What's the Deal?

Alright everyone, I pose a question: Why is Auburn ranked so low going into this year?

Almost every poll I have seen (amateur and professional) has had Auburn ranked anywhere from 11-20. Is there a reason? Auburn finished last year ranked in the Top Ten despite injuries to WR Courtney Taylor, RB Kenny Irons, and QB Brandon Cox. They all played hurt almost the entire year. This is a team that went 11-2. Did I miss something?

Let's look at the teams consistently ranked high in the polls and see if there's an answer:

USC - They're loaded for years to come and played well last year, so they could legitimately be placed ahead of Auburn.

Michigan - Return the core of the offense and should be formidable all year.

Wisconsin - Decent team, but last year was as much a product of the schedule as anything else. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt for now, bc at worst, placing them ahead of Auburn would be just a difference of opinion.

West Virginia - Why not? Defense is a bit shabby, but there's no questioning the offensive firepower.

Ohio State - I don't really want to get into the SEC vs. Big Ten thing again, but Ohio State lost (arguably) its three best players: Ginn, Smith, and Pittman. I think it may have lost one of its best linebackers too, but I won't make that claim without checking it and I just don't feel like it right now. This team has done nothing to prove that it deserves to be ranked ahead of Auburn.

Virginia Tech - This seems to be everybody's darkhorse this preseason, but I'm not sold. The defense will be good, but in the ACC, what does that really tell us? The questions with QB Sean Glennon remain. I don't see enough here for them to merit a jump into preseason Top Tens ahead of Auburn.

Oklahoma - The running game will be fine, but they're going to be breaking in a brand new QB. That's not so easy. That alone should be enough to give Auburn the nod over Oklahoma.

Louisville - They have the talent, but can they adapt to Kragthorpe's system? A legitimate case can be made for Louisville to be ahead of AU.

LSU & Florida - I might as well do this together since the big debate now-a-days is which one has more talent on it. Both are great teams, so I'm not gonna argue that AU should be definitively ahead on any preseason list. However, I would like to note that Auburn beat them both last year. Yes, both of them. In the same season. Really...look it up.

Okay, enough of that. So what's wrong with Auburn? We lost Kenny Irons and half an offensive line that (for those of us who watched the games last year) never seemed to gel like it should have. Courtney Taylor also moved on to the NFL. And yet, the offense should be much better. Our receivers are finally starting to come around, we have TE Cole Bennett coming back, two stud back-up TEs, and a stable full of running backs that I cannot wait to see back in action (Tate, Davis, Stewart, Lester) and one who may replace them even though he's never started a game (Fannin). Meanwhile, Cox is back, healthy, and had an extremely productive spring. Where's the problem?

Then there's the defense. Our best player returns to the D-line. Our tackles are some of the best in the SEC. Our linebackers continue to prove themselves every year, and we have Tray Blackmon coming back. They only questionable area is the secondary, but it is filled with experienced players. Believe it or not, Auburn actually has some talent on its team too.

Who knows what we're getting with special teams bc we've essentially hit the reset button, but Wes Byrum is a huge recruit, and our punter (Shoemaker?) seems to be handling himself just fine. As far as kick returns go, with Fannin, Davis, and Lester to choose from, Auburn can take it the distance every time the other team kicks us the ball.

So what's the deal? I am not terribly upset with picking up the underdog status again, but haven't we earned at least a little preseason love? So, I implore anyone who reads this to please, for all that is good and holy, tell me what I am missing. I genuinely want to know what is bothering everyone so much. Is it just the schedule? I mean, yes, that's brutal, but so was Florida's last year. I beg you for replies.

War Eagle!