TBB says it right - sort of. Props to Florida for winning last year, and #12 for OSU seems reasonable based on the fact that they lost some key offensive personnel. Their defense will keep them "in the game" for the 2007 campaign. However, with respect to Michigan, I would have to disagree. They most likely deserve their Top-5 ranking. They return a plethora of offensive talent that should be enough to compensate for the loss of some serious defensive firepower. However, compare the 2006 to 2007 defensive transition for Michigan to the 2005 to 2006 defensive transition for OSU. The BIG questionmark for 2006 for OSU was whether the high-powered offense would be able to compensate for the significant loss (9 starters) on defensive (remember that A.J. Hawk guy...?). Well, OSU stepped up to the plate, Lauranitis became a leader on defense, and the OSU offense played well enough to get to the big show until Troy Smith choked on his own vomit. So, I think that the 2007 Michigan team is going to be very similar to the 2006 OSU team, and with the exception of Lloyd Carr's inability to beat OSU consistently, should in fact make it through the season (at least until the OSU game) to stay undefeated. That alone makes them deserving of a top-5 listing. This may actually be the year that Michigan can beat the Bucks, considering that, on paper, they have the superior talent. But intangibles such as Coach McSweatervest vs. Al Gore's twin separated at birth have such a tremendous impact on that annual contest that you can pretty much throw everything out the window and start from scratch on November 17th. Now, as for you Sloppy7, you have to be careful with your predictions. If you go back to last year and the weeks leading up to the release of NCAA Football 07, all you Louisville fans went ape*** when no one would give any respect to the Cards, insisting that Louisville will win the National Championship. As it turned out, the lack of respect for the Cards was somewhat deserved, as the Cards managed to prove to everyone that they were not good enough for the big show by losing to Rutgers. Like us Notre Dame fans learned last year - just keep your mouth shut about predicting where your team is going to be in December/January. One thing that is going to hurt the Cards this year in the "quest for respect" is their schedule. Getting 4 games against Big East perennial pushovers, as well as having games against Murray St., Middle Tennessee, and Utah, are not going to get the Cards any "Strength of Schedule" points. I think that is what most people point to when the Cards scream for respect, and get the cold shoulder instead. Yes, they are a good team. But they would be hard-pressed to play and compete against the likes of LSU, USC, or Michigan and come out the victor. Sure, they could do it, but I don't think their chances would be very high. As always, Go Irish!

Overall, not a bad list. #1-#5 seem pretty reasonable, although there is still the high probability that Carr will choke on his own spittle when facing off against Tressell yet again. Somehow, Mr. Cheatypants McSweatervest has Carr's number, and proves it every year. #6 - #20 are essentially a crapshoot - anyone can pretty much be shuffled around there. Not too many surprises, although I personally would have put PSU a few spaces higher. Again, though, not much you can do with the "middle of the pack". #21-#25 are the most intriquing - teams like Boise State and TCU are somewhat surprising, considering that 2006 for those teams seemed more like unusual fairy-tales rather than garners of respect. BSU will have to prove it again, and that may be tough without their quarterback. Also, the appearance of FSU in this list is somewhat surprising - they will definitely have to rely on their 2007 defense to make a run to the top of the mountain in the ACC. A few other points: The lack of Oregon is somewhat odd - they might actually be ranked #26. However, if they start off their season with a loss to Michigan (highly likely given UM's highpowered offense for 2007), and have losses against the better PAC-10 teams (USC, UCLA, Cal), then a minimum 4-loss season is what EA sports is using as a basis for keeping them out of the Top-25. The exact same scenario applies to Notre Dame. Given the Irish schedule this year, if they can start the season 4-4 they will be doing pretty good - however, that is not good enough to get in EA's Top-25 considering that 4-4 is a longshot. Please, as a ND grad and lifelong dedicated football fan (even when Faust, Davies, and Willingham were coaching), it pains me to see unintelligent teenager wannabe posers complaining about the lack of ND on this list. Given the talent in 2007 (not 2006) that will be on the field, I will be pleased with an 8-4 record and no serious injuries come the end of November - all of you so called ND "fans" should understand that, and stop complaining at either Gamespot or EASports. Go Irish!