The preseason coaches poll projected the Alabama Crimson Tide as the top team in college football and, frankly, no one was surprised. There was some buzz around the team that the coaches landed in the No. 2 position, though, with the Ohio State Buckeyes flying ahead of the Florida State Seminoles in the pecking order.
Videos by FanBuzz
Now, Paul Myerberg of USA Today is backing up that conclusion in the form of the outlet's preseason predictions. Not only is Ohio State treated with a great deal of respect, the Buckeyes are the nation's only team projected with an undefeated mark at 12-0.
The Big Ten's power structure, according to the projections, includes Michigan (10-2), Penn State (10-2) and Wisconsin (11-1) but Urban Meyer and company sit atop the heap. It does not come as a shock to see the Buckeyes in the Big Ten driver's seat but, in the same breath, it is another thing entirely to project an undefeated run given how much the team lost to the NFL after the 2016 season.
Elsewhere, there are only a (small) handful of teams projected with only a single loss. Wisconsin, as noted above, jumps off the screen with the caveat that Ohio State is not on the team's schedule but the Badgers are also joined by Alabama, USC and Florida State in (very) unsurprising fashion.
This type of thing is more for fun than anything else but it can create arguments and the inclusion of Ohio State in unblemished fashion will certainly do that.
