College Football Week 1 Power Rankings

The temperature is about to get cooler. Before you know it, the leaves will start to fall from the trees. They are signs of the Fall and college football season. The dust is beyond cleared from the near romp of LSU by Alabama in the National Title Game in January. The rematch did not live up to the hype of the first contest. But, that is then and this is now. Alabama has lost multiple key players in that game. LSU will be without arguably their best athlete a year ago. However, the SEC still looks to be a dominant force like previous years. Besides Alabama and LSU; Arkansas, Georgia, and South Carolina can pose a threat to the ultimate crown this season. Out west, USC and Oregon will look to change the recent SEC dominance and Florida State and Virginia Tech out of the ACC will hope to make similar noise. Lastly, up the middle will come Oklahoma and Texas; familiar Big 12 favorites. While Michigan and Michigan State will provide some conversation from the Big Ten. Not all will be serious threats at the end of the day, but on Day 1; everyone is 0-0. With all that said, time to kick off the season with initial rankings.

1) Alabama- They might have lost talent, but still have a lot of it. There has been no repeat BCS Champion and that will only make the climb that much harder.
2) LSU- No Honey Badger. No major problem. They will miss him, but still are loaded. Offensive questions will need to be answered early if they are to return to the title game.
3) USC- It is hard to argue against the talent. Possible Heisman winner QB Matt Barkley will hope to finish the job for the Trojans after 2 years of waiting to be free of NCAA violation bans.
4) Oregon- Oregon has come up short 2 years in a row in terms of either winning it all or getting there. USC will likely be their only major obstacle and the two teams could provide two classics this year if everything aligns.
5) Oklahoma- Under Bob Stoops, they have continued to usually reload, but make little mistakes or suffer major injuries. They should have a pretty favorable path again to try to run the table with experience and talent.
6) Florida State- In the 1990s, there were probably few teams as dominant as the Seminoles. A rough decade of the early 2000s might be about to finally lead to a return to glory. They have one of the most talent athletes at quarterback in E.J. Manuel and a fairly soft conference for them to make multiple statements.
7) Georgia- The SEC's fog-like team. They have had talent with players like NFL stars Matthew Stafford or A.J. Green. But, they have struggled in the win column in a tough conference. They look prepared to try to break that curse and challenge Alabama and LSU and emerge the best in the SEC.
8) Arkansas- They have been on the rise and have a favorable schedule in terms of home-away games with tough SEC opponents. They have been under the radar and could make some noise. They have been close like Georgia at times.Can they finish the deal?
9) Michigan State- Gritty. That might be one of the best ways to describe this team. They win close games. They come from behind. They might be ready to take the next major step this eyar.
10) South Carolina- The fifth best SEC team could potentially rise to the top with some luck and big games. They have talent at the running back position with HB Mark Lattimore and Coach Steve Spurrier keeps the team focused each year.
11) Wisconsin- HB Monte Ball could be a Heisman contender again and this bruising style will guide the offense again as they hope to dodge both Michigan schools and any other potential traps.
12) Michigan- QB Denard Robinson might finally launch himself to the Heisman stage by staying healthy and putting up some big numbers like he showed glimpses of the past two years.
13) Virginia Tech- Death, taxes, and Virginia Tech. Things that are certain. Frank Beamer has the team competing for 10 wins most years. They have had some rough starts recently to end strong. A full season of strong performances could keep them in the title talk.
14) West Virginia- A new conference, new challenges, and a new year. That outlook and the talent of QB Geno Smith could showcase what role the Mountaineers will play in the national conversation.
15) Oklahoma State- They may be without their top quarterback and wide receiver from the last couple years, but the team has shown an ability to shake things up in the conventional Oklahoma-Texas world of the conference.
16) Clemson- They are a team that rose up big time last year. Can they correct some of the mistakes from last year? They can certainly win the ACC if they do.
17) Nebraska- They have stud athletes at some key spots on the field and if they hit hard early, they can shake up the Big Ten in their favor.
18) Texas- Youth has been the major issue the last two years. Can that turn into an advantage as they go full speed ahead in the Big 12?
19) Stanford- They will see some drop off without QB Andrew Luck, but don't be surprised if they cause some damage outside of USC and Oregon in the Pac-12.
20) TCU- A new conference, but a very similar team. They will see how they can handle running in a tougher conference.
21) Boise State- Back to that Virginia Tech argument. Boise State for much of the last decade is good for 10 wins. They open the year again with a marquee matchup (Michigan State).
22) Kansas State- They showed some signs of being a potential player in the Big 12. They might command the second tier and be a favorite from the north region.
23) Auburn- After a break from SEC teams, another emerges. They are only two seasons removed from a title and still play hard. They should show signs of improvement from last year.
24) Florida- The Gators like the Tigers have their rough moments, but can still play tough defense and possible sneak an upset.
25) Ohio State- They might be better than a couple teams ahead of them. But, they will need to go through a season like USC's last couple. Can they stay focus? Will this be prep for a couple years down the road when new coach Urban Meyer can unleash the dogs on the Big Ten and the rest of the country?

NEXT 5
1) Louisville- The Big East used to be West Virginia's to lose. Now Louisville has emerged as the early favorite to claim the crown of the "Big Least".
2) Notre Dame- I hesitate to put them in the Top 25 right away from some of their letdowns. Can they reclaim their glory and try to climb the polls like they did 5 years ago.
3) Washington- There is a lot of good vibes coming from Huskies' camp. They have had a few big wins in recent years and are looking to be more consistent.
4) Georgia Tech- Their option scheme keeps teams on their toes. Can they do enough to rack up wins?
5) Cincinnati- Outside of Louisville, they might be a strong contender to win the Big East and continue their success in the conference since coming over.

Now let's get the season started!