FOLLOW US ON TWITTER FACEBOOK The 2012 NCAA Football season kicks off on Thursday, August 30th and we will quickly have important games with National Title implications on our television sets. Before the season starts, here is sportsmasher.com’s preseason Top-25, and please check out the rest of our 2012 season preview, which has links at the bottom of this post. Although I picked the University of Georgia Bulldogs to win the BCS Title, they do not sit atop my preseason rankings, which are listed below: 1 ) Alabama Crimson Tide - I am a firm believer that the defending national champions should be at the top of the power rankings early unless someone dethrones them, or they have such significant losses that they will struggle to overcome. Nick Saban does not rebuild, he reloads, and although Alabama has a lot of defensive players and an offensive superstar (Trent Richardson) to replace they will create new household names in 2012. I expect the offense to be better with a more mature A.J. McCarron at quarterback, the one-two punch of Eddie Lacy and freshman T.J. Yeldon in the backfield and a very talented offensive line. You know Nick Saban will have the tide ready to play defense. 2 ) USC Trojans - The Trojans have the most talented offense in the country, lead by Heisman Trophy favorite quarterback Matt Barkley and his talented wide receivers including sophomore Marquise Lee and junior Robert Woods. USC also returns a lot of on the defensive side of the ball, however total organizational depth is a weakness, which could come back to bite them in the case of injuries. Still, I expect the Trojans to face off against whoever wins the SEC title in the National Championship game, they will be fun to watch in 2012. 3 ) Georgia Bulldogs - My pick to win the 2012 BCS Title, the Bulldogs return almost all of their key players from a very good 2011 team, which came on late following a disappointing loss to Boise State in their season opener. Important returning players include experienced starting quarterback Aaron Murray, ferocious pass rusher Jarvis Jones, linebacker Alec Ogletree, two defensive tackles that weigh over 350lbs (John Jenkins & Kwame Geathers) and safety Baccari Rambo. This Georgia team is also lucky enough to have a fairly easy schedule for the SEC, with their toughest game being at South Carolina until the SEC title game. Georgia has to deal with some early suspensions, but their opening games are ones they should still win, and they will only get more dangerous once they reach full strength. 4 ) LSU Tigers - The Bayou Bengals lost several impact players on defense including CB Morris Claiborne, DT Michael Brockers (NFL Draft) and DB Tyrann Mathieu (dismissed), however much like their SEC rivals the Alabama Crimson Tide LSU does not rebuild, they reload. The returnees are lead by two of the best defensive ends in the country, Sam Montgomery and Barkevious Mingo and hard hitting safety Eric Reid. The offense will feature a new quarterback in Georgia transfer Zach Mettenberger, who is being hailed as the best passer that Les Miles has had in years, and the tailback combo of Spencer Ware and Michael Ford. As expected, the winner of the Alabama versus LSU showdown on November 3rd will have a good shot at playing in the national title game. 5 ) Oregon Ducks - The fastest team in the country will be breaking in a redshirt freshman quarterback in 2012, Marcus Mariota, but he will have plenty of help. Returning to Oregon are dual big play threats Kenjon Barner and De’Anthony Thomas, who are capable of taking any play to pay dirt, and will make things easy for Mariota. Oregon will also feature a better defense than in recent years in 2012, lead by safety Josh Boyett and defensive end Dion Jordan. Keep an eye on freshman defensive end Arik Armstead, nicknamed “Man-Child” he is a talent who stands 6’8 and weighs 291lbs. 6 ) Oklahoma Sooners - After an incredible sophomore campaign in 2010 Sooners quarterback Landry Jones struggled in 2011, and some major questions arose regarding his place among the nation’s elite. I think that Jones will have a bounce back season for a slightly underrated Oklahoma team on the national scene, with weapons including wide receivers Kenny Stills and Allen Robinson (Penn State transfer) and running back Dominique Whaley. The defense is lead by linebacker Tom Wort and safety Tony Jefferson, who might be the best defensive back in the country. 7 ) Wisconsin Badgers - The Badgers have another typical Badgers team, which will do a lot of typical Wisconsin football things, this usually equals a big number in the win column. They are, as always, highlighted by a mammoth offensive line which will open huge holes for Heisman candidate tailback Montee Ball. Although he will never be the player that graduated quarterback Russell Wilson was at Wisconsin, I like Maryalnd transfer and former ACC Rookie-of-the-Year Danny O’Brien and think that he will do a nice job under center. The defense is solid, lead by linebackers Chris Borland and Mike Taylor and defensive tackle Beau Allen. 8 ) South Carolina Gamecocks Opposing quarterbacks will not have a lot of time to make decisions while facing South Carolina, the former top recruit in the country Jaedeveon Clowney and opposing end Devin Taylor will bring pressure on ever snap. The Gamecocks’s offense is lead by running back Marcus Lattimore, arguably the best player in college football in 2011, until a knee injury prematurely ended his season. Lattimore is back, as is quarterback Connor Shaw, and I expect this team to be in competition with Georgia as the representative from the SEC East in the conference championship game. 9 ) Michigan State Spartans - Despite losing Kirk Cousins, the winnings quarterback in Michigan State history, the Spartans should be an excellent team this season. New starting quarterback Andrew Maxwell as impressed, but [...]