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T-Thugs Ballot for 2025 Preseason

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Aug. 14, 2025, 9:59 a.m.

Overall Rationale: Preseason i base on who i think will be good. Once the games start, I throw out my preseason rankings and start from scratch each week based on team's resumes.

Rank Team Reason
1 Ohio State Buckeyes I generally believe the reigning champs should be preseason number 1, especially because I don't really put any weight in my preseason rankings as soon as there are real games to use to rank teams. Ohio State's offense should still be pretty nasty, and if they have even mediocre qb play they're gonna be a beast to deal with. If they beat Texas to open the season, they'll stay here for sure.
2 Texas Longhorns Texas has super high expectations with the keys being handed to Arch. We'll see if they are legit week 1. A win would put them in my top spot.
3 Clemson Tigers Clemson brings back basically their whole team from last year with a playoff roster. Klubnik should be one of the best QBs in football and they're gonna be tough to beat. A win over LSU in week 1 would lock their spot near the top of my poll.
4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish ND has some question marks at QB but brings back a boatload of players from last year's national championship runner ups. A big road test week 1 at Miami will determine if the Irish belong near the top.
5 Penn State Nittany Lions Penn State brings back a whole bunch of players from last year's final 4 team. They probably won't be ranked anywhere near the top of my rankings once the games start because they schedule like wimps and don't play a real game til week 4. A win over Oregon would probably shoot them back up though.
6 Georgia Bulldogs Georgia seems like they're in a place where they always reload and are very tough. I thought Gunner Stockton actually played pretty well in the Sugar Bowl and they should be a tough team again this year.
7 LSU Tigers LSU has high expectations and they say a boatload of talent. The fans seem very excited about Nussmeier. If they can pull off a win in week 1 at Clemson, they'll probably lock up a spot near the top of my poll.
8 Arizona State Sun Devils ASU has high hopes coming off a playoff appearance last year. They're the team to beat in the Big 12.
9 Alabama Crimson Tide Alabama is another team that basically is always good. Their defense should be nasty. Lots of questions if the offense can put it together after a tough year last year.
10 Miami Hurricanes Miami could compete with Clemson in the ACC if Beck is the guy they hope he is. Big test week 1 vs Notre Dame could shoot them up into the top 3-4.
11 Oregon Ducks Oregon is another team that generally reloads. Coming off a Big Ten championship season, we'll see if they can play with Ohio State again this year.
12 South Carolina Gamecocks South Carolina has a lot of hype on their season. Is this the year that they can take a big step up to be a true competitor and a playoff team?
13 Michigan Wolverines Michigan is hard to rank. At times last year they seemed like they were a force (beating Ohio State, Alabama) and at times they seemed pretty mediocre. I honestly have no idea what to expect this year. QB play is a big question mark. We'll know a lot more about what Michigan has going for them in week 2 vs Oklahoma.
14 SMU Mustangs SMU had a surprising year last year running to the ACC title game and making the playoffs. They seem like they're in good position to compete again this year, though I don't believe they can compete with Clemson, we shall see.
15 Kansas State Wildcats The Big 12 is a mess to rank preseason. I feel like there's a bunch of teams that could win the conference and make the playoffs or also go like 6-6 and it wouldn't surprise me. Kansas State presumably should compete for the Big 12 title. I'm excited to see them in week 0 as they highlight the day. Could get a big jump up in my early rankings with a win over Iowa State.
16 Illinois Fighting Illini Illinois has high hopes coming off of a 10 win season. Are they legit? They've got some early tests with Duke and then Indiana.
17 Indiana Hoosiers Indiana is hard to know exactly what to expect. They had a nice year last year obviously making the playoffs. Like Penn State, they'll probably be low in my rankings if I rank them at all the first few weeks until they play a game that isn't embarrassing.
18 Ole Miss Rebels Ole Miss I don't know a lot about this year. I've got belief that they'll continue to be pretty good under Kiffin and that has them ranked for me preseason.
19 Iowa State Cyclones Iowa State is another weird big 12 team where I could see them winning the conference or going 6-6. Who knows? Luckily we get to find out what this team is made of in week 0 and they could jump way up into my top 10 with a win.
20 Boise State Broncos Boise State is coming off a playoff appearance. They seem to dominate the Mountain West and there's not much indication they won't again this year. (unless UNLV is legit.) They're my early favorite for the G5 bid to the playoffs.
21 Tennessee Volunteers Tennessee has some work to do on reloading. Unknown what they'll get from QB after the weird offseason with Nico. They're still coming off a playoff appearance though and should be at least decent. We'll know if they're good in week 3 when they play Georgia.
22 Texas Tech Red Raiders They're spending. Will the results on the field match?
23 Florida Gators There's a lot of hope in Gainesville. Hard to know exactly what they've got.
24 Oklahoma Sooners Oklahoma has high hopes after bringing in some new offensive weapons from the portal. Cant be worse on offense than last year.
25 Texas A&M Aggies If you go 8-4 you're probably right around #25.

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