Don't be surprised if ...

1. LSU achieves a double-digit victory total for the 2015 season (including the bowl game). THIS IS STILL POSSIBLE IF LSU WINS ITS BOWL GAME BECAUSE I CAN COUNT THE MCNEESE RAINOUT GAME AS THE 10TH WIN.
   
   This preseason has a 2011-type vibe to it. That year, the Tigers had a talented team but an uncertain situation at QB with Jordan Jefferson suspended pending the settlement of his legal issues - which didn't happen until midway through the season. So Jarrett Lee managed the offense with a minium of mistakes while the defense and special teams were outstanding. The result was what some commentators called "the greatest regular season in college football history" - 13-0 with non-conference wins over Oregon and West Virginia away from home.
   Turning to this year, all the talk out of Baton Rouge is how much more mature Brandon Harris is. He has studied the playbook - something he didn't do last year. With the support of a strong running game, Brandon should be able to do at least as well as Lee in 2011. I'm not saying the Tigers will go 13-0 but nine or ten regular season wins plus a bowl triumph will put the victory total into double-digits again. We'll know fast how good the 2015 Bengals are with a road trip to Mississippi State Week 2 followed by a home game against Auburn.
   Another reason for optimism is the infusion of several new coaches on the staff. The new defensive coordinator Kevin Steele and D-line coach Ed Orgeron have gotten most of the publicity, but receivers coach Tony Ball has gone back to square one and reconstructed his receivers from the ground up literally - from their footwork to the hand positioning. Hopefully, the dropped passes and bad routes that plagued the passing game last year - it wasn't all the fault of the QBs - will be eliminated.
   
   
2. The winner of the LSU-Auburn game wins the SEC West. X
   LIKE MANY OTHERS, I OVERRATED AUBURN. IT WAS CLEAR BY WEEK 3 WHEN THE PLAINSMEN CAME TO BATON ROUGE THAT THEY HAD NO CHANCE TO WIN THE WEST. HOWEVER, LSU WAS IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT UNTIL ITS FATEFUL TRIP TO TUSCALOOSA NOVEMBER 7.
   
   These two teams, like all the other SEC contenders, have question marks entering the season. Which rookie QB, Brandon Harris of LSU or Jeremy Johnson of Auburn, will be good enough to lead his team to the West championship? How quickly will the Auburn D improve under new coordi­nator Will Muschamp? The winner of this early contest will have positive answers to its nagging questions. If the visiting Tigers can win in a hostile environment, they will have proved themselves a worthy candidate for not only the SEC championship but also the College Football Playoff.
   
   
3. Tennessee wins the East Division of the SEC. X THE VOLS WERE THE SECOND BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT IN THE SEC EAST AFTER GEORGIA. AS USUAL, TENNESSEE CAME ON STRONG THE SECOND HALF OF THE SEASON BUT THAT'S BECAUSE THEIR SCHEDULE IS ALWAYS FRONT-LOADED, WITH THE LAST FOUR CONFERENCE GAMES THIS YEAR BEING KENTUCKY, SOUTH CAROLINA, MISSOURI, AND VANDERBILT.
   
   The Vols won four of their last five games, including the TaxSlayer Bowl over Iowa, after installing Joshua Dobbs at QB. Butch Jones has rekindled enthusiasm in Knoxville in just two years. Georgia is the consensus favorite in the East but have QB problems.
   
   
4. Alabama loses two regular season games for the first time since 2010. X AFTER THE OLE MISS GAME, THIS LOOKED POSSIBLE. BUT SABAN-KIFFEN STOPPED FLIP-FLOPPING QBs AND PUT COKER IN CHARGE.
   
   Both lines are imposing but the secondary was the weak link last year. And Jake Coker is like Anthony Jennings of LSU - if he hasn't shown he's an SEC caliber QB by now and seized the reins of the offense, he may never do so. It was expected that Coker would start last year when he transfer­red from Florida State. Now Saban still hasn't committed to a starter with the first game against Wisconsin a few days away. The Tide also lost All­America WR Amari Cooper and RB T. J. Yeldon.
   
   
5. Like last year, no SEC team finishes undefeated in conference play and at least one of the division winners has two conference losses X.
   
   No team stands head and shoulders above the rest of the conference, not even Alabama, which must find a QB for the second straight year.
   
   
6. Florida State repeats as ACC champion. X FSU CAME CLOSER THAN MOST PEOPLE THOUGHT BUT COULD NOT PREVAIL AT Clemson.
   
   With Everett Golson's transfer from Notre Dame, the Seminoles have plugged the hole at QB caused by Jameis Winston's heading to the NFL. The defense will be better than last year. And Dalvin Cook has been rein­stated after being acquitted of assault charges. I'm not looking for FSU to make the CFP again this year, but they should be good enough to win an ACC that has no overwhelming teams.

SEVERAL MORE PREDICTIONS BELOW.

The Top Twenty look like this.

Biggest disappointments

1. Auburn - not in Final CFP Top 25
2. Georgia - not in Top 25
3. Georgia Tech - finished 3-9
4. Oregon - #15
5. USC - #25
6. UCLA - not ranked
7. Arizona State - not ranked
8. Arkansas - not ranked
9. Baylor - #17 in final CFP rankings after losing not one but two starting QBs.
10. TCU - Frogs finished #11 in final CFP rankings.

Overachievers

1. Iowa - #5 in final CFP rankings about not being in top 58 in the composite preseason rankings
2. North Carolina - #10 after #43 composite ranking before season
3. Northwestern - #13 after not being in anyone's preseason Top 25
4. Michigan - #36 preseason composite that finished #14 in CFP
5. Houston - #18 after not getting any votes in preseason
6. Navy - #21 after not appearing in any Top 25 last summer
7. Temple - third AAC team that didn't get any attention in preseason
8. Florida - #34 preseason to #19 in CFP rankings
9. Clemson - #1 in final CFP rankings
10. Oklahoma - finished #4

More Golden Preseason Predictions

Don't be surprised if ...

1. Oregon doesn't finish in the Top Ten at the end of the regular season.
   
   The Ducks lost their Heisman Trophy QB and will now be in the third year of the post-Kelly era. The Pac-12 is tougher than ever. We'll know whether Oregon is good enough to again be a CFP contender quickly - they visit Michigan State September 12. The Quackers also visit an improved Washington as well as Stanford, where they've had problems in the past. And USC at home won't be a picnic.
   
   
2. Georgia doesn't finish in the final Top Ten.
   
   The preseason magazines summarize Georgia the same way they summarize LSU: If they get solid play at QB, they'll win the SEC East. But Mark Richt's teams have a history of underachieving. The October 10 visit to Neyland Stadium will be the key game in determining the East winner. And the Dogs go to Auburn November 14.