Preseason College Football Rankings 2012: Teams on a Crash Course for BCS Bowls

The Georgia Bulldogs will outshine the rest of the SEC East and be on a crash course for a BCS bowl game this college football season.

The nation's No. 6-ranked team won 10 in a row last season and boasts an experienced signal caller behind center in 2012.

Georgia is not alone on the road to BCS success though. 

Here are the teams on their way for BCS bowls in 2012.

No. 6 Georgia Bulldogs

Junior quarterback Aaron Murray will provide a steady hand under center for the No. 6-ranked Bulldogs, and that bodes well for their chances of crashing the BCS this season in my opinion. Murray threw for 35 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2011, completing 59.1 percent of his passes for the year.

It's also worth pointing out that Georgia won 10 straight games last season after dropping their first two of the year. The Bulldogs finished 7-1 in the SEC and return a plethora of talent on both sides of the ball.

The biggest positive for the Bulldogs in 2012 though is the fact that they will only play four road games all year long. They will have a great shot at remaining undefeated, and my belief is that they will face their biggest test by far in a potential SEC Championship Game.

No. 13 Michigan State Spartans

The Spartans return one of the Big Ten's best squads from a season ago, and will play a regular season schedule that features home matchups with Notre Dame, Nebraska and Ohio State. Junior running back Le'Veon Bell also returns for Michigan State. Bell averaged 5.2 yards per carry last season, rushing for more than 900 yards and 13 touchdowns on 182 total carries. 

Although offensive superstars from a year ago, quarterback Kirk Cousins and wide receiver BJ Cunningham have bolted for the greener grass of the NFL. The Spartans have built a foundation capable of contending for the conference title year after year.

Michigan State will contend for a BCS bowl in 2012, based on the fact that they start the season off ranked No. 13 and well within striking distance of college football's powerhouses. 

No. 17 TCU Horned Frogs

The TCU Horned Frogs will attempt to navigate their way to a BCS bowl in 2012 as a member of the Big 12 Conference. TCU's move from the Mountain West Conference means better opportunity for the Horned Frogs to crash the BCS party at season's end. 

Junior quarterback Casey Pachall will return to lead the Horned Frogs in 2012. Pachall threw for 25 touchdowns and only seven interceptions last season and will provide TCU with a quality offensive leader capable of leading them to the promised land. 

TCU lost only two games last season; to Baylor by two points and to SMU in overtime. The Horned Frogs ended the season on an eight game winning streak, and that momentum will no doubt carry into this fall. I like the Horned Frogs to shine early on in their first season in the Big 12, making a postseason appearance in a big-time BCS bowl game. 

2012 USA Today Preseason Coaches Poll Top 25

Rank	Team (first-place votes)	Record	Points
1	LSU (18)	13-1	1,403
2	Alabama (20)	12-1	1,399
3	Southern California (19)	10-2	1,388
4	Oklahoma (1)	10-3	1,276
5	Oregon	12-2	1,258
6	Georgia	10-4	1,061
7	Florida State (1)	9-4	1,055
8	Michigan	11-2	1,023
9	South Carolina	11-2	981
10	Arkansas	11-2	948
11	West Virginia	10-3	833
12	Wisconsin	11-3	743
13	Michigan State	11-3	717
14	Clemson	10-4	598
15	Texas	8-5	549
16	Nebraska	9-4	501
17	TCU	11-2	499
18	Stanford	11-2	497
19	Oklahoma State	12-1	476
20	Virginia Tech	11-3	461
21	Kansas State	10-3	398
22	Boise State	12-1	271
23	Florida	7-6	250
24	Notre Dame	8-5	166
25	Auburn	8-5	66

 *Click here to see the recently released USA Today Preseason Poll.

Follow Bleacher Report Featured Columnist Patrick Clarke on Twitter All Season Long For More College Football Reaction.