We have something new happening at ATQ this year.  The most common debates in college football always have to do with rankings.  Its part of what makes college football so much fun.  Most commonly, we follow the AP and coaches polls, wonder what the hell they were thinking, and talk about how everything would be wonderful if only we had a vote in the elusive poll.

Well, this year we do.  Sort of.  A few years ago, some of the big hitters in the college football blogosphere decided to create a poll that college bloggers could participate in, and the blog poll was born.  This is the third year of the poll.

This year, ATQ was selected to participate in the poll.  If you look on the left sidebar under the schedule, you can see the participants this year.  These blogs are the cream of the crop in the college blogosphere, and to be included among them is truly an honor.  Anyway, these differ in the AP and coaches polls in four ways:

1. Unlike the coaches, we actually watch other teams play.
2. Unlike the AP, we wait until Wednesday to publish our polls, letting what happened over the weekend digest, instead of rushing it out the next day.
3. We are held accountable to the other poll memebers.  This means that we are constantly asked to explain and defend our choices to our colleagues.  We don't just get to mail it in.
4. You will see our votes every week, and we have to explain and defend them to you, as well.  Your input in the comments will be taken into account in my votes.

   With that said, here are my thoughts regarding my preseason ballot:

   Rank	Team	Delta
   1	Southern Cal	25
   2	LSU	24
   3	Michigan	23
   4	Texas	22
   5	Wisconsin	21
   6	West Virginia	20
   7	Florida	19
   8	Georgia	18
   9	Hawaii	17
   10	Oklahoma	16
   11	Louisville	15
   12	Nebraska	14
   13	Virginia Tech	13
   14	Ohio State	12
   15	Oregon	11
   16	Arizona State	10
   17	Tennessee	9
   18	Auburn	8
   19	Rutgers	7
   20	Penn State	6
   21	Alabama	5
   22	Boston College	4
   23	California	3
   24	Boise State	2
   25	Florida State	1

   
   
   Dropped Out:
   The first poll isn't due until August 22nd, so I welcome your comments and suggestions, as I may change this a bit before making my submission final.

   I think that SC has the most talent in the land. Regarding other Pac-10 schools:  It is my belief that a healthy defense and a confident Dennis Dixon puts Oregon no worse than #3 in the conference.  I also am falling for ASU, which is usually dangerous.  However, I respect Dennis Erickson so much that I just see them being a big mover this year.

   On the flip side, I don't have Cal ranked as high because I think that the loss of Marshawn Lynch is going to hurt this team more than people realize.  I also don't have UCLA or OSU ranked, while a lot of people do.  I don't trust OSU's QB situation and we don't know what's going on with Sammie Stroughter.  As for UCLA, I don't see what the hype is.  They've done nothing to suggest that they'll be any good, and the fact that Karl Dorrell is their coach makes it even less likely.

   On other teams, I may have Hawaii too high, and Va. Tech too low.  And even at #5, I may have Wisconsin too low as well.

   Anyway, I'd love to have your input in the comments.  My final poll isn't due until the 22nd, I want you to convince me that I'm right or wrong, and ask me to defend my picks.  Happy debating.

   GO DUCKS!!!

   --Dave