As expected, the Oklahoma Sooners are the top-ranked team in the first college
football poll of the preseason, the USA Today coaches’ Top 25. The Sooners also
are the favorites on Bodog’s NCAA football futures at 9/2 to win the national
title. Alabama (11/2 on Bodog) is second in the coaches’ poll, followed by
Oregon (12/1), LSU (12/1), Florida State (10/1), Stanford (16/1), Boise State
(14/1), Oklahoma State (30/1), Texas A&M (40/1) and Wisconsin (20/1). The SEC, which has won the last five Bowl Championship Series titles, leads all leagues with eight teams in the Top 25. Auburn, the defending national champion, debuts at No. 19 because the Tigers return the fewest starters of any team in the nation (six) with guys like Heisman winner Cam Newton now in the NFL. That's the lowest spot a defending champion has started since the USA Today poll began. This is the first time OU has been ranked preseason No. 1 by the coaches
since 2003. The Sooners have two legitimate Heisman candidates in quarterback
Landry Jones and wide receiver Ryan Broyles,
who passed up a shot to enter the 2011 draft. The Sooners' win over Connecticut
in the Fiesta Bowl last season snapped a five-game losing streak in BCS bowls.
They were last BCS champions in 2000. The preseason No. 1 team has gone on to play in the BCS national championship
in six seasons: Florida State (1999), Miami (2002), Oklahoma (2003), Southern
California (2004 and 2005) and Ohio State (2006). The USA Today poll is a
component of the BCS standings formula that determines which teams will
participate in the BCS title game, which will be played this year in New
Orleans. Here is the complete poll with first-place votes in parentheses:
1.
Oklahoma (42) — 1,454
2. Alabama (13) — 1,414
3. Oregon (2) — 1,309
4.
LSU (2) — 1,296
5. Florida State — 1,116
6. Stanford — 1,101
7. Boise
State — 1,065
8. Oklahoma State — 933
9. Texas A&M — 885
10.
Wisconsin — 829
11. Nebraska — 814
12. South Carolina — 779
13.
Virginia Tech — 767
14. Arkansas — 750
15. TCU — 687
16. Ohio State —
631
17. Michigan State — 536
18. Notre Dame — 440
19. Auburn —
329
20. Mississippi State — 301
21. Missouri — 266
22. Georgia —
260
23. Florida — 240
24. Texas — 162
25. Penn State —
161
Others receiving votes: Arizona State (158); West Virginia
(149); Utah (50); Miami (Fla.) (49); Iowa (41); Northwestern (30); Arizona (28);
Central Florida (22); Michigan (19); Air Force (15); North Carolina (14);
Houston (13); South Florida (9); Hawaii (8); Clemson (7); Tennessee (7);
Southern Miss (6); Brigham Young (5); North Carolina State (4); Northern
Illinois (4); Oregon State (4); Pittsburgh (3); Washington (3); Georgia Tech
(1); Nevada (1).
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