ALTOONA, Pa. -- Who doesn't love preseason college football rankings?
Yeah, I know, many fans complain about them and say they don't mean anything, but that doesn't take away from the fact that preseason polls can, at the very least, stir up debate.
We are now just a little more than two months away from the start of the season, so we figured this would be a good time to reveal our own preseason top 25 rankings.
Between myself and Mark Clemente, we will have Penn State and Pitt covered thoroughly for the rest of the summer, fall camp and all season. The Nittany Lions and Panthers both open up on Thursday, Sept. 1, with Penn State playing at Purdue and Pitt hosting West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl.
Mark and I each did our own preseason top 25 rankings, and did not share them with one another until both were done. That way, you get two completely distinct and separate rankings with, as you will see, a lot of pretty big differences.
CORY GIGER'S POLL
Here's my top 25. You'll notice that neither Mark nor I commented on every team, so if you feel like you're missing out on Oregon or Baylor comments, we apologize in advance.
1. Alabama
Nick Saban will win his eighth national title (seventh with Alabama since 2009) as Bryce Young has another phenomenal season.
2. Ohio State
I'm going with C.J. Stroud to win the Heisman Trophy, and for the Buckeyes to get to the national championship game before losing to Bama.
3. Georgia
How can you not love the Stetson Bennett story? Going from walk-on QB, to leaving, to coming back and then winning a national title last year. The Bulldogs lost a lot of guys from their phenomenal defense but will still win the SEC East before losing to Alabama in the conference championship game.
As you look around the country at a lot of top 25s, you'll see the same three teams ranked above -- in this same order. So they are clearly the three to beat. But after those three, things get a lot more interesting.
4. Clemson
Was last year a fluke or a sign of a dropoff for Dabo Swinney and Co.? I'm gonna go with the fluke theory and predict a big bounce-back year. There's just too much talent on both sides of the ball to think the Tigers will struggle again. They have 10 starters back on offense, and I think they'll figure things out more this year after a poor 2021 season.
5. USC
The Jordan Addison transfer was huge for the Trojans. But not as big as hiring Lincoln Riley and also getting QB Caleb Williams from Oklahoma. They'll score a lot of points, but defense will be the biggest question, just as it was for Riley with the Sooners.
6. Texas A&M
Could this be the year the Aggies live up to all their preseason expectations?
7. Notre Dame
Brian Kelly departed for LSU, and new coach Marcus Freeman has a very talented roster with experience.
8. Michigan
I never bought into Jim Harbaugh with the Wolverines -- until he finally got the job done last year. Can he do it again, or go back to his old ways of underachieving?
9. Utah
10. Baylor
11. Oklahoma State
I'm a man! I'm 40! Sorry, this never gets old. But hey, the guy can coach.
12. Oregon
13. NC State
I really like the Wolfpack and strongly considered ranking them several spots higher. Eight starters back on offense and nine on defense from last year's 9-3 team. Their issue is they have to go to Clemson this year.
14. Michigan State
I could see Sparty dropping off a good bit after last year's fantastic season. They did all that a year ago with a bunch of transfers, and you just never know if that kind of recipe is sustainable year in and year out.
15. Oklahoma
Brent Venables, former Clemson defensive coordinator, takes over for Lincoln Riley and will still have a bunch of talent.
16. Arkansas
The Hogs looked good against Penn State in the Outback Bowl. Sam Pittman is an excellent coach.
17. Houston
18. Pitt
Alright, Panther fans, take it easy on me for having the team this far down. Especially after you see where Mark ranks them below. I like the roster and believe Pitt could be really good, but I just can't assume the Panthers will be able to replace Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison that easily. I mean, you're talking about two of the most storied players in recent program history, so I need to see how things play out before I get too crazy with a ranking.
19. Wake Forest
The Demon Deacons had an outstanding season with 11 wins last year. They won't be able to sneak up on anybody this season but still should be good.
20. Kentucky
QB Will Levis could be a top 5 NFL draft pick. I still can't wrap my mind around that. As I've asked before, would Penn State fans rather have Levis or Sean Cliffod this season?
21. Ole Miss
22. Cincinnati
Luke Fickell is a tremendous coach, and he'll find a way to keep Cincy strong after the departure of QB Desmond Ridder.
23. BYU
I end up watching a lot of BYU games late on Saturday nights, and Kalani Sitake is a fantastic coach.
24. Iowa
Speaking of fantastic coaches ... no, I cannot say that about Kirk Ferentz. But I can say he has a system in place that, even if it's boring as all get out to watch, has proven to be effective for more than two decades.
25. Tennessee
Second-year coach Josh Heupel has eight starters back on both sides of the ball, and the Vols have a chance to be very good.
Why no Penn State?: I just can't put a team in a preseason top 25 that finished 7-6, lost eight players to the NFL draft -- including some phenomenal talent -- and really didn't do anything to get better from what I can tell. The Nittany Lions could end up having a good year if the offensive line plays well to take some pressure off QB Sean Clifford, but as I've said all along, that's a gigantic if. Now, if Penn State wins at Purdue in week one and at Auburn in week three, they'll be in the top 25 and could be on the way to 9-10 wins.
MARK CLEMENTE'S POLL
1. Alabama
They have the best QB in the country, Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young, to go with eight returning starters on defense.
2. Ohio State
Six returning starters on each side of the ball from a team that won 11 games and beat Utah in the Rose Bowl.
3. Georgia
They lost a ton of players to the NFL Draft, especially on the defensive side of the ball, but quarterback Stetson Bennett returns along with several weapons, including Mackey Award contender tight end Brock Bowers.
4. Notre Dame
New coach Marcus Freeman had a rough start to his head coaching career in the Fiesta Bowl, but he has a ton of talent returning on both sides of the ball and quarterback Tyler Buchner should be a dual threat.
5. Michigan
6. Utah
Behind quarterback Cameron Rising and running back Tavion Thomas, the Utes will defeat USC or Oregon and win the Pac-12.
7. Texas A&M
How fun would it be to see Jimbo Fisher and Nick Saban battle in the Playoff! Not going to happen this year. Aggies are one year away from competing or the national championship.
8. Oklahoma
New coach Brent Venables was the best offseason coaching hire.
9. Pitt
They have the best offensive and defensive lines in the ACC which will allow them to repeat as champions, even without Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison. I was tempted to put them at No. 6, but they did lose a first-round QB and Biletnikoff Award winner!
10. Ole Miss
USC transfer quarterback Jaxson Dart and TCU transfer running back Zach Evans will make Lane Kiffin’s job much easier.
11. NC State
They will win the ACC Atlantic and come up short against the Panthers.
12. Michigan State
Mel Tucker will have them back in New Year’s Six contention.
13. Oregon
14. Baylor
15. Texas
Steve Sarkisian will have them in the national title chase soon, but not this year. Heralded transfer quarterback Quinn Ewers needs some major college experience before they become contenders.
16. Kentucky
Will Levis is one of the best quarterbacks in the country and Mark Stoops has put together several very good recruiting classes. Leading rusher Chris Rodriguez will likely be suspended for a portion of the season, so that will hurt their chances to climb higher.
17. Cincinnati
No magical run this year!
18. Clemson
Until they get a quarterback, their days in the top 10 are over.
19. Oklahoma State
20. Tennessee
The Pitt/Tennessee game at Heinz Field on Sept. 10 should be receive ESPN Gameday treatment. Josh Heupel has brought relevance back to the Volunteers.
21. LSU
The Brian Kelly dance videos make me cringe, but he knows how to win.
22. Wisconsin
Their offensive line will be among the best in the nation and they have leading rusher Braelon Allen returning for his sophomore year.
23. Miami
Quarterback Tyler Van Dyke had an amazing freshman year. Can he have the same success this year or will he experience the sophomore slump?
24. Houston
Dana Holgorsen’s Cougars won 12 games last year and I expect him to have them on top of the AAC again.
25. Coastal Carolina
