College Football 2011: ESPN's Rece Davis Reveals BCS, Heisman Favorites to B/R

Rece Davis has become something of a fixture at ESPN and in the world of college sports as a whole.

An alumnus of the University of Alabama, Davis is now in the midst of 16th year with the "Worldwide Leader in Sports," serving as the anchor for College Football Live as well as both the football and basketball editions of College GameDay.

I recently had a chance to catch up with Davis, along with CBS college basketball analyst Clark Kellogg and former WNBA champion and Olympic gold medalist Lisa Leslie, at the Blu Jam Cafe in Los Angeles.

These three sports luminaries were in town to promote the Capital One Cup which, in its inaugural year, was awarded to the men's program at Florida and the women's program at Stanford, along with $200,000 to each school designated for student-athletes pursuing post-graduate studies, in recognition of each institution's athletic excellence.

We discussed a number of topics over French toast, tea and juice, most of which centered on the state of college athletics today. However, I did get the opportunity to poll Davis on his picks for the 2011 college football season, which kicks off in less than two months.

Without hesitation, he let me in on who he thinks are some of the top teams in the country for next season along with his preseason Heisman pick.

Read on to find out who this guru of the gridiron has pegged to rule the college football roost this fall!

Oklahoma Sooners: First of the Top Two

Like just about every pundit on the market these days, Rece Davis has Oklahoma atop his preseason poll.

The Sooners, who last year won the Big 12 and beat Big East champion Connecticut behind the woodshed in the Fiesta Bowl, return a whopping 28 players who have started at one point or another on either offense or defense, including linebacker Travis Lewis, all-time leading receiver Ryan Broyles and Heisman Trophy-contending quarterback Landry Jones.

The road ahead won't be an easy one for Bob Stoops' boys, especially with a road game at Florida State marked on the calendar for Sept.17th, though they have more than enough talent and experience to run the table all the way to the BCS National Championship Game at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.

Alabama Crimson Tide: A Worthy National Title Contender

One could accuse Rece of being a homer for tabbing the Crimson Tide as one of his top two teams for the upcoming season, given that he is a native of Muscle Shoals and an alumnus of the University of Alabama (class of 1988).

However, he's far from alone in his sentiments. The Tide appear poised for another big season in 2011 despite losing quarterback Greg McElroy to graduation and the trio of defensive lineman Marcell Dareus, wide receiver Julio Jones and 2009 Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram to the most recent NFL draft.

Such high esteem for 'Bama speaks volumes of the job done both on the field and the recruiting trail by head coach Nick Saban, who has already brought a BCS National Championship to Tuscaloosa and had a statue erected there in his honor since leaving the Miami Dolphins for the Tide back in 2007.  

Florida State Seminoles: A Football Power Revived

Davis also made mention of two other programs he expects to be serious contenders for the 2012 BCS National Championship, the first of which being Florida State.

The Seminoles enter the 2011 season, head coach Jimbo Fisher's second on the job, as the prohibitive favorites to win the ACC.

With nine starters returning on both offense and defense and former uber-prospect E.J. Manuel finally set to take over the reigns at quarterback in a full-time capacity, the Noles need only sneak past preseason No. 1 Oklahoma in Tallahassee before romping through their conference schedule if they are to make a serious run at their first national title of the post-Bobby Bowden era.

LSU Tigers: Another SEC Power in Play for a Big Pay Day

Rounding out Rece's top four is LSU, a team that nearly snuck its way into the BCS National Championship Game last season despite not even playing for the SEC title.

The Tigers return 18 starters in total, 10 on offense and eight on defense, though head coach Les Miles will have to decide between Jordan Jefferson and juco transfer Zach Mettenberger at quarterback AND find capable replacements for departed defensive stars Patrick Peterson, Drake Nevis and Kelvin Sheppard before kicking off the season against the Oregon Ducks, last year's BCS runners-up, at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas on Sept. 3rd.

And Rece Davis' Preseason Pick to Win the Heisman Is...

...Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck.

This one shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone, really.

Luck had an outstanding season in 2010, throwing for 3,338 yards and 32 touchdowns against just eight interceptions while leading the Cardinal to a 12-1 campaign capped by a 40-12 trouncing of Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl.

If Luck can come close to duplicating, or even improving upon, last year's performance, particularly with a new head coach in David Shaw and a bevy of new players filling in for key graduates on offense and defense, he will almost undoubtedly join Jim Plunkett as the second Heisman Trophy winner in school history.