NCAA Football Pre-Season Predictions 20-16

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#20 South Florida

The Bulls had a great first half last season and then a let down, ultimately getting slaughtered by Oregon in bowl play.  USF QB Matt Grothe is one of the most entertaining QBs in the country.  He also has a pretty good line and numerous weapons a WR.  Unfortunately the Bulls need to find a reliable running back to take some of the load off of Grothe.  Replacing NFL draftee Mike Jenkins at CB is also a problem.  All in all they will be competitive in a weak Big East.  Matchups against Kansas, Pittsburgh and Rutgers will prove to be their toughest but they are all at home.  9-3 

#19 Kansas

The Jayhawks had an amazing run in 2007 and look to have an great season in 2008.  The defense was fantastic last season and has 9 starters returning.  Also returning is the little general, QB Todd Reesing.  Todd is an accurate passer and has weapons.  Unfortunately he lost his protection to the NFL so offensive line play will be a key to this team’s success.  Schedule is also tough with road games at South Florida and Oklahoma.  They also close out the season vs. Texas and Missouri.  9-3

#18 Michigan

   

Michigan is rebuilding.  They had a great finish to last season with a great victory over Florida but they lost key players at ever skill position to the NFL.  They are only returning 3 starters from an offense that is changing philosophy as well.  I think a key player for the Wolverines will be RB Brandon Minor.  He will provide some stability to a young offense.  The defensive line will also help them remain competitive.  The schedule works in their favor as they play Utah, Wisconsin and Illinois at home.  Of course the road games (Notre Dame, Penn State and Ohio State) could be very difficult games for Rodriguez’s young troops.  8-4

#17 BYU

 

Every year the “experts” say BYU is a BCS team they crap out along the way.  You can almost bet money on it.  Once again this season they are wrong about the Cougars being a National Title contender but the Cougs will have a very good team.  They have the best offense in the Mountain West and a good QB in Max Hall.  Look for the Hall to Collie TD combo quite a bit this season.  The defense lost quite a few of it’s stars from last season and won’t be quite as good.  The schedule is pretty light with Washington on the road and UCLA at home.  The toughest game and battle for the conference title will be the final game of the season, on the road against Utah.  10-2

#16 Tennessee

 

Tennessee, like Michigan is rebuilding so you just don’t know how good or bad they are going to be.  The one thing that Tennessee has working against them is the conference.  There are 3 or 4 other teams vying for National Title consideration so where does that leave Tennessee.  On the upside they have a great offensive line and a solid RB in Arian Foster.  The defense struggled a bit last year and lost Mayo to the NFL so that won’t help matters in 2008.  However they have a boatload of young talent on D like linebackers Wilson and McCoy and the D should improve as the season progresses.  Their schedule is very difficult early with a road game at UCLA, host Florida and then play at Auburn.  If they can get through that in decent shape it gets a little better with games against Mississippi St., Wyoming, Vanderbilt and Kentucky.  8-4

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