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gohuskies Ballot for 2016 Preseason

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Aug. 30, 2016, 7:55 a.m.

Overall Rationale: A few teams that just missed: VT, TCU, USC, Nebraska, Texas A&M, Arkansas

Rank Team Reason
1 Clemson Tigers Really talented team + best QB in the country usually makes for a pretty good team.
2 LSU Tigers Veteran, loaded, Harris will improve, and Fournette is a stud. I think they squeak by Bama at home en route to an SEC championship.
3 Alabama Crimson Tide They're Alabama. Went back and forth on them or LSU but I'd pick LSU to win their matchup with home field and more experience coming back. Still an outstanding team.
4 Michigan Wolverines Harbaugh harbaugh Harbaugh harbaugh harbaugh harbaugh Harbaugh harbaugh.
5 Florida State Seminoles Question mark at QB is the only thing holding this team back. The entire O-line coming back will help that process.
6 Oklahoma Sooners As long as Baker Mayfield stays healthy, I think they curbstomp the rest of the Big 12.
7 Ohio State Buckeyes Lots of talent out the door but there's plenty of guys waiting in the wings. I trust Urban Meyer to put together another very good team. OSU is the last team in the top tier.
8 Tennessee Volunteers I'll take a gallon of the neon orange Kool-Aid. They're going to be very good and have no real weaknesses.
9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish They're going to have an incredible offense. Run defense wasn't great last year and it doesn't look to have improved. But they can put up points with anyone.
10 UCLA Bruins Josh Rosen is really good, and they're chock-full of talent at the skill positions. Renewed commitment to the run game will make for a more efficient offense.
11 Stanford Cardinal Lots of turnover on the O-Line, new QB, and a brutal schedule scare me a little bit. But Shaw has answered these questions before, so he gets the benefit of the doubt. They still have McCaffrey and an outstanding defense to lean on.
12 Louisville Cardinals I <3 Lamar Jackson. I think they knock off one of FSU/Clemson.
13 Ole Miss Rebels I don't really know what to do with them. I can see Ole Miss running the table on the way to the playoff, and I can see them absolutely imploding and playing in something like the Idaho Potato Bowl. Here feels like a good spot.
14 Michigan State Spartans One of the top defenses in the nation, but who knows on offense. If they can get decent QB play they can win the Big Ten, and even if not that defense will keep them in every game.
15 Georgia Bulldogs Sure, here seems good for Georgia. They'll be moving around a bunch anyways with early games against UNC, Ole Miss, and Tennessee. Gun to my head, I say they are 2-3 after the Tennessee game but they could easily be 5-0 too.
16 Washington Huskies This feels about right. Great defense, improving offense, and a contender for the Pac-12 title. My heart says 10-2 and my head says 9-3.
17 Oregon Ducks Still won 9 games last year with a god-awful defense. As long as Prukop is servicable and Hoke improves the defense just a bit, they have too much talent to not have another pretty good season. Right below UW because they can go fuck themselves.
18 Oklahoma State Cowboys Young, talented, improving, and the schedule sets up really nicely for OSU - their toughest games are late in the season and at home. If anyone's going to knock off Oklahoma, it's OSU at home during Bedlam.
19 Iowa Hawkeyes Not going to go 12-0 again, but they return a lot of the same pieces from last year too.
20 Houston Cougars This might be a little low. I just don't quite trust Houston - we'll see how they do against Oklahoma.
21 Baylor Bears Still really good. We'll see how the offseason impacts the football team - they have as high a ceiling and as low a floor as anyone.
22 North Carolina Tar Heels Good offense and they return a lot. Just a touch better than VT and Miami. My fingers are tired from typing.
23 Utah Utes Troy Williams is not a very good quarterback. But that's okay, because Utah plays well even without a good QB. They'll have the best lines in the Pac-12 and will grind out a lot of wins.
24 Boise State Broncos Brett Rypien is a stud. Defense needs to improve from an injury-riddled season last year but if they do, Boise could easily be the G5 NY6 representative.
25 Washington State Cougars Luke Falk is really, really good (70% completion percentage last year!). Front 7 is almost all new - we will see how their run D holds up - the secondary looks pretty solid. I don't know if last year was fluky or not, but the Pac-12 North race should be exciting!

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