, is ultra-aggressive, and puts a premium on taking the ball away.

9. Ohio State
Considering seven starters return from the nation’s fifth-ranked defense (and the best in the Big Ten), there are an awful lot of question marks. The pass rush was mediocre, and is likely to be again unless Nathan Williams and others emerge on the end to help out Cameron Heyward, the linebackers are small, and the secondary, while talented and athletic, lacks star power. Boo-hoo. The Buckeye defense might not have a slew of marquee names, it didn’t last year, either, and it managed to do just fine. Brian Rolle and Ross Homan, while undersized, should be the Big Ten’s best linebacking pair, Chimdi Chekwa and Devon Torrence are veteran corners, and Cameron Heyward and Dexter Larimore are NFL linemen who just so happen to be playing for the Buckeyes. There’s a slew of young talent waiting in the wings from great recruiting classes, there’s speed and athleticism across the board, and the coaching, as always, will be rock solid.

10. Boise State
In his first year at the helm, defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatowski has inherited a heater. Ten starters return from a defense that finished 14th in the nation in both yards and points allowed, and it should be even better with excellent depth to go along with all the starting talent. To nitpick, the pass rush from everyone other than star end Ryan Winterswyk and tackle Billy Winn was non-existent, and the corner situation is a wee bit shaky with Kyle Wilson on the New York Jets. Whatever. The front seven will be a brick wall against the run, the safeties, helped by the use of a nickel (Winston Venable) will be phenomenal, and it’ll be a shock if anyone on the schedule has any consistent success.

COULD EASILY BE IN TOP TEN

Alabama	SEC
Arizona State	Pac 10
Boston College	ACC
Clemson	ACC
Connecticut	Big East
LSU	SEC
Missouri	Big 12
Ole Miss	SEC
Oregon	Pac 10
Penn State	Big Ten
Pitt	Big East
Rutgers	Big East
South Carolina	SEC
TCU	M-West
USC	Pac 10
Virginia Tech	ACC
West Virginia	Big East

 
SOLID, WILL BE A POSITIVE

Arizona	Pac 10
Auburn	SEC
California	Pac 10
Colorado	Big 12
Florida State	ACC
Georgia Tech	ACC
Kentucky	SEC
Michigan State	Big Ten
Mississippi State	SEC
Northwestern	Big Ten
Notre Dame	ind
Oregon State	Pac 10
Purdue	Big Ten
South Florida	Big East
Stanford	Pac 10
Syracuse	Big East
Tennessee	SEC
Texas Tech	Big 12
UCLA	Pac 10
Vanderbilt	SEC
Virginia	ACC
Wisconsin	Big Ten

AVERAGE

Air Force	M-West
Arkansas	SEC
Baylor	Big 12
BYU	M-West
Cincinnati	Big East
Duke	ACC
Illinois	Big Ten
Kansas	Big 12
Kansas State	Big 12
Louisville	Big East
Maryland	ACC
Michigan	Big Ten
Minnesota	Big Ten
NC State	ACC
Oklahoma State	Big 12
Southern Miss	C-USAE
Texas A&M	Big 12
UCF	C-USAE
Utah	M-West
Wake Forest	ACC
Washington	Pac 10

 
NEEDS WORK

Akron	MAC
Arkansas State	Sun Belt
Army	Ind
Buffalo	MAC
Central Michigan	MAC
Colorado State	M-West
East Carolina	C-USAE
FIU	Sun Belt
Fresno State	WAC
Hawaii	WAC
Houston	C-USAW
Indiana	Big Ten
Iowa State	Big 12
Kent State	MAC
Louisiana Tech	WAC
Marshall	C-USAE
Middle Tennessee	Sun Belt
Navy	ind
Nevada	WAC
New Mexico	M-West
Northern Illinois	MAC
Ohio	MAC
San Diego State	M-West
San Jose State	WAC
SMU	C-USAW
Temple	MAC
UNLV	M-West
Washington State	Pac 10
Wyoming	M-West

 
A PROBLEM

Ball State	MAC
Bowling Green	MAC
Florida Atlantic	Sun Belt
Memphis	C-USAE
Miami Univ.	MAC
North Texas	Sun Belt
Troy	Sun Belt
Tulsa	C-USAW
UAB	C-USAE
UL Monroe	Sun Belt
Western Michigan	MAC

THE BOTTOM TEN

Eastern Michigan	MAC
Idaho	WAC
New Mexico State	WAC
Rice	C-USAW
Toledo	MAC
Tulane	C-USAW
UL Lafayette	Sun Belt
Utah State	WAC
UTEP	C-USAW
Western Kentucky	Sun Belt

CFN 2010 Unit Rankings
- Offenses | Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Receivers | Offensive Lines
- Defenses | Defensive Lines | Linebackers | Secondaries  | Special Teams

2010 CFN Preseason Rankings
- 1 to 5 | 6 to 10 | 11 to 20 | 21 to 30 | 31 to 40 | 41 to 50 | 51 to 60
- 61 to 70 | 71 to 80 | 81 to 90 | 91 to 100 | 101 to 110 | 111 to 120
- CFN Preseason Rankings 2009 | 2008 | 2007