ESPN College Football Live Poll: Five Who Should Be In, Five Who Should Be out

One of the things we look forward to when college football arrives is the college football polls. It gives us something to debate about as college football fans and bragging rights when our favorite teams are ranked higher than our buddies.

The ESPN preseason poll sure has the internet buzzing and beginning those debates, even though we're still a couple of months away from the season actually taking place.

Many are questioning why certain teams are ranked where they are, and others are even wondering why certain teams aren't ranked at all. With only 25 teams in the poll, it's hard to include every team that may deserve a little bit of glory.

Here are five teams that made the cut that shouldn't have and then five teams that should receive a little bit more love.

Auburn: In

How Auburn did not make the cut is kind of surprising. After all, it seems like nearly every other SEC team made the top 25 according to ESPN (a total of six SEC teams were ranked in the poll).

The Tigers won the national championship in 2010, lost nearly their entire team and ended up still finishing last year with a solid 8-5 season. That included victories over Florida and South Carolina (two teams that made the poll) and a loss to Clemson by only a couple touchdowns.

Now that Gene Chizik's club returns with the majority of their starters, and likely has an answer at quarterback in Kiehl Frazier, it's going to be real interesting to see how far this Auburn team can go.

Florida: Out

It's hard to argue with the Gators' ranking considering they barely made the cut at the No. 25 spot. But there are simply too many questions this Florida team has to be ranked at the moment.

There's no answer at the quarterback position right now. The running back depth is a question. Play-makers on the offensive side of the ball altogether are seriously in question. And then there's also issues with the defensive line that struggled to pressure the quarterback last season.

This is a team that showed almost zero signs of life at the end of the season, losing six of their last nine games.

Baylor: In

I know Baylor no longer has Robert Griffin as their quarterback, but I also know that probable starter, Nick Florence, has the potential to become one of the better quarterbacks in the Big 12. He showed promise in the limited action he's seen throughout his career and he had a brilliant spring game.

Sure, we're not too familiar with many of the Bears players, but this is a roster that returns 15 starters and consists of mainly upperclassmen. They also have a talented recruiting class coming in that should help out in some areas.

This Baylor team could shock some people this year.

Notre Dame: Out

How many times are we going to rank Notre Dame, and how many times are they going to let us down? I mean, they are only ranked No. 24, but you could make a serious argument that this team doesn't even deserve to be ranked.

The Irish have only won two bowl games since 1993. Under head coach Brian Kelly, they have a combined record of 16-10. That's solid for a school like UAB or FAU, but in South Bend, that's considered a failure.

There is a lot to like about this Notre Dame roster, but it's getting to the point where you have to prove something before we just rank you because you're Notre Dame.

Georgia Tech: In

I get that Georgia Tech was very inconsistent last season, but so are many clubs that ended up making the poll. The Yellow Jackets showed some great potential last year in beating Clemson and competing with Virginia Tech and Georgia at the end of the year.

This is a squad that returns eight starters on the offensive side of the ball, including dual-threat quarterback Tevin Washington. They also return seven starters from a defense that was ranked fifth in the ACC last season and held an explosive Clemson offense to just 17 points.

Georgia Tech may not be ranked in the ESPN poll, but they'll have their shot to prove what they're capable of in week one against Virginia Tech.

Boise State: Out

Boise State head coach Chris Petersen is a fantastic at what he does and probably gets the most out of the least. This will be his toughest test as the Broncos have a whole lot to replace this off-season. This program lost more players than I have ever seen. Nearly every key player from the golden years for this program is no longer on the roster.

Several positions on both sides of the ball are up for grabs, and that's simply too many questions for me to put them in the Top 25.

Texas A&M: In

Texas A&M joins the SEC and still gets no love from ESPN, despite the fact that they return 17 starters from a year ago, have a fantastic head coach in Kevin Sumlin, and have already shown last season they can compete with the big boys in college football.

I'd really like to hear the reasoning behind leaving the Aggies off the poll. Is it because they have no proven quarterback? Is it because they have a new head coach? Could it possibly be that they're new to the SEC and still have to prove themselves to the rest of the world?

Texas A&M has a very solid football team that's experienced and includes one of the best offensive lines heading into the year. This team should turn some heads this season and will likely climb into the rankings when they beat the Florida Gators in week two.

Ohio State: Out

Last time I checked, the Ohio State Buckeyes were banned from postseason play. So, I really don't understand the reasoning in having them ranked at all. They won't be a part of the BCS poll when it's released later in the year, so what's truly the point?

The Buckeyes are very solid defensively, but have a new head coach and are still searching for play-makers on the offensive side of the ball. It's really hard to imagine that a team that ranked 107th in total offense last season will come flying out of the gate in week one and look like a completely different team.

Then you add the fact that they're banned from the postseason and its clear that a team that can actually reach a bowl game should be in this spot.

BYU: In

BYU hasn't been ranked in the AP poll in the last two years, and even though they finished with a 10-3 record last season, they still can't get any love. The Cougars defense was ranked 14th in the country last season and their offense averaged 30 points per contest.

That's a pretty balanced team if you ask me, and makes me like them even more knowing that they return nine starters on offense and seven on defense. This team went toe-to-toe with both TCU and Texas last season (two teams ranked in the Top 25 according to ESPN).

The Cougars will take a trip to Boise later in the year and we'll see who truly deserves to be ranked and who doesn't.

Texas: Out

Texas reminds me of Notre Dame a little bit: an extremely talented team that hasn't done much the last couple of seasons. In fact, last season the Longhorns finished with an 8-5 record and didn't knock off a single ranked team (0-4 against ranked teams last season). That doesn't scream out a Top 25 team if you ask me.

I really like the talent on this roster and the fact that they're returning 16 combined starters, but I'd like to see teams earn their ranking and not just automatically receive a spot because they're a big-name program.