As the 2018 college football season inches closer, ESPN has released its preseason power rankings for the upcoming campaign.
The defending champions Alabama Crimson Tide will begin the preseason just where they ended last year, on top as Nick Saban seeks his sixth title in the last 10 seasons in Tuscaloosa.
The Clemson Tigers, national champs in 2016, come in at No. 2 in the preseason power rankings, followed by Ohio State at No. 3 and the Georgia Bulldogs — last year’s runners-up — at No. 4.
Four Pac-12 teams land in ESPN’s preseason Top 25 power rankings, led by Washington at No. 5, Stanford at No. 14, USC at 16 and Oregon at 23rd.
The Oregon Ducks enter a college football season for the 10th time in the last 11 years ranked in the Top 25 AP preseason poll. Oregon is No. 24. That’s where Mario Cristobal’s tenure officially starts. The last 10 years included a Willie Taggart season, four Mark Helfrich seasons, four Chip Kelly seasons and a Mike Bellotti season. The final AP rankings in those years were NR, NR, 19, 2, 9, 2, 4, 3, 11, 10. We all lived through it and watched it, but seeing that trend makes you understand how important it is for Cristobal to get the Ducks back into national discussion and it helps explain why the Helfrich era ended (19th and NR in his final two seasons) with such a thud.
In summation, not number one or even top ten…thank god, and headroom to improve but not much room for error to fall out of the national spotlight. Hold on to your butts for another wild ride Duckpollers!
