If you’d like to know all there is to know about THLSTNHT25-PE, click here, then click here to read about those teams that didn’t quite make the cut, then click here to learn about our #25-#16 teams, and here to learn about teams #15-#6.

And once you’ve finished with all that, please move forward, and learn all there is to know about THLSTNHT25-PE: #5-#1, in which we secretly harbor the belief that the Irish really could beat everyone on this list, what though the ods…

• #5 Southern Cal: Highest Position in a voter’s ballot: 3. Average rank among all ballots: 5.33. A team with so much talent that the fact they return 4 starters on offense and 7 of defense just, well, doesn’t seem to matter. During the Pete Carroll era, the Trojans have redefined “reloading.” Still, with all that talent, Southern Cal has managed some really strange results, including losing to Stanford last year and an inept UCLA the year before. Teams that, at the time, had no business giving an elite program any problems. This season, they start Mark Sanchez at Quarterback, and if his abuse of the Notre Dame secondary in 2007 is any indication of ability (good question), then for about the umpteenth consecutive season, the Trojans will have excellent QB play. Unlike Palmer, Leinart, or Booty before him, Sanchez can and will at times run to give Southern Cal just what it’s been sorely lacking: another weapon. Pete Carroll also likes to gush about Joe McKnight, using Reggie Bush as the bar against which to measure Joe. All their talent at the skill positions could flounder, however, if Southern Cal has a hard time replacing all but 1 starting offensive lineman. And, somewhat interestingly, offensive line is the one area Carroll has had relative difficulty recruiting. Emphasis on “relative.” Still, in what can only be described as a bit of serendipity for the Trojans, there are 5 players on th the OL who have some sort of starting experience due to the huge number of injuries across 2007’s starting line. The defensive unit is chock full o’talent, but it seems like each sub-unit took a hit in the form of players moving on to the NFL. Last year we said SoCal’s defense could well be one of the best ever. This year, not so much, but the step down in potential from best ever would still mean they’re sitting pretty. Southern Cal opens the season at Virginia and follow that up 2 weeks later with Ohio State in LA. They get their top Pac-10 competition at home as well as Notre Dame. Ultimately, while their scheduling is to be applauded, it also works out for a nice ride the the championship game (and deservedly so) if they go undefeated. In other words, it’s not likely any other teams could squeeze them out of a MNC shot.
• #4 Georgia: Highest Position in a voter’s ballot: 3. Average rank among all ballots: 5. Running back Knowshon Moreno is arguably the most talented back in the country, and surrounding him is the largest number of returning starters in the SEC. Knowshon ran for 1300+ yards last season and he wasn’t even a starter for the first 3 games. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs must play Florida, Auburn, LSU, and South Carolina on the road, but Mark Richt’s away-game winning percentage is 86%. Plus, they’ve got a very good QB in Matt Stafford, a defense stacked with talent that could match up against anyone in the country, and, thanks to HC Mark Richt’s own commitment to Special Teams excellence, one of the most consistently excellent special teams units in the country. Also of note, before the last game of 2006 (against GT) Richt turned over play calling duties to young (and apparently fertile) OC Mike Bobo. Why? Because Richt felt that calling plays was hurting his ability to emotionally lead his team from the sidelines. The result? A jump of 7+ points per game, 50 yards rushing/game, and 10+ in turnover margin while Richt lead his team to 7 wins in a row to finish the season. Could this bode well for Weis and his decision to relinquish play-calling duties?
• #3 Texas: Highest Position in a voter’s ballot: 2. Average rank among all ballots: 4. We’re always fascinated when we talk to a Texas fan or resident and hear that the relationship between HC Mack Brown and Horns fans is tenuous. How can that be the case for a guy that’s won a NC? Well, maybe it’s just that the fans realize that in a state as talent-rich as Texas, any decent coach should be able to win a NC, particularly when your QB is an unstoppable force of nature. As for Texas’ fortunes this year, the 2 things we really like are the capability of QB Colt McCoy when he’s not getting his spine checked out and what should be one of the top-5 offensive lines in the country. What we don’t like is that QB and OL practically make up the entirety of the returning starters on Brown’s roster. However, all of the first 5 weeks of the season lay out nicely for Texas as they take on Florida Atlantic, UTEP, Arkansas, and Rice before getting a bye week just before their first (probably) real test out of Colorado. That’s a full month and more to work out the kinks with new starters before their season really even begins. And given Mack Brown’s “new” coaching philosophy, he’ll probably have the Horns firing on all cylinders by October (so long as he really sticks to his new philosophy).
• #3 Florida: Highest Position in a voter’s ballot: 1. Average rank among all ballots: 4. Can a single man put a team in contention for a national championship? Yes, if that man is Tim Tebow. Get to know Mr. Tebow now, because he’s clearly setting himself up for a run at some high level government office many years from now after giving it a go in the pros as a linebacker. The most perfect athlete in all the land for Urban Meyer’s Pop-Warner-on-HGH system, Tim will run over, around, and through defenses this year, delivering body-blow after body-blow until it’s just the right time for a devastating hook in the form of Percy Harvin Jr. (so long as his ankle holds up). Oh sure, the Gators won the MNC 2 years ago, but Urban’s true “genius” is only now just peaking as the Florida offense produced 42.5 points per game in 2007, up nearly 2 touchdowns from 2006 when the Florida-Jump-Hook-Pass play still looked awkward even for the Florida-Jump-Hook-Pass play. Now Tebow is running that and many other bizarre looking plays that create a fragile alliance between eligible receiver rules and the laws of physics to perfection. And now they’ll be running the system in a “hurry up” mode to make opposing defenses feel like they might simply die from exhaustion before the game is decided. Tim Tebow Fever, catch it! Hey, speaking of hot things like fevers, has the Florida defense stopped applying aloe to their rears after the Capital One game? Nice way to send Carr out, fellas. That’s okay, according to Phil Steele, 48% of the starts last year were made by freshman and sophomore Gators. They’ve got lots of time to learn how to defend the pass.
• #1 Oklahoma: Highest Position in a voter’s ballot: 1. Average rank among all ballots: 2.33. I’m sort of proud of this pick by HLS. It’s not, as far as I can tell, the sexy pick. Seems like Georgia fits that bill this summer. But there are elements to the Sooners this year that are tough for us to ignore. For starters, their QB (Sam Bradford) does not miss when he throws the ball. He completed 69.5% of his passes last year. And it’s not like he just threw 10-12 passes a game. The Sooners averaged 258 yards passing last year. And to protect the QB, Mike Stoops can line up the best offensive line in the country (there will be no argument about this until someone can prove it wrong with actual game play). In between all the hanging out in the pocket, completing passes for nice yardage, the Sooners like to mix it up here and there with a rushing game that averaged 191 yards/gm in 2007. And now, because of the new clock rules, Oklahoma will be running the offense in “no-huddle” mode. So the offense that averaged 42.3 yards points per game last year could very well average even more this year, particularly as they ravage the first 6 weeks of the season in preparation for the 2nd half of the season. If ever there was a schedule designed to help win a MNC, this is it. You get to play a historical power in Washington while they’re under the weight of Willingham, then really debut your finely-tuned team against Texas on national television to really kick off your campaign. Then you play the 2nd half of the season against competition just good enough to force the media to pay attention even if you aren’t playing in the “game of the week.” There are of course, things that give us pause about the Sooners. First, they 2 regular season losses last year didn’t happen against a Texas. They happened against unranked Colorado and Texas Tech. However, the Colorado loss came before the Texas game (a Sooner win) and the TT loss came a week ahead of the win over Oklahoma State. Look ahead to rivalry games much, Sooner players? Still, we suspect those losses will serve as excellent coach-speak lessons learned as Bob Stoops no doubt harps on some variation of the “one game at a time” mantra on the way to a potential MNC season.

Well, that was fun, wasn’t it? Thank god for the invention of the Top 25, otherwise we’d have had much less to write about in June and July. We’d also have had less motivation to slog thru the 8pt font of Phil Steele late at night while the wife wasn’t watching. Our eyes are tired, but our souls are better for it.

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