College Football Predictions: Which Teams Will Make Up The Top 25 In 2011?
The calendar has just turned to March, and that means we are inching closer to the start of college football spring games. With those games come the hope and optimism of a new season, where every single team in the country thinks that this could be a big season for them.
Freshman will have their first chance to make an impact on the field. Meanwhile, position battles will begin to get settled based on how players perform. There's so much to look forward to with the upcoming college football season.
So which teams will be the best of the best? Which teams will make up the top 25 as we head into the 2011 college football season?
There will be a lot of debate about some of these rankings, but there should be no debate about who the No. 1 team in the country will be going into next season. What team is this? Who will be their biggest threat on the way to a BCS Championship?
Here are the top 25 teams for the 2011 college football season.
1. Oklahoma Sooners
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The Sooners are absolutely loaded heading into 2011. They return Landry Jones, who threw for over 4,700 yards last season, and Ryan Broyles, who had 1,600 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns, among others to an offense that averaged 37 points per game.
Bob Stoops has this team primed for another run at a National Championship in 2011. They will be the team to beat heading into 2011.
2. Oregon Ducks
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The Ducks came so close to winning a National Championship last year, and they return LaMichael James and Darron Thomas to the offense that scored over 50 points in six games last season.
The defense didn't get the credit that it deserved because the offense was so good, but it's a very good unit.
This team will be in the thick of the title race all season long.
3. Alabama Crimson Tide
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Alabama has to replace a ton of talent on offense—Greg McElroy, Mark Ingram, Julio Jones are all going to the NFL—but Nick Saban and his staff put together one of the best recruiting classes in the country this year.
Plus, that defense, which had to replace a ton of talent last year, only gave up 13.5 points per game last year. They will be even better this season, even with the loss of Marcel Dareus on the defensive line.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
4. LSU Tigers
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Not many teams could lose the best cornerback in the country—Patrick Peterson—and say that their defense will be as good or even better than they were last year, but LSU is not every other team.
Les Miles doesn't get the credit from the media or the fans that he deserves, but this team is a powerhouse and it's because of him.
They will fight with Alabama for the top spot in the SEC West. They will be tested right out of the gate as they open the season against Oregon in a game at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
5. Boise State Broncos
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As long as Chris Petersen is coaching this team they will be a top-10 program. They win at least 11 games every year, and they still have Kellen Moore playing quarterback.
They will challenge themselves this season with their opening game against Georgia and a conference game—remember Boise State has joined the Mountain West conference this year—against defending Rose Bowl Champions, TCU.
If the pieces fall into place, this could be the season Boise gets a chance to play for the BCS Championship.
6. Florida State Seminoles
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Don't look now, but the Seminoles are getting back to being one of the elite programs in the country. They won 10 games last season, and Jimbo Fisher has brought in arguably the best recruiting class in the country to add to an already talented roster.
Florida State is the team to beat in the ACC in 2011.
7. Arkansas Razorbacks
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Losing Ryan Mallett is going to sting, but not as much you might think. Tyler Wilson made an impression in limited action last year and looks ready to lead this team going into 2011.
With a little bit better play from the defense, the Razorbacks can get to another BCS game this season.
8. Oklahoma State Cowboys
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If Oklahoma State actually played defense, they would be regarded alongside Oklahoma going into 2011. The Cowboys might have a more explosive offense than the Sooners, but they just don't have the ability to stop anybody.
Mike Gundy has done a fantastic job of building the Cowboys into a force. They won't beat anyone into the ground because of the defense, but they will drive you nuts because they are so good on the offensive side of the ball.
9. South Carolina Gamecocks
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Last year, South Carolina made it to their first SEC Championship game in school history, but they were run out of the building by eventual National Champion, Auburn. This year, they hope to get back to Atlanta and win their first Conference Championship game.
Steve Spurrier did a very good job recruiting this season, with a top-20 class and landing the best prospect in the country—defensive end Jadeveon Clowney—to go along with a number returning players, led by running back Marcus Lattimore.
10. Stanford Cardinal
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Stanford underwent some significant changes this offseason with the departure of head coach Jim Harbaugh and the entire coaching staff from last year's Orange Bowl team.
However, one change that they don't have to worry about for at least a year is at quarterback. Andrew Luck enters the year as the front-runner for the Heisman Trophy after his fantastic 2010 season. I don't know if they will get to another BCS game this year, but with Luck under center they will win a bunch of games.
11. Texas A&M Aggies
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The Aggies will boast one of the top defenses in the country in 2011, even with the loss of pass rusher extraordinaire Von Miller, thanks to the work of defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter.
Offensively, this team came on strong after Ryan Tannehill was inserted as the starting quarterback. They will be better in 2011 than they were in 2010.
12. Wisconsin Badgers
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Wisconsin has some work to do having to replace Gabe Carimi on the offensive line and J.J. Watt on the defensive end, but Bret Bielema has done a great job with this Badgers team since taking over in 2006.
They have to replace Scott Tolzien at quarterback, no small task, but this team gets their bread buttered with the running game, led by James White and Montee Ball.
13. Missouri Tigers
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With Blaine Gabbert deciding to enter the NFL Draft, Missouri slides down a bit in the 2011 rankings. But they will still be one of the top teams in the country because their defense is that good.
Plus, James Franklin is no slouch at quarterback—they will be fine offensively.
14. Auburn Tigers
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Auburn came out of nowhere to win the National Championship last year. If they do it again this year, they should rename the school after Gene Chizik. That's not to say that the Tigers will be terrible, but Cam Newton is gone and he WAS the Tigers offense last year.
Oh by the way, they have to replace Nick Fairley on the defensive line, too.
The news is not all doom-and-gloom in Auburn because they were able to capitalize on their title run last year with a terrific recruiting class. They will take a step back this year, but given the time to develop they can get back to the top of the college football mountain soon.
15. Michigan State Spartans
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Despite that humiliating loss to Alabama in the Capital One Bowl last January, the Spartans will be good again in 2011.
Kirk Cousins, while not the most exciting or explosive quarterback in the country, is a very good fit for this offense and he doesn't make a lot of mistakes.
The Big Ten will look a lot different in 2011, but the Spartans will be right near the top of the conference standings again.
16. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
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Believe it or not, Brian Kelly has Notre Dame on the right track. They finished 2010 strong, with four straight victories minus their starting quarterback, and they will be better in 2011.
Dayne Crist missed the last five games of the season, but he looked very good when he played. Michael Floyd deciding to return was a huge boon to this team for 2011.
The continued development of the defense will be the key for the Irish this season, but things are starting to look bright in South Bend once again.
17. Nebraska Cornhuskers
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Nebraska shifts from the Big 12 to the Big Ten this year, and they could take control of the conference right away.
If Taylor Martinez plays like he did in the first half of the season, this team will be very difficult to beat. If he plays like he did in the second half of the season, granted he was battling injuries, this team will be in some trouble.
Fortunately, Bo Pelini has built this team on defense, so even a less than stellar performance at quarterback will not cripple this team.
18. Virginia Tech Hokies
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Virginia Tech has to find a replacement for Tyrod Taylor at quarterback, but Frank Beamer and company always find the pieces needed to compete for conference championships. Losing Ryan Williams and Darren Evans at running back is another concern for this team.
Fortunately, they always play solid defense and we know all about their special teams prowess, so they should be fine in 2011.
19. TCU Horned Frogs
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TCU is still riding high off of their Rose Bowl win. Gary Patterson has stocked that defense with talent and they will be one of the best in the country again in 2011.
The loss of Andy Dalton will be felt, I don't think people appreciate how good he was for this team. TCU probably won't go undefeated again, but they will close-out their tenure in the Mountain West (they go to the Big East in 2012) with some sort of bang.
20. Mississippi State Bulldogs
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The Bulldogs went 9-4 last year, including a three-point loss to eventual champion Auburn and a double-overtime loss to Arkansas.
The offense got better as the year went on, and they are hoping for continued development from quarterback Chris Relf.
Fortunately, Dan Mullen has done a terrific job building this program back up, specifically on the defensive side of the ball.
21. Texas Longhorns
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Texas suffered through the worst season that they have had since Mack Brown took over in 1998, finishing 5-7 and missing out on a bowl game.
However, that can likely be deemed a fluke since they were trying to find a new quarterback.
The Longhorns load up with talent every single year and they will be back in the rankings for most, if not all of 2011.
22. Ohio State Buckeyes
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Here's the most controversial spot in the rankings. Ohio State fans will bash on me, but I don't care. They will be without five key players, including quarterback Terrelle Pryor, for the first five games of the season.You can't sweep that kind of thing under the rug.
The Buckeyes won't come out of that five-game stretch unbeaten, in fact they will probably be 3-2.
Ohio State can climb up the rankings once they get those five guys back, but given the lack of talent they have to start the season, they will be in trouble.
23. Florida Gators
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Florida struggled in 2010, which was expected since they had to replace Tim Tebow, but they finished the year on a high note by beating Penn State in the Outback Bowl.
Urban Meyer left the program, but they got one of the most highly thought of assistants in the country to take over, Will Muschamp, who was the coach-in-waiting at Texas.
Florida will need to establish who is going to play quarterback, either Jon Brantley or Jordan Reed, but with a lot of talent everywhere else and a good recruiting class, they will be very good in 2011.
24. Utah Utes
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Utah was undefeated, and fifth in the BCS rankings after 10 weeks into last season. Unfortunately, they got blown out by TCU and lost three of their final five games to finish near the bottom of the polls in 2010.
The Utes will start 2011 right where they finished, near the bottom of the polls, but they are moving to the new Pac-12, formerly Pac-10, so they don't have to go undefeated to get into a BCS game.
It helps that they don't have to play Stanford or Oregon this year.
25. Arizona State Sun Devils
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Arizona State is returning almost all of their starters from last year. They finished the season 6-6, but they lost four games by a combined nine points, and that experience from all of those close games will only help them in 2011.
Watch out for the Sun Devils because they could be a surprise team in the Pac-12 conference. If they get some of the breaks this year that they didn't get last year, they could win 10 games.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
