Roy Exum
The Athletic, a subscription-based sports website, is a daily stop in my Morning Readings and on Thursday the talented writer Chris Vannini released the website’s preseason ranking of all 131 FBS college football teams. As expected, Alabama was tops on the list, followed by Ohio State and Georgia, but what makes the list of all 131 teams special is that you can see where Tennessee, for example, is No. 24 while Ball State, the Vols’ opening opponent next Thursday night, is No.
105.
The rest of the Top Ten are, in order, Clemson, Utah, Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas A&M, Baylor and Oklahoma. Teams 11-25 are Oklahoma State, Oregon, N.C. State, Southern Cal, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Miami, Kentucky, Cincinnati, Houston, BYU, Pitt, Arkansas, Tennessee and Fresno State.
Did you catch that? Pitt is ranked ahead of Tennessee, which makes the Vols’ Sept. 10 game at Pittsburgh a key in bettering last year’s 7-6 record. Pitt was 11-3 last year but quarterback Kenny Pickett, a first round draft pick, is not around any longer. Then again, the Panthers just named transfer Kedon Slovis as this week’s starter against West Virginia, and Slovis started at Southern Cal last fall.
That makes four teams Tennessee will face this year as favorites. UT is on the same level as Florida, LSU, Missouri and maybe South Carolina so the reasoning is that UT is improved, its opponents can claim the same. Lordy, I wish the season started tomorrow!
* -- TEAMS 26 THROUGH 35: Wake Forest, Appalachian State, Ole Miss, Central Florida, Texas, Penn State, Kansas State, Iowa, Purdue and LSU.
* -- TEAMS 36 THROUGH 45: Florida, Mississippi State, UCLA, Minnesota, TCU, Washington State, Virginia, Florida State, North Carolina and SMU
* -- TEAMS 46 THROUGH 55: Boise State, San Diego State, Iowa State, Oregon State, Boston College, South Carolina, Auburn, West Virginia, Missouri, and Coastal Carolina
* -- TEAMS 56 THROUGH 65: Texas-San Antonio, Alabama-Birmingham, Utah State, Air Force, Marshall, Texas Tech, Virginia Tech, Maryland, Louisville, Louisiana.
* -- TEAMS 66 THROUGH 75: East Carolina, Memphis, Cal, Stanford, Nebraska, Indiana, Washington, Arizona State, Army, Liberty
* -- TEAMS 76 THROUGH 85: Western Kentucky, Georgia State, Northern Illinois, Toledo, Central Michigan, Troy, Rutgers, Illinois, San Jose State, Syracuse
* -- TEAMS 86 THROUGH 95: Arizona, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Kansas, Georgia Tech, Duke, Colorado, Texas-El Paso, North Texas, Miami of Ohio
* -- TEAMS 96 THROUGH 105: Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Tulsa, Old Dominion, Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, Middle Tennessee, South Alabama, Ball State
* -- TEAMS 106 THROUGH 115: Buffalo, Louisiana Tech, James Madison, Georgia Southern, Colorado State, Wyoming, Tulane, Nevada, South Florida, Navy
* -- TEAMS 116 THROUGH 125: Southern Miss, Rice, Arkansas State, Louisiana-Monroe, Temple, Bowling Green, Ohio, Hawaii, UNLV, Texas State
* -- TEAMS 126 THROUGH 131: New Mexico, Florida International, Akron, Connecticut, New Mexico State, and UMass.
royexum@aol.com