College football rankings: Clemson, Ohio State, Alabama top spring Top 25
25. Louisville Cardinals
Once Micale Cunningham took over at quarterback for Louisville last year, the Cardinals started to turn a corner in the first year under head coach Scott Satterfield. Now off of a shockingly impressive 8-5 season, there are hopes for what the coach has in store for the 2020 season.
For the Cardinals to take another step forward, they will need to fortify their defense, which was a major issue in 2019. However, what Satterfield accomplished last season breeds a lot of optimism about Louisville.
24. Iowa Hawkeyes
Some are more bullish on Iowa than others for the 2020 season and it’s not hard to see why given the ho-hum consistent success of head coach Kirk Ferentz. But while the Hawkeyes have some talent at the skill positions, on the offensive line and on defense, losing their top playmakers on both sides of the ball in quarterback Nate Stanley and defensive end A.J. Epenesa leaves them with major questions to answer.
23. Cincinnati Bearcats
Retaining head coach Luke Fickell is a boom for the Bearcats as he’s led Cincinnati to consecutive 11-win seasons and maintains plenty of consistency from last year’s squad as well. Desmond Ridder came along well at quarterback and could help the offense hit another gear but this team will hang their hats on a strong defense and heavily be in contention for the best Group of 5 team in college football.
22. Arizona State Sun Devils
Having Arizona State at No. 22 is very much about the projection of quarterback Jayden Daniels. He’s one to watch after a tantalizing freshman season with just under 3,000 passing yards and 355 rushing yards along with 17 passing touchdowns and only two interceptions. Herm Edwards has a combined 15 wins over two seasons with the Sun Devils but, even after losing weapons, Daniels could be the key to unlocking more success in the desert.
21. UCF Knights
It speaks to the program that UCF has built that going 10-3 last season was considered a down year for the Knights. But with Dillon Gabriel set to run the show again, now with a year of experience under his belt, the infamous self-proclaimed national champs from a couple of years ago should very much be in a position to make national noise once again.