Every single college football team has its strengths and weaknesses. That includes the teams that the coaches ranked in the top-five of their preseason polls. The power of a particular strength can help to carry a unit and mask the deficiencies of a team but in the end each program is only as strong as its weakest link. Here is a look at the biggest weaknesses for each of the preseason top five teams.
#1 Alabama – Quarterback
Even after another offseason of substantial turnover, the Crimson Tide are still loaded on both sides of the football. Their biggest concern in the preseason right now is at the quarterback position where Cooper Batemen and Blake Barnett are fighting to replace the departed Jake Cooper. Bo Scarborough is a highly touted running back that should be able to carry the load as the starter following Derrick Henry’s departure and Alabama has some dangerous weapons at wide receiver but ultimately they will need either Batemen or Barnett to emerge as a legitimate No. 1 quarterback in order to have a chance to successfully defend their SEC and national championships.
#2 Clemson – Secondary
The defending ACC champion and national title runner-up Tigers lost three players from their secondary to the NFL, which leaves Cordrea Tankersley as the lone returning starter in that group. Korrin Wiggins will be a key returning piece but Clemson will lack experience on its back end. That will mean even more pressure on Tankersley and Wiggins to stand out and help the young players in the secondary as they develop throughout the regular season.
The Tigers have the talent to repeat in the ACC but they will need the players in their secondary to step up in order to overcome their biggest weaknesses. Heading into the season, it looks like it’s a two-horse race betwene Clemson and Florida State, and while Clemson has the better offense right now, Florida State will try to make up that gap with the better defense. Clemson’s secondary will be key.
#3 Oklahoma – Linebacker
Baker Mayfield leads a talented cast on offense but the Sooners have question marks on the defensive side of the football including at outside linebacker in particular. Eric Striker registered 36 tackles for loss and 16.5 sacks for loss throughout 2014 and 2015 while Davante Bond had seven tackles for loss while sharing the starting job with P.L. Lindley last season. Redshirt freshman Ricky DeBerry, two-year reserve Ogbonnia Okoronkwo and true freshman Caleb Kelly are among the players expected to fill the void at outside linebacker and their development will be extremely important to the success of the Oklahoma defense.
#4 Florida State – Linebacker
Florida State is another preseason Top 5 team with question marks at linebacker after both Reggie Northrup and Terrance Smith departed in the offseason. The Seminoles are still loaded on both sides of the football but they will need some young players to step up with Ro’Derrick Hoskins and Jacob Pugh the favorites to start at the linebacker position. Michael Thomas is a wild card to start as a five-star prospect from three cycles ago and he returns after being suspended for last season. FSU is comfortable with the talent they have at the position and if their linebackers can step up it will solidify a defense that has the potential to be one of the best in the entire country.
#5 Ohio State – Experience
The Buckeyes in the preseason Top 5, but lost a ton of experience to the NFL Draft this past offseason. While they are still loaded with talent following another impressive recruiting cycle, they will have several fresh faces in key positions. The good news is that J.T. Barrett will be back as the unquestioned starter at the quarterback position. He will have to lead after having a lousy season last year. He will also need some key players around him to step up and really help take the pressure off of him. A Week 3 showdown at Oklahoma will test Ohio State’s youth and tell us everything we need to know about this team. We’ll see if they canshow up for the tough test in Norman, which is traditionally a very tough place to go and win.
