The coaches poll is largely a relic from another era. Every media outlet (including TV) uses the AP rankings for most of the season and then of course switches to the College Football Playoff rankings in early November.
But the preseason edition at least serves a useful purpose as our first official snapshot of where the teams stand to start the season.
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Also, it’s incredibly fun to mock.
Here are the teams I believe coaches ranked either too high or too low.
Overrated
No. 4 Clemson
The Tigers, to their credit, ended 2021 on a six-game winning streak, but assuming they’ll return to College Football Playoff contention requires quite a few leaps of faith. Their offense ranked 103rd nationally in yards per play (5.17), yet Dabo Swinney seems content to stick with QB DJ Uiagalelei and declined to use the transfer portal to upgrade his offensive line or receivers. Also, renowned defensive coordinator Brent Venables is gone.
Other than that …
No. 6 Michigan
This is cute. Jim Harbaugh’s Wolverines finally rose up and won the Big Ten on the strength of a creative defensive coordinator, Mike Macdonald, and No. 2 overall draft pick Aidan Hutchinson. Both are gone, as is fellow first-round pass rusher David Ojabo and last year’s Broyles Award winner, offensive coordinator Josh Gattis. Michigan won’t implode, but it won’t likely win 11-plus games again.
No. 9 Oklahoma
I did not include the Sooners in my early Top 25. Maybe that’s an overreaction, but few programs have undergone so much change in the span of a year, starting with Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams’ relocations to SoCal and the arrival of a first-time head coach in Venables. UCF transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel was a big pickup, but the Sooners still saw at least 15 key players from 2021 either turn pro or transfer.
No. 18 Texas
Are you serious, coaches? Are you in on the joke perhaps? One of you even gave the Longhorns, 5-7 last season, a first-place vote. Yes, they have stars Bijan Robinson and Xavier Worthy, but you’re still placing a whole lot of confidence in much-touted quarterback Quinn Ewers, who’s yet to throw a college pass, an O-line that may start two freshman tackles and a defense that ranked 102nd last season.
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No. 20 Wisconsin
Paul Chryst’s program has earned its reputation for consistency, but it’s been showing cracks the past couple of seasons (9-6 in Big Ten play). Running back Braelon Allen is a stud, but quarterback Graham Mertz has yet to live up to expectations. While defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard is one of the best in the biz, even he will be challenged to reload on a unit that lost eight of its top 10 tacklers, most notably star linebackers Leo Chenal and Jack Sanborn.
Underrated
No. 8 Utah
I get it, the Utes aren’t a traditional choice for the preseason top five, but they ended last season playing like a top-five team and could be even better in 2022. They return quarterback Cam Rising, running back Tavion Thomas and four of their top five receivers (though Britain Covey is no small loss). And you know Kyle Whittingham will produce another stingy defense, led by cornerbacks Clark Phillips III and JaTravis Broughton and safety Cole Bishop.
No. 13 NC State
This may be the first time in college football history someone has said NC State is underrated — but it is. Devin Leary should be one of the best quarterbacks in the country, and the nation’s third most efficient defense returns nearly every key player, including star linebacker Payton Wilson, who missed most of last season. Now the Wolfpack just need to overcome a decades-old tradition of underachieving.
No. 15 USC
I wouldn’t have said this earlier in the offseason, but after adding Biletnikoff winner Jordan Addison from Pitt, Riley’s first USC offense is just ridiculously loaded. He also added Williams at quarterback, four-year Oregon standout running back Travis Dye and ex-Oklahoma wide receiver Mario Williams. It won’t be enough to completely overcome the Trojans’ talent-deficient defense, but they could certainly win 10 games.
No. 23 Arkansas
Sam Pittman has been extremely impressive so far as an SEC head coach, and in a division full of teams in flux, the Razorbacks could well finish as high as second or third. Quarterback KJ Jefferson is a beast and his offensive line is experienced. And linebacker Bumper Pool and safety Jalen Catalon feel like they’ve been there forever.
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Iowa and Minnesota, not ranked
It shows you just how much the voters default to Wisconsin in the Big Ten West that they left out the reigning champion Hawkeyes entirely as well as a sneaky-good Minnesota team. Iowa’s offense was terrible last season, but its top-20 defense should be even better. And the Gophers, 9-4 last season, welcome back offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca (after one-year stops at Penn State and West Virginia) and star running back Mohamed Ibrahim, who was lost in the first game last season.
(Photo of DJ Uiagalelei: Jacob Kupferman / Getty Images)
