2012 College Football
Top 25 Preview
Click on each team for breakdown

1. Louisiana State
2. Alabama
3. Southern California
4. Oregon
5. Oklahoma
6. Georgia
7. Stanford
8. Arkansas
9. South Carolina
10. Oklahoma State
11. Florida State
12. West Virginia
13. Michigan
14. Clemson
15. TCU
16. Wisconsin
17. Michigan State
18. Kansas State
19. Texas
20. Virginia Tech
21. Ohio State
22. Nebraska
23. Auburn
24. Florida
25. Baylor

How accurate is the
Early Bird Preview?


Teams 26-40

depth charts included

26. Boise State
27. Notre Dame
28. Brigham Young
29. Georgia Tech
30. Rutgers
31. Texas A&M
32. Penn State
33. Mississippi State
34. Texas Tech
35. Iowa
36. Utah
37. Tennessee
38. North Carolina State
39. Washington
40. Louisville
41. Vanderbilt
42. Missouri
43. Virginia
44. Illinois
45. South Florida
46. Southern Miss
47. Miami FL
48. North Carolina
49. Cincinnati
50. Wake Forest

 


2012 PRESEASON CHEAT SHEET
All the basic information needed to rank teams based on the current AP poll

 

Is NationalChamps.net too early? Not quite.
The Early Bird Preview has predicted almost the same Top 10 the official AP Poll puts out eight months later in August. The selection process is not that difficult if you know what pollsters look for. We give you most of that information now.

 

DO NOT MISS THE POINT: NationalChamps.net is proud to once again present the annual Early Bird College Football Breakdown (11th season). For those of you concerned with the rankings and the fact this #16 team is better than that #9 team, then YOU ARE MISSING THE POINT! Our presentation was created as nothing more than a rough guide for listing whether key players return or depart as evident in our depth chart formatting. So many of the selections are evidently interchangeable and will adjust continuously until next season arrives.

So sit back, unbutton those tight pants from your holiday dinners and leftovers, and take this preview for what it's worth. We think you will gain much more by realizing that the rankings and their explicit accuracy are not the primary goal. This is not about predicting where these teams will finish by season's end, a flaw in logic many assume - it is about where each deserves to be ranked as the season starts.

However, in the 11th season of compiling this Early Bird Preview, NationalChamps.net has eerily predicted a very close result to what the official preseason polls will show come August. Returning starters and key losses are not hard to figure out. Unpredictable at this point, though, is just how early NFL departures and bowl game results tend to change these rankings more than any other aspect. We rank what we know and take the rest in stride.

 

COMPLETE 2012 PREVIEW COMING THIS SPRING

Please check back this spring when NationalChamps.net releases our entire 2012 College Football Preview... complete with full depth charts, analysis from our writing staff, rankings, unit power ratings and lots of new digital photos.

 
THE NEW CONFERENCE REALIGNMENTS FOR 2012
ACC Big East Big Ten

ATLANTIC
Boston College
Clemson
Florida State
Maryland
North Carolina State
Wake Forest

COASTAL
Duke
Georgia Tech
Miami FL
North Carolina
Virginia
Virginia Tech

Cincinnati
Connecticut
Louisville
Pittsburgh
Rutgers
South Florida
Syracuse

LEADERS
Illinois
Indiana
Ohio State
Penn State
Purdue
Wisconsin

LEGENDS
Iowa
Michigan
Michigan State
Minnesota
Nebraska
Northwestern

Big 12 C-USA MAC

Baylor
Iowa State
Kansas
Kansas State

Oklahoma
Oklahoma State
TCU
Texas
Texas Tech
West Virginia

EAST
East Carolina
Marshall
Memphis
Southern Miss
UAB
UCF

WEST
Houston
Rice
SMU
Tulane
Tulsa
UTEP

EAST
Akron
Buffalo
Kent State
Massachusetts
Miami OH
Ohio
Temple

WEST
Ball State
Bowling Green
Central Michigan
Eastern Michigan
Northern Illinois
Toledo
Western Michigan

Mountain West Pac 12 SEC

Air Force
Boise State
Colorado State
Fresno State
Hawai'i
Nevada
New Mexico
San Diego State

UNLV
Wyoming


NORTH
California
Oregon
Oregon State
Stanford
Washington
Washington State

SOUTH
Arizona
Arizona State
Colorado
Southern California
UCLA
Utah

EAST
Florida
Georgia
Kentucky
Missouri
South Carolina
Tennessee
Vanderbilt

WEST
Alabama
Arkansas
Auburn
Louisiana State
Mississippi
Mississippi State
Texas A&M

Sun Belt WAC Independents

Arkansas State
Florida Atlantic
Florida International
Louisiana-Lafayette
Louisiana-Monroe
Middle Tennessee
North Texas
South Alabama
Troy
Western Kentucky

Idaho
Louisiana Tech
New Mexico State
San Jose State

Texas State
Utah State
UTSA

Army
Brigham Young
Navy
Notre Dame

 
 
   
 
 
 
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