BCS Rankings: The Top Contenders and Pretenders for the 2012 Season

The 2011 college football season wasn't exactly the most memorable year we've ever seen, as it turned out to be a season filled with scandals, messy realignment moves and more BCS chaos. 

But have no worries, because now that the season's officially over, we can start counting down the days until September and start looking ahead to a 2012 season that is shaping up to be much more entertaining, and hopefully a lot less scandalous, than 2011.

Even though we're still over seven months away from the next kickoff, it's never too early to start separating the true championship contenders from the pretenders. 

 

Contender: USC Trojans

Very few athletes get the opportunity to feel what it’s like to be the cover boy of college football, but now that quarterback Matt Barkley’s made his decision to return to USC, he’s going to get to experience what that rare feeling’s like, as he takes over for Andrew Luck and becomes the sport's biggest star. 

Barkley could have opted to leave for the NFL and been a Top-10 pick in the 2012 draft, but all he had to do was take one look at the type of team the Trojans were bringing back to see that he had a great shot to make a run at a Heisman Trophy as well as a national championship next season. 

OT Matt Kalil and DE Nick Perry may be departing for the NFL, but USC still has plenty of stars returning on both sides of the ball. 

Running back Curtis McNeal, wide receivers Robert Woods and Marqise Lee, tight end Xavier Grimble, offensive tackle Kevin Graf and center Khaled Holmes form a solid nucleus on offense, with Woods being the big name of the bunch. 

And then on defense, the Trojans will have a ton of impact players like defensive end Wes Horton, linebackers Hayes Pullard and Dion Bailey, cornerback Nickell Robey and safety T.J. McDonald, who will be the key players on what is shaping up to be a Top-10 caliber defense. 

If Barkley can handle the pressure well, and if the Trojans embrace their championship expectations, this team has what it takes to make it all the way to Miami next season.

Contender: LSU Tigers

Well that was embarrassing. 

That had to be the thought that ran through the minds of every LSU fan after they watched their team get stomped on and shut out by Alabama in the BCS championship game. 

The good news for LSU fans, though, is that the Tigers are going to be stacked for the 2012 season, and the even better news is that QB Jordan Jefferson will be long gone.

Jefferson's replacement, Zach Mettenberger, may be unproven, but he's certainly got some skills, and at the very least he knows how to move in the pocket without fumbling and he can throw the ball over 10 yards—two very desirable traits that you want in a quarterback. 

On defense, the Tigers will likely lose star cornerback Mo Claiborne, who is set to be a Top-10 pick in the 2012 NFL draft, and DT Michael Brockers, who will probably end up being a first-round pick, but they’ll bring back two of the best defensive players in the country, DE Sam Montgomery and CB Tyrann Mathieu.

Montgomery and Mathieu will once again be joined by the likes of DT Bennie Logan, DE Barkevious Mingo, LB Kevin Minter and S Eric Reid, who all have the potential to develop into All-American caliber players in 2012. 

On offense, the Tigers should be much better than they were this season, as long as Mettenberger can play up to his potential. 

LSU has the deepest backfield in the country with Spencer Ware, Michael Ford, Kenny Hilliard and Alfred Blue, and they should all have plenty of room to run behind an offensive line that returns tackles Chris Faulk and Alex Hurst and center P.J. Lonergan. 

Add to that the dangerous wide receiver duo of Rueben Randle and Odell Beckham Jr., and you can see how explosive the LSU offense should be next season. 

Their dismal performance in the BCS championship game should light a fire under the Tigers, and they'll likely be hungry for redemption in 2012. 

Contender: Oregon Ducks

Losing an offensive difference-maker like RB LaMichael James, who has been one of college football’s most productive running backs for the past three seasons, is never easy. However, when you’ve got a budding superstar like De’Anthony Thomas waiting in the wings, ready to be unleashed, it certainly makes things a little easier. 

Kelly knows that even without James, he’ll still have one of the most explosive backfields in the country in 2012, with the Black Mamba, QB Darron Thomas and RB Kenjon Barner. 

On defense, get to know all about defensive end Dion Jordan now, because he’s set to be one of the biggest defensive stars in college football in 2012. Jordan will be the big showcase star on the Ducks defense, but it will be linebacker Michael Clay and safety John Boyett who will be the true “heart and soul” players. 

After winning the conference championship and making it to a BCS bowl game in each of the first three years of Chip Kelly’s tenure, Oregon will now have to deal with being overshadowed in the Pac-12 during the offseason by Matt Barkley and USC.

Kelly won’t mind, though.

He's confident in his team's capabilities, and he knows that he's got a squad that will definitely be a championship-caliber crew in 2012.

Contender: Clemson Tigers

I know this is going to sound strange, but the Orange Bowl was actually much closer than it actually looked. 

I was down in Florida to see my Mountaineers put a hurting on the Tigers, but I have to say, if it wasn't for Darwin Cook's 99-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown in the second quarter, that game would have been completely different, as that was a huge momentum-killer for the Tigers and they basically just packed it in after that. 

Clemson is a much better team than what we saw in that embarrassing performance.

Coach Dabo Swinney has done a terrific job on the recruiting trail while he’s been at Clemson, and that infusion of talent was fully evident this season. 

The Tigers did a lot of growing up this past year, and all of that young talent will now be experienced enough to handle the pressure of making a run at a national title. 

QB Tajh Boyd and WR Sammy Watkins may get all of the publicity, but there are plenty of other emerging stars on Clemson such as running back Andre Ellington, wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, linebackers Corico Hawkins and Jonathan Willard, and safety Jonathan Meeks. 

There will be holes to fill on the defensive line, with DT Brandon Thompson and DE Andre Branch both leaving, but the Clemson defense will once again be one of the fastest and most athletic in the country. 

Clemson’s got the type of speed and star power on both sides of the ball that it takes to compete for a national title, and the Tigers should be able to handle the pressure of being a top-ranked team much better in 2012.

Contender: Arkansas Razorbacks

Arkansas loses three very solid wide receivers—Joe Adams, Jarius Wright and Greg Childs, however, it’s what the Razorbacks are returning in the backfield that’s most important. 

RB Knile Davis was all set to take the SEC by storm once again as a junior this season, and solidify his status as one of college football’s elite running backs, but then a preseason leg injury ended up sidelining him for the entire 2011 season.

If Davis returns to full health next season, it will be a huge help for QB Tyler Wilson, who was one of the biggest breakout stars of 2011. This year, Wilson stepped in for Ryan Mallett and flourished in Bobby Petrino’s offense, throwing for 3,638 yards and 24 touchdowns, and guiding Arkansas to a 10-win season. 

The junior signal-caller will start hearing Heisman buzz surrounding his name this offseason, and he’ll have all of the pieces around him to have the Razorbacks in contention in the SEC West in 2012.

Contender: TCU Horned Frogs

TCU's Gary Patterson could just be the most underrated head coach in all of college football. 

Patterson's teams have won 11 or more games six out of the last seven years, and they managed to repeat the feat once again in 2011, even though they had to replace one of the most consistent and successful quarterbacks in college football history—Andy Dalton.

Dalton's replacement, Casey Pachall, may not have all the intangibles that his predecessor had, but he does look like he's more naturally gifted as a passer. Pachall had one of the most impressive individual performances of the 2011 season when he torched Boise State's secondary and burnt up the Broncos' national title hopes on their home field back on Nov. 12.

The sophomore signal-caller will now be the centerpiece player for TCU, as the Horned Frogs get set to move to the Big 12 next season.

With players like running backs Ed Wesley and Waymon James, wide receivers Josh Boyce and Brandon Carter, defensive end Stansly Maponga and linebackers Kenny Cain and Tanner Brock all back, the Horned Frogs look like they're ready to not just compete for a Big 12 championship, but a national championship as well. 

Pretender: Alabama Crimson Tide

Alabama will enter the 2012 season as the kings of college football, but the Tide aren’t going to have an easy time defending the throne. 

With so many key players like C William Vlachos, WR Marquis Maze, DT Josh Chapman, LB Courtney Upshaw, S Mark Barron, and also underclassmen like LB Dont’a Hightower, CB Dre Kirkpatrick and RB Trent Richardson all leaving, there are going to be a bunch of new faces in the starting lineup for Alabama next year, especially on defense.

Luckily for Nick Saban, he’s brought in some stellar recruiting classes in recent years, and he’s got plenty of talent coming up through the ranks.

Still, with so much youth and inexperience on defense, some growing pains are surely to be expected, and it’s going to take a few lucky breaks for Alabama to end up back in the championship game once again next season.

Pretender: Wisconsin Badgers

Although Wisconsin failed to put together the national championship run that many were expecting early on in the season, and although the year ended in disappointing fashion with another Rose Bowl loss, there was still a lot for Badgers fans to be proud of in 2011, as winning 11 games and a Big Ten title is certainly nothing to scoff at. 

Still, even though Heisman finalist Montee Ball is surprisingly set to return to the Wisconsin backfield after rushing for 1,923 yards and scoring 39 total touchdowns in 2011, most of the offense’s other key pieces—QB Russell Wilson, WR Nick Toon and C Peter Konz—are gone.

That means the Badgers will have to rely on their defense, led by linebackers Mike Taylor and Chris Borland, next season.

Because of the losses suffered on offense, though, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Wisconsin fall down a few rungs on the Big Ten ladder in 2012.

Pretender: Kansas State Wildcats

Kansas State won the "Where Did This Team Come From" award in 2011, as Bill Snyder pulled off another remarkable coaching job this season, guiding his team to 10 wins, something no one saw coming back before the season started.

QB Collin Klein was one of the breakout stars of the 2011 season, but Kansas State’s offense as a whole left something to be desired, as the Wildcats finished just 101st nationally in total offense this past season. 

If they can’t fix that lack of consistent offensive production, the Wildcats will fall back to the pack in what should be a very tough Big 12 next season. 

Pretender: Boise State Broncos

You have to appreciate the work that coach Chris Petersen has done at Boise State, as the coach has done a remarkable job during his six years leading the program, going 73-6 during that time.

But Petersen is going to have the toughest coaching job of his career awaiting him in 2012.

Not only do the Broncos lose the winningest quarterback in college football history, Kellen Moore, they also will wave goodbye to future NFL players like RB Doug Martin, OT Nate Potter, DT Billy Winn and S George Iloka.

They won't be starting from scratch, but Petersen's squad will definitely have some holes to fill and some rebuilding to do next season.

It will be interesting to see how well QB Joe Southwick can handle replacing a predecessor the caliber of Moore, but no matter how well Southwick performs, with just eight starters set to return, a dropoff is to be expected, and 2012 is shaping up to be the least successful season during Petersen's tenure.

Pretender: Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Looking for the toughest schedule in college football next year?

Well if Notre Dame’s 2012 schedule isn’t the toughest of them all, it’s certainly right up there.

Next season, the Irish will have to figure out a way to improve upon the eight-win campaigns they’ve put together in each of Brian Kelly’s first two years. That improvement won’t come easy, though, as they’ll have to figure out a way to get through a schedule that includes teams such as Michigan State, Michigan, Miami, Stanford, BYU, Oklahoma and USC.

Kelly’s squad has the type of talent to get the job done with solid veterans like LB Manti Te’o, RB Cierre Wood, WR Theo Riddick, DT Louis Nix, TE Tyler Eifert and OT Zack Martin all returning.

But with questions once again surrounding the quarterback position this offseason, Kelly’s going to have a few problems to solve and holes to fill before he’ll be able to put a team out on the field that’s ready to pile up double-digit wins against that kind of tough slate.

Pretender: Stanford Cardinal

It's never easy to replace a star quarterback, especially one that's considered to be one of the greatest quarterback prospects of all time, but that's exactly what Stanford coach David Shaw will have to do in 2012, as the Cardinal try to handle life after Andrew Luck.

Jim Harbaugh assembled enough pieces during his time in Palo Alto for the Cardinal to remain a factor in the Pac-12 conference next year, but losing Luck, along with star offensive linemen like David DeCastro and Jonathan Martin, won't bode well for the Stanford offense in 2012.

Yes, the linebacker duo of Chase Thomas and Shayne Skov will be one of the best in the country, but no matter how good they are, Stanford's not going to be able to put the same type of points up on the board next season that the Cardinal did when Luck was under center these past three years.

If RB Stepfan Taylor has a big year as a senior, the Cardinal will definitely be able to compete with most teams on their schedule, but by the looks of things, this group is going to be a notch below the Pac-12’s two powerhouses, Oregon and USC.

Other Top Contenders

Florida State Seminoles

Oklahoma State Cowboys

Michigan Wolverines

West Virginia Mountaineers

Georgia Bulldogs

Virginia Tech Hokies

South Carolina Gamecocks

Oklahoma Sooners

Texas Longhorns

Nebraska Cornhuskers