Even the top college football teams in the country have their weaknesses that need to be addressed. The key to their success is having enough strengths to mask their weaknesses long enough to address them throughout the year. For some teams, they’ll have time with a soft early schedule. For others, their strengths better be able to carry them right off the bat. Here is a look at the biggest strengths for each of the preseason top five teams.
#1 Alabama: Defense
The Crimson Tide will deal with substantial turnover on both sides of the football after celebrating another SEC title and national championship last season. There will be plenty of question marks on offense but the defense should remain the strength of this team. Jonathan Allen and Tim Williams have the potential to dominate up front as one of the nation’s most dynamic tandems at defensive tackle and defensive end respectively while Reuben Foster leads a deep cast of linebackers that includes Ryan Anderson, Dalvin Tomlinson and Shaun Dion Hamilton. The secondary is loaded with talent as well with Eddie Jackson, Marlon Humphrey and Minkah Fitzpatrick leading that group. Alabama will have a difficult road to repeating both in the SEC and on the national stage and they will rely on their defense to lead the way as their biggest strength heading in to this season.
#2 Clemson: Offensive Skill Positions
Deshaun Watson is back after becoming the first quarterback in FBS history to throw for more than 4,000 passing yards and run for more than 1,000 rushing yards in the same season. Now he returns to Clemson with an absolutely loaded cast of talent at the skill positions with the opportunity to put up big numbers once again this season. Running back Wayne Gallman set a school record for rushing yards a year ago 1,527 yards and 13 touchdowns and there is every reason to expect him to challenge that mark in 2016. Factor in the return of wide receiver Mike Williams to a group that returns Artavis Scott, Deon Cain and Hunter Renfrow and it’s clear Clemson has an absolutely loaded cast of talent at the skill positions on offense.
#3 Oklahoma: Offensive Backfield
The defending Big 12 champions will benefit tremendously from owning one of the best offensive backfields in the country with quarterback Baker Mayfield and running back Samaje Perine set to put up big numbers this season. Mayfield threw for 3,700 yards and 36 touchdowns a year ago while Perine has recorded 3,000-plus yards and 37 touchdowns in two seasons as the starting running back. Factor in the presence of backup running back Joe Mixon after he registered 1,109 yards and 11 scores in his debut season for Oklahoma and it’s clear the Sooners will have one of the most complete offensive backfields in the nation.
#4 Florida State: Defensive Line
FSU isn’t the most talented team at the linebacker position but they will be hoping that their defensive line can wreak havoc and help take some of the pressure off of the rest of its front-seven. DeMarcus Walker and Josh Sweat should make up one of the nation’s best combinations at the defensive end position and Derrick Nnadi is back after starting 13 games at defensive tackle. The Seminoles don’t have tremendous depth along their line but their starters have the potential to make up one of the most dominant defensive lines in the entire country this season.
#5 Ohio State: Coaching
The Buckeyes will have to replace 12 NFL Draft Picks and a few other undrafted free agents from last year’s roster, but they are still considered one of the top teams in the Big Ten. Urban Meyer is a big reason for that since he has done an incredible job recruiting and developing talent over the past couple of weeks. This is no longer a team that has to rebuild at any given time. They simply reload and go for it. The good news for them is they have the first couple of weeks to gel before their first stiff test of the year at Oklahoma.
Meyer and his staff will continue to put their players in position to maximize their talents and the job they do as coaches will help make sure Ohio State challenges for a Big Ten championship this season.
