A breakdown of OU’s quarterbacks and how Ryan Aber voted in the AP football poll,
The top two spots were easy. After that, things became much more difficult.
Despite how Alabama fans probably feel about me after I voted the Crimson Tide No. 2 instead of in the top spot, where I had UCF.
This time, though, Alabama was a clear No. 1 and Clemson in my mind was a clear No. 2.
Both have too much firepower returning to have much lower than that.
After that, the next group was really intriguing.
Wisconsin is a trendy pick to finish high and it’s easy to see why, with running back Jonathan Taylor and a great offensive line.
After the Badgers at No. 3, I went with Oklahoma at No. 4. Sure the Sooners are replacing one of the most dynamic college quarterbacks in recent memory, and their defense has questions, but the schedule is favorable overall and the stable of running backs and receivers they have returning figures to give them a very potent offense yet again. Next, I went with Georgia. The Bulldogs lost plenty of starters from last year’s defense that helped lift them to the national title game, plus they lost a lot of firepower at running back.
The rest of the way, I had a few outliers from the preseason poll.
The most notable was having Mississippi State unranked while the Bulldogs were at No. 18 in the poll.
I went back and forth on Mississippi State. I wonder if Joe Moorhead will be able to deliver a big offensive improvement in Starkville immediately, and they have a really tough six-game stretch of games from the end of September to early November where they play Florida, Auburn, LSU, Texas A&M and Alabama (plus Louisiana Tech).
I’m quick to make changes, though, and don’t buy into the theory that if a team wins, they must maintain ranking and if they lose, they automatically drop a few spots. I’ll be watching Mississippi State closely and won’t be afraid to jump them up if they earn it with their early performances.
I also had Notre Dame and USC ranked well below what most did. I’m just not sold on either the Fighting Irish or the Trojans right now.
Three ranked teams weren’t in my poll — Texas, Oregon and LSU. I’d be surprised if a couple of those weren’t ranked pretty quick, but I’m still surprised at the love the Longhorns get from voters.
They’ve got to prove to me they’re for real before I’ll buy in.