CSF’s College Football Preseason Countdown to #1 continues this week with our #11-#15 ranked teams.  In case you missed them, check out our breakdown of #21-#25 and last week’s breakdown of teams #16-#20. 

15.  Virginia Tech:  The Hokies will have little trouble replacing the loss of QB Tyrod Taylor. There are Seven games on the schedule that look like blow outs before the season starts. The Hokies will meet the Seminoles once again in the ACC Championship Game.  –  Peter Marhoefer, Mr. Touchdown USA

The model of consistently being good, winning games, playing the right way, developing NFL ready players and an empty national championship trophy case.  I would love to have seen this team  with Tyrod Taylor and their running backs return, minus the brain freeze that got them early last year.  What might have been…  –  Christian Hon, CSF writer/contributor

14.  TCU:  They’re not going to be anywhere as good as last season, but, for one more season at least, they’ll play in the Mountain West before moving to the Big East.  Two years from now, none of us will even be able to name their previous conference.  –  Justin Cange, CSF writer/contributor

The Horned Frogs’ season will come down to the big game on November 12 at Boise State, and if Gary Patterson’s boys can pull it off, then a BCS bid will not be out of reach. But there are a lot of inexperienced players, which leads me to believe they could drop a game or two that would have been an easy W last season.  –  Nick Mattar, CSF writer/contributor

13.  Ohio State:  Off the field distractions and dates with Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Michigan State will keep the Buckeyes out of the BCS Title game but returning to the Rose Bowl.  –  Peter Marhoefer, Mr. Touchdown USA

Their players’ appreciation for tattoos could cost the Buckeyes dearly this season.  Of the five game suspensions of including key contributors Terrelle Pryor and Boom Herron, two of those games pit OSU against Miami and Michigan State.  Pryor and company return just in time to take on Big Ten newcomer Nebraska in Lincoln…not exactly a preseason game.  With their daunting schedule, the suspensions, and the continued pressure of an NCAA investigation, Ohio State will likely see themselves out of the BCS picture in 2011.  –  Jeff Dunbar, CSF Senior Editor

12.  Wisconsin:  The Badgers will sleepily bulldoze through the Big Ten and make us wonder how a perennial 10 win team can be so boring.  –  Christian Hon, CSF writer/contributor

The tailback tandem of Montee Ball, and James White will carry a huge load of the offense, and they will have to in order for new quarterback Jon Budmayr to succeed.  Budmayr has no game experience, but he has two talented receivers in Nick Toon and Jared Abbrederis to help him ease into his first season. On the other side of the ball, JJ Watt and Niles Brinkley will be tough to replace, but they should be fine as long as Louis Nzegwu and their senior-laden secondary produce.

11.  Oklahoma State:  I still don’t know how OSU didn’t win the Big 12 last year.  With that offense clicking on all cylinders and a road-weary OU team coming to Stillwater late in the season, I thought surely the Pokes would achieve their first berth in the Big 12 Championship Game.  Instead, they got blitzed again by OU.  Their biggest weapons on offense return, however, and as long as Brandon Weeden can find Justin Blackmon, OU is the only team that serves as a challenge.  — Justin Cange, CSF writer/contributor

Brandon Weeden and Justin Blackmon are getting all the hype, and why shouldn’t they after the numbers they posted last season.  But look for running back Joseph Randle to burst onto the national season in 2011.  As a freshman, the RB split time with Kendal Hunter, and he still had 452 yards rushing with another 427 yards receiving.  OSU also gets Oklahoma at home again this season, the second year in a row this rivalry match up will be played in Stillwater, due to the conference reallignment this fall.  –  Jeff Dunbar, CSF Senior Editor 

In Part 2 of our three-part coverage, College FootBlog continues our breakdown of the top six BCS conferences from the 2009 season.  In case you missed it, we ranked the fifth and sixth conferences earlier this week (see link). We continue our analysis by providing a recap of last season and an outlook for next year for conferences #3 and #4 in our Power Rankings.

4.  Big 12

Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh was one of very few bright spots in the Big 12 in '09 (google images)

2009 Recap:

If not for Texas making it to the BCS National Championship Game, the Big 12 would have ranked fifth or sixth in the ’09 Power Rankings.  Nebraska came out of nowhere, but their offense was anemic.  Oklahoma lost Sam Bradford and never really got on track all year.  Add in Mizzou and Texas Tech not living up to high expectations coming off successful 2008 campaigns, and the Big 12 didn’t have much to talk about beyond Colt McCoy, Jordan Shipley and Ndamukong Suh.

2010 outlook: Next season will likely be more of the same for the Big 12.  Although the loss of Colt McCoy in the first quarter of the BCS National Championship was a huge blow, it provided valuable experience to Freshman Garrett Gilbert.  Oklahoma’s offense should be improved with Landry Jones having a year of experience under his belt, but their dominant defense will likely take a step back.  The Sooners lose six defensive starters, including both corners and projected first-round DT Gerald McCoy.

Texas Tech will likely take a year or two before they truly integrate to Tommy Tuberville’s system, Oklahoma State will have to replace starting quarterback Zac Robinson and will lose WR Dez Bryant to the NFL.  Mizzou loses playmakers on each side of the ball in WR Denario Alexander and projected first round linebacker, Sean Weatherspoon.  Add to that, Nebraska’s departure of Suh (who many project as the number one overall pick in April’s draft), and the Big 12 North will have trouble keeping points off the scoreboard.

3.  Big Ten

2009 Recap: The major reason the Big Ten did not claim the #2 spot in the ’09 Power Rankings was depth.  Iowa surprised many experts by effectively shutting Georgia Tech’s offense down, thanks in large part to All-Big Ten DE Adrian Clayborn, who is planning on returning for his senior year.  Terrelle Pryor saved his best performance for last, as he dominated in Ohio State’s Rose Bowl win over Oregon.

The Big Ten finished with a bowl record of 4-3, with a surprising win from Wisconsin over Miami and a Penn State victory over an offensively inept LSU team.  A more in depth look at the top two teams from the conference, however, shows a couple of teams that were far from juggernauts.

Iowa had one of the best defenses in the nation, but their offense was nothing to write home about.  The Hawkeyes struggled to beat Arkansas State at home and had to depend on two blocked field goals at the end of the game to defeat another FCS opponent, Northern Iowa 17-16 in Iowa City.

The Buckeyes nearly lost their opener to Navy at home and fell to a struggling USC team, and they later fell to 5-7 Purdue.

Look for Terrelle Pryor to have a huge year in 2010 (google images)

2010 Outlook:

Look for the Big Ten to make a serious run at the #2 conference in the country next season.  Jim Tressel continues to put great defenses on the field for the Bucks and the offense should take a huge step forward with the return of running backs Brandon Saine and Boom Herron.  And if Terrelle Pryor’s Rose Bowl performance was a sign of things to come, the Bucks will be the real deal come fall.

Iowa is also very young on offense–the ‘Hawks will return both freshman running backs, quarterback Ricky Stanzi and wideout Marvin McNutt, who exploded onto the scene in 2009.  Couple that with Adrian Clayborn and several returners on an already dominant defense, and the ‘Hawks could make a serious run in 2010.

Three other teams from the Big Ten to keep an eye on next year are Northwestern, Wisconsin and Michigan.  Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald is one of the most underrated coaches in the country.  Wisconsin’s John Clay took full advantage of being the work horse last year, and expect more of the same in 2010, and watch out for the Wolverines.  This will be Rich Rodriguez’ third full season in Ann Arbor, and Tate Forcier will have a spring to put some much needed weight on.  If UM can assemble an average defense, the Big Blue will be bowling again at year’s end.

Look for the breakdown of the top two conferences in College FootBlog’s countdown in the next few days…