It is time to lay it all out on the line. Everyone has had seven months to pore over magazines, internet sites, and blogs, so tonight on In The Bleachers Live is the night we make our bold predictions on what is going to happen in the 2008 College Football Season.

On tonight’s show each guest will pick the Conference Winners of the ACC (Coastal & Atlantic), SEC (East & West), Big Ten, Big East, Pac Ten, Big 12 (North & South), Heisman Champion, BCS Championship game and winner. I will tally all of these predictions and post them on the blog. At the end of the season we’ll find out who has the clearest crystal ball.

Once again we will be using Talkshoe to do the live podcast. If you plan on being there, sign up for a username so I know who you are when you are in the chat room. It only takes a few seconds and it is free! The information for tonight’s live podcast is below:

Guest List
9:10pm EST - Big Head from MIZZOURAH
9:20pm EST - Justin Hokanson from the Bleacher Report and Gridiron Guru
9:30pm EST - Sean Keeley from Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician
9:40pm EST - Jon Johnston from Corn Nation
9:50pm EST - Joel Hollingsworth from Rocky Top Talk
10:00pm EST - Michael Felder Jr from Bleacher Report
10:10pm EST - Peter Bean from Burnt Orange Nation & EDSBS Live
10:20pm EST - John Radcliff from Mountainlair
10:30pm EST - Spencer Hall from EDSBS, EDSBS Live, and the Sporting News
10:40pm EST - Adam Nettina from College Football News and ITB

In The Bleachers Live Podcast Link
When: 9:00 EST
Phone Number to Call In: (724) 444-7444
Talkcast ID: 81065

Also if you haven’t signed up for the pick em you still have time. To participate, just join our game . It’s completely free to play, and FunOfficePools.com is spam-free as well. The pool is open now to join, and first picks are due by August 28th - so sign up now. The pool will run the whole regular season, concluding on December 6th with, among other games, the conference championship games. I will be handing out prizes to the winners.

If you’ve already signed up, click here to go to the FunOfficePools main page and log in.

Pool Type: College Football Pick em.
Pool Name: In The Bleachers Operation Pick Em
Password: bleachers
Selection Name: [Insert Your Name]

We’re but a few days away from the opening kickoff of the 2008 season, and with it an opportunity to put the “shoulds” and “coulds” of the preseason behind us to find out just how week one of the season will shake down. Here’s some last minute predictions for the non-BCS conferences.

10. Both Wyoming and New Mexico State will Go Bowling- Far from the hype of the BYU’s and Fresno State’s of the world, the Wyoming Cowboys and New Mexico State Aggies both stand at a crossroad. Each program saw relative success early in the tenures of their respective head coaches, but after disappointments and an inability to follow up that success, both Joe Glenn and Hal Mumme find themselves on hot seats. Fortunately for each, I think both these teams make it to a bowl game in 2008, playing each other in the New Mexico Bowl. New Mexico State will take advantage of a power vacuum in the middle of the WAC to get there, while Wyoming will finally get consistent enough quarterback play to get over the hump in the MWC.

9. Ryan Mathews Will Lead the WAC in rushing- Don’t get me wrong; I’m as big of a Luke Lippincott or Ian Johnson fan as you will find, and happen to think both will have tremendous senior seasons. But anyone who saw true freshmen Ryan Mathews dominate conference play last year will tell you he’s something special. With a veteran offensive line returning in front of him, he’ll topple his 2007 numbers and become the offense’s most potent weapon in 2008. 

8. San Diego State Will Lose to Cal Poly- What happens when you take one of the better FCS teams and let them play one of the worst FBS teams? Actually, most of the time the FBS team will still win, but with the Aztecs already having one of the worst run defenses in the FBS and having to replace three offensive lineman, their star quarterback, and top two pass catchers from a year ago their prospects do not look good at all in the opening matchup.

7. Tulsa Will Break Scoring Record Against North Texas- What happens when you give the reigns of two non-BCS conference offenses to former record setting high school coaches? What happens when an offense which averaged over 40 ppg in a new system a year goes up against a defense which allowed over 40 ppg last season? You get a recipe for sixty minutes of fast break action, that’s what you get.

6. Buffalo will Win the MAC East- With every MAC East team getting at least one first place vote in the MAC Media Poll at the conference’s media day last month, the consensus is that the Eastern half of the conference is up for grabs. Buffalo has just as good of a shot as anyone else, and with Turner Gill getting a veteran Drew Willy back at quarterback the Bulls will find themselves in the MAC championship game by season’s end.

5. Navy Will Keep the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy- I have no idea why some people think that just because Paul Johnson is gone that Navy will suddenly regress as preeminent among Service Academy teams. Sure, that Troy Calhoun fellow had a decent year out in Colorado Spring last year, but after losing almost all his offensive production to graduation this spring (and what was left of it to injury this summer) the Falcons will be in major rebuilding mode. The same can be said for Army, which likely will have significant “ground express” issues on offense as they move to an option based offense (basically, they will fumble a lot) in Stan Brock’s second year. No, Navy may not be as good this year as they were last year or the year before, but they won’t have to be to make it back to the White House lawn next spring.

4. Florida Atlantic WON’T Win the Sun Belt- The conference is better than most people (myself grudgingly included) give it credit for, and like the MAC I think we’re seeing it even out from top to bottom, with too many teams gunning for the supposed “top team.” I think FAU finds its way into a bowl now that the Sun Belt has secured multiple tie-ins, but a dog-eat-dog conference slate will leave the conference with an unlikely winner. Just don’t ask me who exactly it will be.

3. Max Hall Will Be a Heisman Finalist- I think I’ve said all I could possible say on this subject.

2. Boise State will win the WAC- No disrespect to Fresno State but the Bulldogs have suffered too many past letdowns in conference for me to be downing the Kool-Aid this early. I actually think Pat Hill’s club gets past the likes of Rutgers, UCLA, and Wisconsin; but just like in 2004 when they crushed Washington and Kansas State to come out of the gates they’ll proceed to drop a game against a mid-level WAC team somewhere in the middle of the season, and will eventually fall to a Boise State team which makes it’s pay off of winning conference championships.

1. BYU will go to a BCS Bowl Game…And Win- I’ve said it before in much more detail, but just in case you’ve been turning a deaf ear to me I’ll go over the abridged version one more time. BYU’s offense will be nothing short of prolific now that Max Hall and company have had an entire offseason to gel, while the defense, despite major personnel losses, will be serviceable under Head Coach Bronco Mendenhall’s tutelage and scheme. Once more, they’re playing a schedule that supports getting to a BCS bowl game, and with Mendenhall’s ability to keep his team humble he won’t likely have them looking past potentially dangerous conference matchups with Utah and TCU.

Aside from covering college football for In The Bleachers, Adam Nettina covers college MAC East and Independent football for CollegeFootballNews.com

5. Georgia Bulldogs - Yes both the AP and Coaches believe that the Bulldogs are the best team in the country right now, but I beg to differ. They do have plenty of talent on their offense led by maybe the best pro prospect quarterback in the country, Matthew Stafford. Last year Stafford had a good year throwing for 2500 yards and 19 touchdowns as a sophomore, and the emergence of running back Knowshon Moreno helped take a bit of the pressure off. Moreno rushed for 1300 yards and 14 touchdowns. Caleb King is a true freshman should provide depth behind Moreno. The offensive line took a bit of a hit when Trinton Sturdivant injured his knee and was declared out for the season. He protected Stafford’s blind side, so we’ll have to see if Georgia found an answer at left tackle.

On defense, the Bulldogs have the most talented defensive line in the country. Rodrick Battle, Jeff Ownes, and Geno Atkins anchor a line that gave up just over 100 yards per game on the ground. The secondary returns three starters from a ground that only gave up 213 yards per game through the air. Georgia’s schedule is brutal. They have a stretch where they play at South Carolina, at Arizona State, then home against Alabama and Tennessee. Then later in the year they play at LSU, home against Florida, and two weeks later at Auburn. If this team makes it through the year with only one loss, they better be playing for a BCS title.

4. Florida Gators - The Gators would be ranked much higher, but they have taken some hits on the injury front during fall camp. Tight end Cornelius Ingram, strong safety Dorain Munroe, and 3 other Gators tore their ACLs and will miss the season. Percy Harvin is banged up still with the heel injury. But they do have Superman, Tim Tebow, which no other team can claim. Tebow, last year’s Heisman winner, is looking to build off a season where he threw and ran for over 20 touchdowns. Keeping him healthy should be Florida’s #1 priority. USC transfer Emmanuel Moody should start at running back and hopefully take some of the running load off of Tebow. Also Gator fans are really excited for Chris Rainey, the fastest Gator on the team, to touch the ball and use his speed in the open field.

On defense, the Gators do have some experience back in the secondary and that was a bit of a concern last season as they gave up 260 yards per game through the air. Like every SEC team, the Gators have a tough schedule. Their OOC games are home against Hawaii and Miami, and finishing the season against Florida State. The good part for the Gators is that they do not have tough stretches in their schedule like Georgia does. Their toughest one might be early on when they play Miami, at Tennessee, and the home against Ole Miss. If Tebow can stay healthy and the defense can tighten up, the Gators might be playing for their second title in three years.

3. Southern California Trojans - Year in and year out the Trojans have the talent to compete for a national title, and this year is no different. In 2007, their defense only gave up 16 points per game which was good for 2nd best in the country. Also, USC only gave up 84 yards on the ground and 190 yard through the air, and the unfortunate part for their opponents is that the core of their defense is back. Fili Moala, Brian Cushing, and Rey Maualuga are the key players back on defense that returns 7 starters from last season.

It is weird to say this but the Trojans’ weakness might be their offense. They still have questions on the offensive line and their receivers, although full of talent, are mainly unproven. Patrick Turner and Vidal Hazelton both have starting experience, but were not focal points of the offense. Questions are still surrounding quarterback Mark Sanchez and his ability to win the big games, even more now since he got injured and missed most of fall camp. Running backs Stafon Johnson and Joe McKnight should be playmakers for the offense. Besides games against Arizona State and Oregon, USC should have a realitively easy time in the Pac Ten. The game on September 13, when Ohio State comes to the Coliseum, will tell which of those two teams will be playing for the title in January.

2. Oklahoma Sooners - For the second year in a row the Sooners had a poor showing in the Fiesta Bowl, but with the talent they have returning, they should at least get back there for a third season. On both the offense and the defense, their lines are one of the best you will find in all of the country. Sophomore quarterback Sam Bradford should have plenty of time to throw and hopefully avoid that sophomore jinx that has plagued a few quarterbacks. DeMarco Murray will become the go to guy at running back while Juaquin Iglesias and Maneul Johnson are the top returning receivers.

If you are looking for a weakness with the Sooners, it might be at linebacker where Ryan Reynolds is the only returning starter. However, junior college transfer Mike Balogun has been drawing rave reviews and might put defensive coordinator Brent Venables in a tough situation because Balogun plays the same position as Reynolds, so does Venables play one of them out of position. The game circled for the Sooners is always the Red River Shootout with Texas. This year it is no different, but they might add November 22nd also to avenge last year’s loss to Texas Tech. If all goes well, they should be playing Missouri in the Big 12 championship game, for a chance to play in the BCS title game.

1. Ohio State Buckeyes - Go ahead and laugh, shake your head, call me an idiot, but this is Tressel’s best team out of his past two that went to the BCS title game. Their return 9 starters on offense and 8 on defense. Including Heisman Candidate Chris Wells and Mr Linebacker James Laurinaitis. Their receivers are quality with the Brian’s, Hartline and Robiskie, and tight end Rory Nicol. Their defense is stacked and as I said returns many starters from a team that gave up 12 points per game, 82 yards on the ground, 150 yards passing, and only 233 total yards per game. In three of those categories they were ranked #1 and the other they were #3.

The Buckeyes’ have two things working against them, one is that the media and most college football fans do not want them back in the title game. So unless they run the table, they will not be playing for a BCS title for the third year in a row. Secondly, I am not sure if Todd Boeckman is the man to carry this team to a title. He must be steady and mistake free, I know he will not win a game for you, but he certainly can lose one. One game will make or break their season, September 13 at Southern Cal. If they lose their, the best they will do is the Rose Bowl. A win against USC, leaves them with their toughest game at Wisconsin on October 4th.

[ITB Preseason 6-10]
[ITB Preseason 11-15]
[ITB Preseason 16-20]
[ITB Preseason 21-25]

10. Texas Longhorns - This year the Longhorns will find out if Colt McCoy just had a sophomore slump, or if he really has regressed in his development. Texas has no lack of talent on offense or defense, but it does have some holes to fill from departures. Their offensive line returns 4 of 5 and Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley are back to catch balls for McCoy.

A lot of Texas’ success lies directly on McCoy’s back. He has to protect the ball a bit better than last year and not try to carry the entire load of the team. The weak point in the Longhorns’ defense is their secondary. Fans are excited for new defensive coordinator Will Muschamp and they’ll get to see his revamped secondary at work when they play pass happy teams like UTEP, Rice, and Arkansas early on. Those are all games they should win, so it should get the young secondary some much needed practice before the tough slate of Colorado, Oklahoma, and Missouri hit in a row.

9. Clemson Tigers - I don’t think there is much doubt, that on paper, the Clemson Tigers are the best team in the ACC. They have two solid running backs, James Davis and CJ Spiller, two returning wide receivers, Aaron Kelly and Tyler Grisham, and the best quarterback in the ACC Cullen Harper. If the Tigers can get some blocking from their guys up front, this could be one of the most dangerous offenses in the country.

On defense they return 7 starters, with their entire secondary returning. Up front Ricky Sapp, Dorell Scott, and Rashaad Jackson anchor a defensive line and don’t forget about true freshman Da’Quan Bowers who has been turning heads at fall practice. We will see what the Tigers are made up of early when they play Alabama in Atlanta. After that, they really do not have a tough game until the end of September, early October with Maryland and Wake Forest. Wins there and there could be smooth sailing to the ACC Title game.

8. Auburn Tigers - This is a team that I think should be getting a lot more hype, but since Georgia, Florida, and LSU are media darlings, Auburn is flying a bit under the radar. They implemented the spread offense back in the bowl game with offensive coordinator Tony Franklin being the brains of it. Kodi Burns and Chris Todd will be fighting for the quarterback job with Brad Lester back as running back. Their line returns all five starters.

New defensive coordinator, Paul Rhodes, has experience defending spread offensive from his days at Pittsburgh, but now he has more talented players to run his schemes. Rhodes has a good core of 8 returning starters to build off of. The only place they are a little inexperienced is the defensive line. The Tigers schedule starts out slow, but the game against LSU on September 20th could go a long way in deciding who represents the SEC West in the title game. A game to keep an eye on is October 23rd at Morgantown. The Tigers hope that Paul Rhodes’ defense can shut down the WVU spread like he did with Pitt last season.

7. West Virginia Mountaineers - New coach Bill Stewart will have the same general philosophy as the old coach who I will not name. Pat White returns for his senior season, but it will be Noel Devine that lines up behind him, not Steve Slaton like in years past. The Mountaineers have 4 returning starters on the offensive line which should help make holes for their speedy backs.

On defense there are quite a few holes to fill as they only return 4 starters, but two of those starters, Mortty Ivy and Reed Williams were among the top tacklers for the Mountaineers last season. The Mountaineers are riding the high of another BCS bowl win. They hope to erase the heartache of the Pitt loss and start a new chapter under Bill Stewart. They have two tough non-conference games at Colorado and back home against Auburn. If they get past those I know they will be looking forward to revenge at Pittsburgh November 28th. The following week could be for the Big East title as they host South Florida.

6. Missouri Tigers - If you have been keeping track, this is the 3rd team named the Tigers in the rankings 6-10. The Missouri Tigers are led by Heisman Candidate Chase Daniel. Daniel mastered an offense that scored 39.9 points per game, threw for 314 ypg, and overall had 490 yards per game. They were ranked in the top ten in each category. Returning at wide out is the speedy Jeremy Maclin who had over 1000 yards receiving. Their offensive line is nothing to blink at either as tough Ryan Madison and Kurtis Gregory return to anchor it.

The Tigers’ defense wasn’t bad at all last year either, but if I were to nit pick, they do need to improve a bit on the pass defense. That shouldn’t be hard with 4 returning starters in the secondary and I guess the passing stats can be a little misleading since most teams were playing from behind against Missouri. The Tigers open up against Illinois, a team they should be able to handle. But keep an eye out in October when they play both Texas and Colorado. They end up the year in Kansas City against Kansas. If all goes well for Missouri fans they will be back in Kansas City the following week for the Big 12 title game.

[ITB Preseason 11-15]
[ITB Preseason 16-20]
[ITB Preseason 21-25]

Announcing the In The Bleachers Operation Pick’em Game

We are excited to announce a new feature here at In The Bleachers! In conjunction with FunOfficePools, we will be running a college football office pool. Let’s find out who is really the best prognosticator of the pigskin. Each week we’ll have about 8 games for you to pick - we’ll be picking the winners only - no spreads. We’ll be picking games that include the best matchups each week. Last year’s winner Lorena, will be looking to defend her title again.

The prizes I have so far are Ivan Maisel new book “The Maisel Report: College Football’s Most Overrated and Underrated Players, Coaches, Teams, and Traditions” and also the USA Today is sending me three books called The USA TODAY College Football Encyclopedia. I am in talks with a few other sponsors to get some more prizes.

To participate, just join our game . It’s completely free to play, and FunOfficePools.com is spam-free as well. The pool is open now to join, and first picks are due by August 28th - so sign up now. The pool will run the whole regular season, concluding on December 6th with, among other games, the conference championship games.

If you’ve already signed up, click here to go to the FunOfficePools main page and log in.

Pool Type: College Football Pick em.
Pool Name: In The Bleachers Operation Pick Em
Password: bleachers
Selection Name: [Insert Your Name]

The Big Ten is the conference under a lot of scrutiny for the quality of teams the past few years, and they are the topic of discussion in this week’s In The Bleachers Podcast. Jeff Brancolini brings another great Chopshop this weeks as he ranks the Big Ten based on the cities the schools are located.

Oops Pow Surprise from Black Heart Gold Pants spent 40 minutes on the show talking a lot about Iowa football, and how he comes up with such great sayings for Joe Paterno on his blog.

My next guest was Adam Nettina from the College Football News. Adam and I do a brief overview of the rest of the Big Ten and talk about teams in the middle of the pack fighting for bowl eligibility.

To listen to the episode you can download it here, or subscribe as laid out below.

Remember, if you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedbuner but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for “In The Bleachers” on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Enjoy this week’s episode of In The Bleachers and if you have any questions or comments to the show please email them to inthebleachers AT gmail DOT com.

Tonight on In The Bleachers Live, I have four people coming on to talk about my favorite BCS Conference, the Big Ten. Ohio State is the clear cut favorite, but we will find out what other teams could surprise us and maybe upset the Buckeyes and their chance for a share of at least the last 4 Big Ten Titles.

My first guest Adam Jacobi from Black Heart Gold Pants will be joining me around 9:25pm EST. I will ask him where he comes up with all the great Joe Pa material he posts on the site, and if we have time talk about the Iowa Football.

At 9:40pm EST, Brian Cook from MGOBLOG will call in. Brian is one of the first bloggers on the interwebs, and most importantly a Michigan fan. We’ll find out all about their new offense and maybe find out if Penn State can actually beat Michigan this year and break a 11 year drought against the Wolverines.

Finally at 9:55pm Adam Nettina comes on to talk about his favorite BCS Conference. Adam writes at College Football News and is always a great guest when he comes on the show.

Once again we will be using Talkshoe to do the live podcast. If you plan on being there, sign up for a username so I know who you are when you are in the chat room. It only takes a few seconds and it is free! The information for tonight’s live podcast is below:

In The Bleachers Live Podcast Link
When: 9:00 EST
Phone Number to Call In: (724) 444-7444
Talkcast ID: 81065

15. Brigham Young Cougars - BYU is the best Non-BCS team and I fully expect them to be playing in a BCS Bowl game in January. Their schedule is set up perfectly for it, with only a struggling UCLA and Washington in their non-conference schedule. The Cougars averaged 30 points per game and 442 yards per game in 2007. Bad news for their opponents is that BYU returns 8 starters on offense, including their quarterback Max Hall. Hall threw for over 3800 yards last year with 26 touchdowns while running back Harvey Unga ran for over 1200 with 13 touchdowns.

However on defense, BYU only returns 3 starters from a core that only gave up 18.5 points per game and 97 yards on the ground per game. If head coach Bronco Mendenhall can find quality players on defense, there is a legitimate chance that BYU can go 12-0. If they don’t go 12-0, they should still win at least 10 games. Entering the season BYU is on a 10 game winning streak, and a 16 game conference winning streak. The team’s motto this year is “quest for perfection”, and the Cougars definately have a chance to reach it.

14. Texas Tech Red Raiders - Every year I get fooled by Texas Tech. They start out the year ripping through their opponents, but then when they have to play a tough Big 12 team, they get stomped. Last year however, the Red Raiders did beat Oklahoma, which might show they are getting over the hump of losing to top tier teams. This team is stacked offensively. Quarterback Graham Harrell threw for 5700 yards and 48 touchdowns; most of them to sophomore Michael Crabtree who caught 22 of those touchdown passes for 1960 yards.

On defense they return 8 starters, which is great news for Tech fans. In my opinion, if they do not allow opponents to score over 24 points, there is no reason why this team cannot challenge for the Big 12 South Title. I think the Red Raiders should breeze through their first seven games (again) with maybe one speed bump along the way. But it will be the games at Kansas and home against Texas in consecutive weeks which will define the character of this team. Two wins there and it is all set for a November 22nd match up with Oklahoma for a chance to go to the Big 12 Title game.

13. Virginia Tech Hokies - The $100,000 question for the Hokies is, who will start at quarterback? From everything I have been reading, that question still does not have an answer. Both Sean Glennon and Tyrod Taylor have been inconsistent in camp, so it looks as if the Hokies will start the season with a two-quarterback system. With Glennon, I believe Tech needs to have a better running game, and the two fighting for the running back position now that Ore has been kicked off the team are Jahre Cheeseman and Kenny Lewis, Jr. Taylor can be the answer to all the Hokie prayers if he develops some consistency. He has the athletic ability to put fear in opponsing defense since players of the last name Vick.

With Zach Luckett’s recent DUI, the recievers have to do a bit of shuffling too. On defense they have to replace most of their front seven. But with injuries that took place last year, many of those starting this year got some quality playing time. In the secondary they are led by self proclaimed Heisman Candidate Victor Harris who had 5 interceptions last season and will be an important part of the Hokie return game. Virginia Tech should win their first 3 games, setting up a tough one at Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels are much improved and should put some pressure on the Hokies in the ACC Coastal Division.

12. Louisiana State Tigers - The defending BCS Champions have some holes to fill, but with strong past recruiting classes, the Tigers shouldn’t fall too far. The first hole is at quarterback where Jarrett Lee should begin season as the starter despite being held out of the last scrimmage due to back spasms. With Jacob Hester graduating, Keiland Williams, Charles Scott, and Richard Murphy will see time in the backfield. On a positive note, the Tigers return 4 of 5 starters on the offensive line.

On defense, LSU will be adjusting to a new coordinator that has to replace 7 starters. Ricky Jean-Francois, Tremaine Johnson, and Tyson Jackson all have played well in the fall and should help easy the pain from losing All American Glenn Dorsey. The Tigers start out at home in a much anticipated game against the FCS Champions Appalachian State. I don’t expect the Tigers to take them lightly. On September 20th, they open SEC play against Auburn which should be a great game. The inexperience Tigers must adapt quickly if they want to defend their SEC West title, because with their schedule, there is little room for growing pains.

11. Wisconsin Badgers - Every February when you check out the latest recruiting rankings, rarely do you see Wisconsin in the Top-20, but yet year after year they churn out quality teams in the Big Ten. This year will be no different for the Badgers who return 9 of 11 starters on offense led by running back PJ Hill Jr. Hill ran for 1200 yards last season and will benefit running behind an offensive line that is all back from 2007. No talk about their offense would not be complete without talking about tight end Travis Beckum who caught 75 balls for 982 yards and 6 touchdowns.

The only problem facing Bret Bielema and the Badgers offense is that they have five quarterbacks on the roster with a combined zero starts as a Badger. However, Allan Evridge, does have six starts under his belt while playing for Kansas State. On defense, the backfield must make up for lost time as many of them missed spring practice due to suspensions. Free safety Shane Carter had 7 interceptions last year and hopes to improve the Badger defense. Wisconsin starts out slow, but travels to California to play Fresno State the third game of the year. They have a tough three week stretch of Big Ten play going to Michigan, then home against Ohio State and Penn State, all in consecutive weeks. Running the table there would almost guarantee them at least a share of the Big Ten Championship.

[ITB Preseason 16-20]
[ITB Preseason 21-25]


1. Appalachian State (97)
2. North Dakota State (1)
3. Northern Iowa
4. Richmond
5. Massachusetts
6. James Madison (3)
7. Eastern Washington
8. Montana
9. Delaware
10. McNeese State
11. Southern Illinois
12. Youngstown State
13. Wofford
14. Cal Poly
15. Elon
16. New Hampshire
17. Georgia Southern
18. Eastern Illinois
19. South Dakota State
20. Eastern Kentucky
21. Villanova
22. Central Arkansas
23. The Citadel
24. Harvard
25. Western Illinois



Others receiving votes: Northern Arizona 249, Fordham 212, Delaware State 198, Jacksonville State 195, Yale 170, Sam Houston State 166, Montana State 146, Furman 120, Liberty 115, Jackson State 79, South Carolina State 76, Holy Cross 74, Hofstra 61, Colgate 56, Grambling 55, Norfolk State 48, Coastal Carolina 44, Hampton 41, Southern 32, Northwestern State 30, Tennessee-Martin 30, UC Davis 22, Weber State 17, Lafayette 16, Alabama A&M 10, Texas Southern 9, Brown 9, Nicholls State 9, Dayton 6, Tennessee State 5, San Diego 4, Albany 4, Maine 1, Prairie View 1.


Yesterday I released my Top 21 to 25; today I will continue with the countdown and bring you 16 through 20.

20. Oregon Ducks - This is a team that I have ranked a bit lower than most of the polls and magazines out. The Ducks lost both Dennis Dixon and Jonathan Stewart to the draft, and watching them last year without Dixon, was like watching a totally different team. Right now Oregon has six quarterbacks on their roster that have combined for two career starts. Justin Roper looks like he is edging out Nate Costa as the starting quarterback. If you remember Roper led the Ducks in their Sun Bowl victory over South Florida.

The strength should be in the defensive backfield led by cornerbacks Jairus Byrd and Walter Thurmond III. At the ends of the line, Oregon should be tough, but without much depth on the defensive line, they could be in trouble with a few injuries. Their first game is a Pac 10 game against the Huskies. In week three the Ducks travel to play Purdue which should be a good game of two teams looking to get over the hump in the court of public opinions. October is a bit brutal for Oregon as they play at USC, UCLA, and at Arizona State.

19. Penn State Nittany Lions - One month ago I would have had the Nittany Lions ranked a bit higher, but after the dismissal of Chris Baker and Philip Taylor and now the injury to Devon Still, the defensive line went from their strength, to one more injury away from a critical situation. On the other side of the ball, all five offensive linemen return to make holes for Evan Royster and to protect either Pat Devlin or Daryll Clark at quarterback. Neither have much game experience with Clark playing a few snaps in the Alamo Bowl and Devlin throwing 1 collegian pass. Luckily for whomever the quarterback is, they will have three, four year veterans at wide receiver.

Inexperience at the quarterback and running back are an issue and so is replacing Sean Lee at linebacker. My biggest concern for Penn State is their ability to put together a coaching plan that will attack their opposition. In big games, Penn State plays not to lose instead of playing to win, especially on the road. The Nittany Lions have not won on the road against a Top 25 opponent since 2002 against Wisconsin. This season they have Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Purdue on the road. That stat will have to change if they want to contend for a Big Ten Title.

18. Arizona State Sun Devils - Second year coach Dennis Erikson has been notorious for being better the second year at a school than the first. If that’s the case, Sun Devil fans should be elated to improve on a 10-3 record in 2007. Quarterback Rudy Carpenter is back after throwing for 3200 yards and 25 touchdowns. Joining him in the backfield is running back Keegan Herring. On defense, much of their front seven returns from a defense that only gave up 110 yards per game on the ground.

The one big question mark looming around Arizona State is if they found the formula to block for Rudy Carpenter. Last season Carpenter was sacked 55 times by the end of the year and unfortunately, Arizona State must find three starters from last year to replace on that porous line. On defense, the Sun Devils only return two starters in the defensive backfield. With teams like Georgia and USC on their schedule they must get ready to defend the pass.

17. Kansas Jayhawks - Kansas was most likely the surprise team of the year in 2007. They do have 15 starters returning combined on offense and defense but they will not sneak up on teams, and have a much tougher schedule than last season. Todd Reesing and the Jayhawks will score points. Reesing will have targets Dexton Fields and Dezmon Briscoe back to throw to, but will have to break in a new running back.

The defense returns a lot of starters too, but if you look at the last month of the season, they began to show kinks in their armor giving up more than 20 points in 4 of their last 5 games. As I said the schedule is much tougher in 2008. They have to play both Oklahoma and Texas unlike last year. Also included are South Florida, Missouri, and Texas Tech. Kansas will go bowling, but I feel they won’t come close to their 12-1 record in 2007.

16. Tennessee Volunteers - Jonathan Crompton takes over the reigns at quarterback from Erik Ainge and he has to be elated that all five starting offensive lineman are returning from a core that only gave up 4 sacks all of last season. Crompton does have some starting experience filling in for Ainge, but he also has a quality back in Arian Foster to take some of the load off. On defense, the Vols looked stacked in the secondary, which is always a good sign when you play in the SEC.

Overall, I think this season could ride on Crompton’s shoulders. Is he able to carry his weight on offense and protect the ball? If the answer is yes, the Vols could go back to their second SEC Championship game in as many years. As far as the schedule goes, they will be tested early with UCLA (away), Florida, and Auburn (away) in their first four games. If they can win two out of three there, they should be extremely happy and set for a showdown at Georgia on the 11th of October.