It's officially BlogPoll time, and nothing this side of the release of "Rich Girls" on DVD could make me any more excited.
This year Brian has come up with a new idea for how to tackle the always tricky task of concocting a preseason poll. Each voter will cast a ballot for this week, and then sometime over the next five days will make a post where they talk about one team they feel is overrated, and another they feel is underrated. At the end of the week all voters will cast a second ballot, and the final preseason BlogPoll will be unveiled on Aug. 29.
For those who weren't around for last season, I think you'll find over the course of the season that the BlogPoll is a step above the mainstream polls, if for no other reason than the sheer fact that bloggers watch way more football than coaches or members of the media.
That said, here's my initial ballot:
| Rank | Team | Delta |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southern Cal |
 25 |
| 2 | Michigan |
24 |
| 3 | LSU |
23 |
| 4 | Florida |
22 |
| 5 | Louisville |
21 |
| 6 | West Virginia |
20 |
| 7 | Wisconsin |
19 |
| 8 | Texas |
18 |
| 9 | Oklahoma |
17 |
| 10 | Georgia |
16 |
| 11 | Penn State |
15 |
| 12 | California |
14 |
| 13 | Ohio State |
13 |
| 14 | Rutgers |
12 |
| 15 | Nebraska |
11 |
| 16 | Virginia Tech |
10 |
| 17 | Arkansas |
9 |
| 18 | Auburn |
8 |
| 19 | Texas A&M |
7 |
| 20 | Oregon |
6 |
| 21 | UCLA |
5 |
| 22 | TCU |
4 |
| 23 | Tennessee |
3 |
| 24 | Boise State |
2 |
| 25 | South Florida |
1 |
Half-Baked Reasonings:
1. USC: Someone told me that if you don't rank the Trojans number one you get the Clockwork Orange treatment, only the movie showing is Rebound starring Martin Lawrence.
2. Michigan: I'm a Louisville fan, so I respect returning offense way more than returning defense.
3. LSU: They were the best team in the country last year and they lost two games, wouldn't be surprised if I were able to say the same thing this time 10 months from now.
4. Florida: I feel like a lot of the people dropping the Gators this year are the same ones who used "they don't rebuild they reload" as justification for ranking Ohio State number one last year when they were replacing nine starters on defense.
5. Louisville: I'm still blown away that nobody - NOBODY - has U of L ranked ahead of West Virginia despite the fact that they return the same number of key players the Mountaineers do from a year in which the Cards beat WVU by ten, won the Big East and won the Orange Bowl.
6. West Virginia: I didn't say they weren't good.
7. Wisconsin: Pam Ward-announced Noon games on ESPN2 might just be a little bit more exciting in 2007.
8. Texas: Maybe this is just the offseason talking, but every time I hear someone rave about the Longhorn defense, I think of Kansas State. Now I saw Kansas State, and I know Josh Freeman was further along on 11/11 than he was on 9/23, but seven weeks of experience shouldn't equal a difference of 39 points.
9. Oklahoma: Allen Patrick will be in New York this December.
10. Georgia: I was on the Matt Stafford bandwagon before the Matt Stafford bandwagon had cool rides, arcade games and free booze.
11. Penn State: I'm still convinced that the '06 Nittany Lions were more victims of bad fortune than they were overhyped, and I'm just as convinced that Anthony Morelli is going to have a big season.
12. California: I feel like they've been ranked 12th for like six years.
13. Ohio State: This team is going to be way overranked come late October.
14. Rutgers: Pretty sure that the Scarlet Knights are going to be better than they were a year ago, and just as sure that they won't have a better record.
15. Nebraska: Excited to see just how much difference Sam Keller can make for Bill Callahan...or as excited as someone who dislikes Sam Keller even more than he dislikes Nebraska can be.
16. Virginia Tech: There's no way that this is a top ten team with Sean Glennon taking snaps. Nothing against the kid, but I think it's impossible that he's improved enough in the offseason to make these guys legitimate contenders.
17. Arkansas: Less distractions, more McFadden...worse season?
18. Auburn: A lot of people are sleeping on these guys, but the defense is going to be stellar again, and Brandon Cox is healthy and the most battle-tested QB in the league. I guess what I'm getting at is, uh, don't sleep on these guys.
19. Texas A&M: I've had a little crush on Stephen McGee ever since his performance as a freshman against Texas two years ago. Javorskie Lane is kinda hot too.
20. Oregon: Dennis Dixon stars in: "I'd Rather Swing Than Pass." (For those who weren't around last year, Dennis Dixon sounds like a pornstar name, and I kind of like to remind people of that constantly.)
21. UCLA: Yeah they return a lot of starters...from a team that gave up 44 points to Florida State in their last game.
22. TCU: No 20-25 portion of any preseason poll is ever complete without the Horned Frogs.
23. Tennessee: Erik Ainge is still there? Damn, I thought he was gone like two ye...Fulmer's still there too?!?!
24. Boise State: I think they've earned at least that much.
25. South Florida: If all the good news (sarcasm) regarding injured offensive lineman and Herculean defensive ends who can rip boots off of cars keeps coming out of Tampa, then the Bulls won't be here this time next week.
Any and all input from you all is welcomed and encouraged. Well not really any and all, but, whatever...damnit.