Preseason BlogPoll Ballot

By Corey Carpenter on August 24, 2009 at 1:30p

The preseason BlogPoll was due today and below is our ballot. During the season, the final ballot won't be due until Wednesday, so we will put a draft up on Monday and let you tell us where we are complete idiots. The complete listing of ballots and overall results can be seen over here at CBSSports.com.

Since it is such a crap shoot after the first 4 teams, we passed this ballot around internally and I was quite surprised with the varying opinions regarding teams like Ole' Miss, Cal, Notre Dame, Oregon and LSU. Below is a collection of our thoughts on where each team should be, so let us know what you think.

Update: We just learned this morning of technical difficulties regarding the poll set-up, so now we can take your opinions into account and resubmit a ballot by Wednesday.

1 A no brainer. Return 18 starters, including all 11 on defense and of course are lead by Tim Tebow. Toughest road game is at LSU, plus Georgia in Jacksonville, while Tennessee, Arkansas and FSU all visit the Swamp.
2 Another no brainer. They return 16 starters, including 9 on offense. Toughest stretch is in October, where they play Oklahoma in Dallas and then travel to Missouri and Oklahoma State.
3 The Sooners have to replace 4 starters on the offensive line, but return 9 starters on defense. With Sam Bradford back and their top 3 RB's, this offense should be explosive once again. The Oct. 17th date with Texas looms large.
4 Hopefully will only be here for a few weeks, but 9 offensive starters return, including their entire 2 depp on the line. Will be breaking in a new QB, but they return plenty of fire power in the backfield. 3 of first 5 are on the road, including OSU and Cal.
5 Could be a paper tiger here, but they return 16 starters and don't have Florida or Georgia on the schedule. They also get LSU, Alabama and Arkansas at home. 3 of the first 4 are on the road, but 6 of last 8 are at home.
6 15 starters return off a 9-4 team, including RB Jahvid Best and QB Kevin Riley. Tough stretch starting game 3, where they travel to Minnesota, then to Oregon before coming home to face USC.
7 Will have to replace leadng rusher and passer, but have 9 starters back on D and Julio Jones on offense. Face V. Tech to start season, but miss Florida and Georgia and get LSU at home.
8 Tempted to drop them lower after the performance we saw at Saturday's scrimmage, but the D-Line will be a force and TP is a difference maker. Also, can't justify putting any teams behind them in the top 8.
9 Only 9 starters return off last year's Rose Bowl team, but they get the services of Sean Lee back to compliment Navorro Bowman. Evan Royster will carry the load at RB, but they need to replace 3 WR's and 3 OL. Weak OOC schedule helps the cause.
10 Offense will be something special with Zac Robinson and crew, returning 7 starters off a team that averaged 41 points a game. Open the season with Georgia at home, but also get Mizzou, Texas and T. Tech in Stillwater.
11 Return 15 starters, but need to replace Moreno and Stafford. Schedule is tough, with OOC games against Oklahoma St., Arizona State (home) and at Georgia Tech to end the season. Richt seems to do best when all the pressure is not on him.
12 The Tigers return 14 starters and play a tough road slate, including Washington, Georgia, Alabama and Ole' Miss. The Hat has his top 4 rushers, 2 passers and 3 of 4 WR's back, to go along with his top 4 tacklers.
13 Return 16 starters, including 9 on offense. However, they took a hit when leading rusher Darren Evans tore a knee ligament early in camp. OOC shcedule is tough, opening with 'Bama, Marshall, Nebraska and then start conference play with Miami, all before October.
14 Have 11 starters coming back off a team that went 11-1. Will have to replace top rusher and 3 of 4 wideouts, but do return QB Kellen Moore, who completed 69% of his passes for 3486 yards last year, as a freshman. Open next Thursday at home against Oregon.
15 We still don't believe the hype, although they return 9 starters on offense and have an easier than usual schedule. Only 1 ranked team (USC) appears on their slate of games, but until they prove something on the field, we won't pay attention.
16 Only 13 starters return overall, but their offense should be one of the conference's best. Start off with Missouri, but have a bye week before playing Ohio State. Finish the season at Cincinnati and home against Fresno State.
17 We had to put a Big East team in here and the Scarlet Knights won by default. 13 starters return and their OOC is weak, with Howard, FIU, Maryland, Army and Texas Southern. Open against Cincinnati on Labor Day.
18 Probably won't be here for long, as they open with Oklahoma and face Florida State 2 weeks later. However, they return 8 starters on defense and their top RB and QB from last year.
19 Have reached double digit wins in 5 of the last 7 seasons. Return just 10 starters and travel to Virginia and Clemson before September is over. They also return their top RB and QB from a year ago.
20 Still need to see who the QB and RB will be, but 15 other starters are back, including 8 on defense. Travel to Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Illinois, but get UM, Iowa and PSU at home, plus they don't face Ohio State.
21 The Hawkeyes return 14 starters, including 8 on defense, from last year's 9-4 team. Iowa gets an early test with Arizona traveling to Iowa City and then they go to Penn State. Other road games are at Whisky, MSU and OSU.
22 The Ducks welcome in new head coach Chip Kelly with 9 returning starters and a tough schedule. The season starts at Boise, then Purdue, Utah and Cal come to Eugene. They also get USC and Oregon State at home.
23 15 starters return from their 9-4 team last year, but they are still lead by The Wannstache and as long as he is at the helm, they'll never reach expectations. Should compete for Big East title with Rutgers and WVU.
24 Another team that enters by default due to the uneven divisions in the B12. 13 starters return from a 9-4 team and minus the V.Tech game, their OOC schedule is weak. They miss Texas and get Oklahoma at home.
25 This is our wild card team, with 14 starters back from a 7-6 team. Their top 5 RB's return, along with QB Colin Kaepernick, who ran for over 1100 and passed for 2849. They open the season in South Bend, so there is another reason we root for them.

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