14. Wisconsin Badgers
One of my National Championship favorites last year, the Badgers struggled on the road in the Big Ten, dropping three games and lost to Tennessee in the Outback Bowl. This season, Wisconsin will continue to live up to its reputation as a power on the ground with junior RB P.J. Hill and FB Chris Pressley. Both are guys you don't want to get hit by. Allan Evridge, the former K-State QB, will be the man at the helm this season with Tyler Donovan departing.
15. Oregon Ducks
The Ducks gained some momentum for '08 after destroying South Florida in the Sun Bowl, 56-21. Dennis Dixon and the athletic specimen Jonathan Stewart but to fill their voids are talented QB Justin Roper a 6'6 195-pound junior who had four TD passes in the bowl and RB Jeremiah Johnson who has had over 1,000 yards rushing in his three years in Eugene.
16. Tennessee Volunteers
QB Erik Ainge never quite lived up to his hype in his four years in Knoxville and now it looks to be Jonathan Crompton who has the early edge going into spring. The defense for the Vols gets a big boost in safety Demetrice Morley who was suspended the entire 2007 season but is back, and adds to a defense that is already stock-piled with talent that includes DB Eric Berry who was a freshman All-American and Rico McCoy at linebacker.
17. Auburn Tigers
Auburn started their spring practices today and the QB derby to replace departed Brandon Cox is the top question for spring with four guys vying for the nod. Junior Chris Todd, sophomore Kodi Burns, sophomore Neil Caudle and true freshman DeRon Furr are the contenders, my guess would be Kodi Burns. He is a multi-dimensional athlete and will have an outstanding offensive line to protect for him this season, all five starters from last year return.
18. Miami Hurricanes
This might surprise many, but the Canes are ready to get back to being the intimidating program they once were. Randy Shannon is in his second year as head coach and already feels the pressure to win in South Beach. Kyle Wright and Kirby Freeman are gone so that leaves redshirt freshman Robert Marve as the top candidate to take over a Miami offense that has struggled in recent years. But this team will still be outstanding on defense. If Marve can make plays on offense and get the ball to many of his playmakers the Canes should have a pleasant bounceback season.
19. Fresno State Bulldogs
The Bulldogs are well-known for their scheduling approach, "Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere." Well that's really nice and all but when you haven't won an outright WAC title you need to reconsider the approach. None the less, the Bulldogs have 17 total starters returning. This team is definitely Top 20 worthy in terms of talent but at the end of the season they very well might be 8-4 due to the difficult scheduling approach that includes @ UCLA, @ Kansas State, Wisconsin (home) and @ Toledo. The Bulldogs also have only five home games, which is always tough.
20. Illinois Fighting Illini
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