Power Playoff Wednesday - September 3, 2009

What’s a Power Playoff, you say? It’s what I call college football power rankings and NFL playoff predictions rolled into one wonderful column! But wait it's Thursday!? I know, I know. Grandma and Grandpa came to town, and I took them out to eat last night. That's right... grandparents are more important than football even for me!

NCAA Power Rankings
I’ll limit my rankings only to the top 14 since that’s the threshold for BCS Bowl eligibility.
1. Florida Gators
Surprise!! As much as it pains me to admit it, Florida is far and away the most talented, deepest, and most experienced team in college football this year. They won’t go undefeated, however. Not even Jesus… uh, I mean Superman… er, Tim Tebow can escape the SEC unscathed.
2. Texas Longhorns
Colt McCoy has an ax to grind. He missed out on both the Heisman and national title because of a tie-breaker. Something tells me he won’t leave either to chance in 2009. He brought the Longhorns to the brink last year without much help on offense. Imagine what he’ll do with a running game in 2009.
3. USC Trojans
A true freshman QB leading a preseason top five team? You betcha. These Trojans may not be as familiar as Carson, Matt, and Reggie; but they certainly have the Trojan talent of their predecessors. And check out the schedule: Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Cal make up USC’s toughest tests… Do you honestly think that scares anybody in SoCal, even the true freshmen?
4. Oklahoma Sooners
The Sooners have loads of talent at the skill positions, but only one returning starter at offensive line. That’s just enough for them to slip to the bottom of the top tier of these rankings.
5. LSU Tigers
This is where things get a little interesting. Since this is the preseason, even the power rankings are a little predictive. I’ve got LSU coming out of the SEC West, and I expect Bama to edge a banged up VaTech squad in Atlanta this weekend. I can’t stomach putting a one or two loss Ohio State team above a one or two loss SEC team. So while I’m not wild about it, Les Miles wins the five spot by default.
6. Alabama Crimson Tide
In my eyes, the most interesting race in college football is the second SEC BCS bowl slot. If Florida holds their end of the bargain and goes to the championship game, we may see a free-for-all for Sugar Bowl tickets. Bama, LSU, Ole Miss, and Georgia all have a shot.
7. Ohio State Buckeyes
While the Buckeyes will lose to USC this year, they won’t be throttled… At least not until their Rose Bowl rematch. Penn St is getting some preseason hype, but they’re too young and are still a year away. The Buckeyes are getting closer to the rest of the Big Ten pack, but they’ll enjoy one more year on top of the pile.
8. Ole Miss Rebels
Locally, Ole Miss fans are calling anything short of a trip to Atlanta a disappointment. I’m calling their ideas of reality a disappointment.
9. Virginia Tech Hokies
Losing your lead runningback before the first kickoff hurts, but it doesn’t change the hogs that were blocking for him in the first place. The Hokies will lose something along with their leading rusher, but someone will fill that void before October. Now if Tyrod can just play like a real quarterback….
10. Georgia Bulldogs
Call me an SEC homer, but the league is deep. And the Bulldogs have dark horse written all over them. If you don’t believe me, check out how they fared with an unproven QB and deep, deep roster in 2005.
11. Oklahoma State
This weekend’s match-up in Stillwater is that close. And I don’t know if I can really hurt either team if they lose a well played game. But we’ll only know the answer to that question next week.
12. California Bears
The Bears are on the outside looking in on most preseason polls, but bettor beware. They get USC at home early in the year. A close game or even an upset will put them in great position to run the table.
13. Penn State Nittany Lions
I don’t think JoePa will catch the spark he did last year, but his Lions won’t be all that bad. Scary for the Big Ten, but you could argue this is a rebuilding year.
14. Boise State Broncos
Boise State’s season is on the line before Labor Day as they welcome Oregon and their metro-sexual uniforms. But don’t worry, Oregon is vastly over-rated and the Broncos can coast to another BCS-busting romp in the Fiesta Bowl. (We hope.)

NFL Playoff Predictions
Here you’ll get my playoff predictions in a power rankings form. WTF!? You’ll see what I mean. But I’ll give you more details next week. It’s a college weekend.

1. Pittsburg Steelers – AFC North
2. New England Patriots – AFC East
3. Green Bay Packers – NFC North
4. New Orleans Saints – NFC South
5. Philadelphia Eagles – NFC East
6. Baltimore Ravens – AFC Wild Card
7. San Diego Chargers – AFC West
8. Minnesota Vikings – NFC Wild Card
9. Tennessee Titans – AFC South
10. New York Giants – NFC Wild Card
11. Indianapolis Colts – AFC Wild Card
12. Arizona Cardinals – NFC West