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2007 NCAA College Football Top 25 Preview
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NCAA Top 25 - 1-10
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Fearless Rick's 2007 NCAA Top 25
Rick Gagliano | 8/03/2007
NCAA TOP 25 - Predicted order of finish
With the most dynamic offense in college football, the defense sometimes gets overlooked, but they are a capable group which will be better with experience.
The defense might be better than last season's, with 7 starters returning from a squad that led the Big Ten in points allowed per game and yards allowed per game. After a 12-1 season in 2007, including a 17-14 win over Arkansas in the Capital One Bowl, the Badgers are seeking perfection.
Their key matchups include an October 13 date at Penn State and the November 10 home game against Michigan.
Key matchups for the Tigers include an early home game with Virginia Tech, largely considered to be the best in the ACC. On October 6, Florida comes to play, followed in two weeks by Auburn on October 20. The season finale at Arkansas ought to be a doozy.
The adjustment for USC is to the new demands of offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, who will use the shotgun and some other new sets.
The class of the PAC-10, USC has a number of key games, both early and late, beginning with a Sept. 15 tilt at Nebraska and a pair of games on back-to-back weekends against Oregon State on Nov. 3 and a Nov. 10 matchup at California, before closing out the season December 1st against crosstown rival UCLA.
The Big East is loaded this season, as South Florida and UConn continue to improve their programs, but the Mountaineers, Rutgers and Louisville are clearly the class of the conference. WVA's first real test comes on Sept. 29 at South Florida. Later in the season they get a nice break in the schedule with an Oct. 27 game at Rutgers, followed by a Saturday off preceeding the nationally-televised Nov. 8 tilt with Louisville. If the Mountaineers survive those games, they could coast to a national championship seeding, but Louisville beat them last season and will be favored once again.
The Wolverines lost some key players on defense, especially in the secondary, though they have solid players ready to fill the void. After the way they were torched by both Ohio State and USC at the season's end, maybe the pass defenders weren't all they were hyped up to be. This group could congeal better and produce turnovers and field position.
Mighigan will be at or near the top of the rankings all season, as their two biggest games come at the end of the season - Nov. 10 at Wisconsin and Nov. 17, when they host Ohio State. It's a down year for the Buckeyes, but those rivalry games are always tough to get through.
But it was the Gator defense that really captured the championship. Ohio State was unable to generate much offense against the #6 defense in the country as measured by both yards and points allowed. Coach Urban Meyer will have the sensational Tim Tebow running the spread offense and Percy Harvin in the tailback slot. While the Gators will be replacing 9 starters on defense, they may not be quite as good, though the system allows them to excel and Meyer has some solid recruits. It's doubtful that the Gators can get through the rugged SEC schedule without a loss, but they're still one of the two or three teams to beat.
That may be a problem this season as the onus is clearly on running back Brandon Ore, who was just about a one-man gang last year. The Hokies must get some contributions from QB Ike Whitaker and his seasoned receiving corps. As it's a down year in the ACC, the biggest games come at the end of the season as the Hokies finish with Boston College, at Georgia Tech, Miami, Florida State and at Virginia, though an early Sept. 8 game at LSU remains the key roadblock to an undefeated season.
The Longhorns have arguably the best defense in the Big 12, which provides a great advantage. In this very competitive conference, all of the games are big, but the Texas A&M and Oklahoma games look like the ones to watch.
The Big 12 is all over the map, but coach Bob Stoopes has the experience to put together a winning squad. The Sooners don't play Nebraska, though they may meet them in the Big 12 title game. They should have enough firepower from a variety of quarterbacks, running backs and receivers to overwhelm just about anyone in their way. The defense may not be the best around, but the conference is pretty wide open this year.
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1. Louisville - new coach Steve Kragthorpe had great success at Tulsa - three bowl games in four years - and he has the probable Heisman Trophy winner in quarterback Brian Brohm, who is set to shatter most, if not all, of Johnny Unitas' records. The Cardinals should make it through the regular season with no more than one loss, and possibly go undefeated. If the latter, the National Championship game will be in their sights.
2. Wisconsin - Tyler Donovan will liely step into the shoes of John Stocco, a three-year QB for the Badgers, but he'll have plenty of support, with 9 offensive starters returning. Wisconsin may have the most balanced attack in the nation with tight end Travis Beckum working inside senior receivers Paul Hubbard and Luke Swan, and soph P.J. Hill, who rushed for 1,569 yards as a freshman.
3. LSU - JaMarcus Russell is history, so the QB position is all Matt Flynn's. With the weapons he has around him, plus maybe the best defense in the nation, Flynn should handle the SEC opposition well. He'll be looking to one of the top pro prospects, Early Doucet, in key situations. The Tigers are loaded with talented prospects though they'll be hard-pressed to get through the entire SEC schedule unscathed.
4. USC - The quarterback factory otherwise known as USC keeps humming with John David Booty back for his second season at the helm. He'll have less than the full complement of receivers, as All-American Dwayne Jarrett has moved on to the next level. Patrick Turner will be the most visible target, though the Trojans have enough high-value prospects on their squad that some will surely step into a starring role.
5. West Virginia - Steve Slaton and Patrick White return for another season, much to the delight of head coach Rich Rodriguez, who has had the span of two years to build a defense that can complement his high-powered offense. The Mountaineers will score points in bunches, as usual, though this season, they will try to limit opponent's passing attacks. All starters from the secondary return, though they were not the most reliable bunch, so maybe some new blood will be injected. Safety Franchot Allen could be the key to how the defense performs.
6. Michigan - After an 11-2 season in which they lost to only Ohio State and Southern Cal, Lloyd Carr and his troops are ready to finally challenge for a national chapionship. QB Chad Henne, RB Mike Hart and WR Mario Manningham all return for what figures to be a memorable season.
7. Florida - With Florida demolishing Ohio State for the national championship last season, the Gators look to repeat as did their brothers in the basketball program. It's not going to be easy, however, as many of Florida's players have moved on to the next level, most notably, quarterback Chris Leak.
8. Virginia Tech - The outright class of the ACC, the Hokies should have little trouble taking the title. It figures to be a very emotional season at Va. Tech and the coaching staff must try to work that to their best advantage. Defense is the key to success at Blacksburg, and the Hokies were #1 last season in yards allowed per game. The Hokies have the kind of players and system to methodically shut down all aspects of an opponent's game and leave the game for the offense to win.
9. Texas - The Lonhorns are no way as good as the one Vince Young took to a national championship in 2005-06, but they will return 13 of 22 starters, and Colt McCoy will be a year older and smarter at QB. He has an experienced duo in Limas Sweed and Quan Cosby at wide receiver and a speedy running back in Jamaal Charles.
10. Oklahoma - The Sooners return 8 players on offense and 6 on defense, but have big shoes to fill at quarterback and running back. Coming off an 11-3 season, they're looking to move up into a bigger post-season bowl, though their performance in the 43-42 Fiesta Bowl loss to Boise State was an instant classic and branded the Sooners as a top notch program, win or lose.
