Day 4: Preseason Polls?

I sit here looking at a copy of Sports Illustrated (the August 17th edition), and cannot help but to wonder what is going on with the pre-season rankings.

I'll start at the top: One through five looks right, with traditional powerhouses Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, USC, and Virginia Tech.

But Ole Miss at six? Wait, didn't this team finish 5-3 in the SEC last year? Yes, I know the SEC is a very strong conference but that was still fourth best in the conference as they did not finish ahead of any ranked teams in conference play.

Oklahoma State and Alabama as eight and nine makes sense, as both are coming off of strong season and return many starters.

Boise State will start at ninth. Finally the voters are showing some love to the WAC team that was undefeated in conference play and returns eleven starters.

Rounding out the top ten is Ohio State. The Buckeyes look to win yet another Big Ten championship and this year should not be too challenging for them. Penn State is the only other Big Ten team ranked to start the year (14th). They seem to be a deserving top ten team.

Check back tomorrow for day five of First & Short's week long college football tailgate party.