College football rankings: Clemson, Ohio State, Alabama top spring Top 25
10. Auburn Tigers
At their best, Bo Nix and Auburn were one of the best teams in college football last year, notching wins over Alabama and Oregon in addition to playing LSU and Georgia quite closely. But the true freshman signal-caller was maddeningly inconsistent, so the team was as well. If he can clean that up and become a better overall passer, the Tigers have the overall talent to make noise in the SEC West.
9. Florida Gators
Dan Mullen has been an answer to many prayers in Gainesville as the Gators have gone 21-5 over his first two seasons at the helm of the program. Kyle Trask seems to be a steady answer at quarterback for Florida and there is a nice pipeline of weapons on both sides of the ball. The Gators still need to prove they can top rival Georgia but they’re in a great position to try and do so in 2020.
8. Penn State Nittany Lions
After suffering some big losses on offense, Penn State is certainly hoping that Sean Clifford can find more stability in his second year as the starter. He has nice weapons, headlined by tight end Pat Freiermuth and running back Journey Brown, and new offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca coming over from Minnesota should give them a boost.
If the offense can come close to matching what should be an elite defense led by linebacker Micah Parsons, the Nittany Lions will be extremely dangerous.
7. LSU Tigers
Despite losing Joe Burrow and having a relative unknown in Myles Brennan likely stepping in to replace him, it’s hard to sleep on Ed Orgeron and LSU. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase and cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. are among the top returning players in the country and the Tigers have never had issues in recruiting. They’ll need to answer questions on offense early but the upside remains high in Baton Rouge.
6. Oklahoma Sooners
Speaking of replacing quarterbacks, Lincoln Riley must do so for the third straight year. Lucky for him, he has former 5-star recruit Spencer Rattler ready to take the reins on offense and a strong cast of both running backs and wide receivers surrounding him behind a good offensive line. If the defense can show any kind of promise after suffering some big losses, the Sooners should cruise to win the Big 12 once again.