2011 College Football Predictions: How the Top 25 Will Shape Up Next Season
2011 College Football Predictions: Just about 10 hours after Auburn won the BCS National Championship, head coach Gene Chizik said he's already looking ahead to next season.
Me too.
Though this is what the final AP poll says about this year's rankings, they won't look that way at the start of the 2011 season.
So how will they look?
Well, I'm glad you asked.
Here are my predictions for the preseason top 25 rankings for 2011.
25. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (2010: 8-5)
1 of 25
2010 Finish: Unranked
It seems inevitable lately that Notre Dame will have huge preseason expectations that only leave Fighting Irish fans with disappointment once the season's over.
But one thing about Brian Kelly is that he showed constant improvement every year at Cincinnati and in his first year at Notre Dame.
The Fighting Irish looked impressive in their Sun Bowl victory over Miami, and that momentum could carry over into 2011.
24. Michigan Wolverines (2010: 7-6)
2 of 25
2010 Finish: Unranked
Michigan got destroyed by Mississippi State in the Gator Bowl, but Rich Rodriguez got the boot from Ann Arbor.
New head coach Brady Hoke turned around the Ball State and San Diego State programs relatively quickly and could do the same at Michigan.
His first task will be to fix Michigan's horrendous defense, which finished as the No. 108 overall defense in 2010.
23. Virginia Tech Hokies (2010: 11-3)
3 of 25
2010 Finish: 16th
Virginia Tech will have to replace arguably its three best offensive players, Tyrod Taylor, Darren Evans and Ryan Williams.
But the Hokie defense should be very good once again, and the ACC isn't expected to be a real tough conference in 2011.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
22. Georgia Bulldogs (2010: 6-7)
4 of 25
2010 Finish: Unranked
A.J. Green is gone, but Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray is the real deal.
He threw for more than 3,000 yards and accounted for 28 touchdowns last season...as a true freshman.
Watch out for him in 2011—he could be the SEC's best quarterback with Ryan Mallett and possibly Cam Newton gone.
21. Arkansas Razorbacks (2010: 10-3)
5 of 25
2010 Finish: 12th
Knile Davis is still a stud at running back, but Ryan Mallett was one of the nation's best quarterbacks while at Arkansas and he's gone.
Can Tyler Wilson fill his shoes, or will he struggle?
The chance of it being the latter is the main reason why the Razorbacks are this low.
20. Ohio State Buckeyes (2010: 12-1)
6 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 5
The defense will be there, and the talent will be there.
But Terrelle Pryor, DeVier Posey and a couple of other key players will miss the first five games of the season because of that suspension.
That's a huge blow to a team that'd probably be a top-10 preseason team otherwise.
19. Florida Gators (2010: 8-5)
7 of 25
2010 Finish: Unranked
Even if Florida doesn't deserve to start the season ranked, you know the Gators probably will anyway.
They're always stockpiled with talent, and Will Muschamp's offensive system will be a much better fit for the players there than Urban Meyer's spread attack.
18. West Virginia Mountaineers (2010: 9-4)
8 of 25
2010 Finish: Unranked
Noel Devine won't be at West Virginia next season, but the Mountaineers are getting a heck of a replacement: Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen.
He helped develop a ridiculous passing attack with the Cowboys, and his addition to the Mountaineers staff should help a WVU team that really struggled to put points on the board last season.
17. Florida State Seminoles (2010: 10-4)
9 of 25
2010 Finish: 17th
Not only does Florida State have 16 starters (eight on each side of the ball) coming back, but the Seminoles have one of the nation's top recruiting classes, which is filled with guys who can step in and contribute immediately.
The biggest question mark surrounding this team, though, will be E.J. Manuel and whether or not he can step in and replace Christian Ponder's production.
16. Mississippi State Bulldogs (2010: 9-4)
10 of 25
2010 Finish: 15th
Has anyone done a better job of turning a program around than Dan Mullen?
Mississippi State ran for 215 yards per game last season, and returns one of the SEC's best defenses for 2011.
The Bulldogs have eight offensive starters coming back, including dual-threat quarterback Chris Relf.
15. Michigan State Spartans (2010: 11-2)
11 of 25
2010 Finish: 14th
On the surface it's hard to be optimistic about Michigan State after the team's awful showing against Alabama, but the Spartans don't lose much on defense outside of Greg Jones and they return an underrated quarterback in Kirk Cousins.
Their 2011 won't be easy though, with road games against Iowa, Ohio State, Notre Dame and Nebraska.
14. Nebraska Cornhuskers (2010: 10-4)
12 of 25
2010 Finish: 20th
It'll be the first season for Nebraska in the Big Ten, but who will be the team's quarterback?
There was a bit of a revolving door between Taylor Martinez and Cody Green last season, and the Cornhuskers have two promising incoming freshman—Bubba Starling and Jamal Turner—at that position.
If Nebraska wants to succeed in 2011, they'll need to find some consistency behind center.
13. TCU Horned Frogs (2010: 13-0)
13 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 2
TCU had the nation's No. 1 defense in 2010, and that unit will remain largely intact next season.
But the Horned Frogs will lose four-year starting quarterback Andy Dalton, and only return 10 total starters.
This could be a rebuilding year for TCU unless some youngsters step up.
12. Wisconsin Badgers (2010: 11-2)
14 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 7
Quarterback Scott Tolzien, offensive linemen John Moffitt and Gabe Carimi, running back John Clay and defensive end J.J. Watt.
They're all stellar players...and they all need to be replaced.
11. South Carolina Gamecocks (2010: 9-5)
15 of 25
2010 Finish: 22nd
South Carolina running back Marcus Lattimore returns for his sophomore season, and that dude's a stud.
But will it be Connor Shaw or the up-and-down Stephen Garcia at quarterback?
And how will the Gamecocks deal with the departure of several key players from their strong defensive front?
10. Missouri Tigers (2010: 10-3)
16 of 25
2010 Finish: 18th
A Blaine Gabbert return would push Missouri into the top five or six, but he's headed for the NFL and it'll be tough to replace his production right away.
The good thing about the Tigers, though, is that they return nine other starters on offense, so the team's next quarterback—whether that James Franklin or Tyler Gabbert (Blaine's brother)—will have plenty of experience around him.
9. Boise State Broncos (2010: 12-1)
17 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 9
Boise State is headed to the Mountain West, which recently has been a much tougher conference than the WAC.
The Broncos likely won't be as good next season as they have been in recent years, as Kellen Moore returns but his favorite targets—Austin Pettis and Titus Young—are off to the NFL.
8. Oklahoma State Cowboys (2010: 11-2)
18 of 25
2010 Finish: 13th
Justin Blackmon has a press conference scheduled for later today to announce whether he's staying at Oklahoma State or leaving for the NFL.
But he's probably gone, and he'll join Kendall Hunter and offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen as huge losses for the Cowboys football program.
If quarterback Brandon Weeden returns, however, Oklahoma State will still be one of the better Big 12 teams.
7. Stanford Cardinal (2010: 12-1)
19 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 4
Andrew Luck decided to return for another season at Stanford, but the loss of Jim Harbaugh can't be overlooked.
The Cardinal will still be good, especially in a weaker Pac-10, but they might not be one-loss good in 2011.
6. Auburn Tigers (2010: 14-0)
20 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 1 (National Champions)
If Cam Newton and Nick Fairley both return, Auburn is the favorite next season.
If only Newton returns, the Tigers are still probably the favorite.
If only Fairley (or neither player) returns, Auburn won't be competing for another national title in 2011.
5. Texas A&M Aggies (2010: 9-4)
21 of 25
2010 Finish: 19th
Cyrus Gray is coming back to Texas A&M, Ryan Tannehill has almost a full season at quarterback under his belt, and the Aggies will return 18 starters.
Things are looking up for A&M.
4. LSU Tigers (2010: 11-2)
22 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 8
Aside from Patrick Peterson and Drake Nevis—two huge losses, yes—LSU will be returning most of its key starters on both sides of the ball.
Quarterback play was a huge issue in 2010, but the Tigers did recently sign highly-touted junior college prospect Zach Mettenberger, who could step in right away as the team's starter.
3. Oregon Ducks (2010: 12-1)
23 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 3
Though Oregon does lose several key defensive players, such as Casey Matthews, the majority of the Ducks offense returns in 2011.
With Darron Thomas and LaMichael James back in Eugene, there's no reason to expect much of a drop-off in production from Oregon's No. 1 scoring offense of 2010.
2. Alabama Crimson Tide (2010: 10-3)
24 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 10
Alabama will lose Marcell Dareus, Mark Ingram, Julio Jones and Greg McElroy, but the Crimson Tide is stockpiled with talent.
It's not really a question of if players will step up in their absence—rather, it's a question of who will fill their shoes.
If A.J. McCarron can play as well as McElroy did, then Alabama could very well be the favorite to win the national championship.
1. Oklahoma Sooners (2010: 12-2)
25 of 25
2010 Finish: No. 6
The Oklahoma Sooners return 18 starters in 2011, including Landry Jones and Ryan Broyles on offense and Travis Lewis on defense.
If sophomore running back Roy Finch can even begin to mimic the success of DeMarco Murray in the running game, the Sooners will be scary good.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
