Next on my Top 25 preseason college football rankings

Published 2:23 pm Friday, August 2, 2019

Welcome back to the next installment of my Top 25 college football preseason rankings. In my last two columns, I discussed my personal Top 10. Today I’m going to run through Nos. 11-15.

Again, I would like to insert a disclaimer: I am not an expert analyst. My list can be picked apart, you might disagree with the order and I might be completely off base. But hey, it’s a fun way to talk about football right here at before we finally kick off the 2019 season.

Let’s go.

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11. Texas A&M – Jimbo Fisher is a proven national championship-winning coach. Combined with his experience and growing prowess on the recruiting trail, the Aggies are likely to improve from their last season. Quarterback Kellen Mond showed flashes of talent last season, and I think he will command an improved offense that will score a lot of points. Texas A&M is in the toughest division in college football, though, so Saturdays won’t be a cake walk by any means.

12. Oregon – I am a big fan of Mario Cristobal. He is a Nick Saban disciple bringing some much-needed ground-and-pound football to the typical aired-out Pac 12 conference. He also has been making waves on the recruiting trail despite the difficulty of getting kids to want to come to the rainy campus on Eugene. It could also be the uniforms, but that’s another story. The Ducks season opener against Auburn will reveal the moxy of this team ahead of a relatively smooth conference schedule. Playoff contender? Probably not, but I’m eager to be proven wrong on this one.

13. Penn State – The Nittany Lions don’t have quarterback Trace McSorley anymore, but I am confident coach James Franklin will have his next man, Sean Clifford, ready for the season. The second half of the season features hosting Michigan and traveling to Ohio State. I see the ceiling for this Penn State team hovering around 10 games.

14. Washington – The West Coast Dawgs will be led by former Georgia quarterback Jacob Eason, who has a cannon arm and flashed moments of brilliance during his time in Athens. I am excited to see the development he has received since then. The Huskies defense looks like it will be a little bit shaky this season, or else I would have them a little higher.

15. Wisconsin – I love the Baders’ affinity for large linemen and large kickers. There’s something about the thought of a football team fed only brats and Wisconsin cheese that gets me excited for football season. All jokes aside, Wisconsin shouldn’t have as easy a time in their Big 10 division as previous seasons. The Badgers need stars to emerge in all positions to help push them to the conference championship game.

Join me next issue, where I’ll review my Nos. 16-25. See you then!