| RANK | TEAM (FINAL RANK) | RECORD | RETURNING STARTERS | SCHEDULE STRENGTH |
| 26 | N.C. STATE | 7-5 | 14 | 74 |
| Senior safety Terrence Holt, brother of NFL wideout Torry Holt, averaged nearly 10 tackles a game |
| 27 | UTAH | 8-4 | 15 | 75 |
| Junior QB Lance Rice is the grandson of donor Bob Rice, whose name adorns Rice-Eccles Stadium |
| 28 | MICHIGAN STATE | 7-5 | 16 | 66 |
| QB Jeff Smoker fired 21 TD passes and just eight INTs last season as a sophomore |
| 29 | BOSTON COLLEGE (21) | 8-4 | 18 | 76 |
| With William Green opting for the NFL, the Eagles' four-year streak of 1,000-yard rushers will end |
| 30 | CLEMSON | 7-5 | 16 | 16 |
| Don't be surprised if junior QB Willie Simmons, successor to Woody Dantzler, throws for 3,000 yards |
| 31 | ALABAMA | 7-5 | 12 | 9 |
| The SEC's best rushing team (226.4 yards per game) has its top four ground gainers back |
| 32. | KANSAS STATE | 6-6 | 12 | 69 |
| Sophomore tackle Tank Reese (5'11", 280 pounds) was the Big 12's defensive newcomer of the year |
| 33 | ARKANSAS | 7-5 | 13 | 41 |
| The DWI suspension of All-America junior safety Ken Hamlin leaves the secondary hog-tied |
| 34 | TEXAS TECH | 7-5 | 19 | 4 |
| Senior Kliff Kinsgbury ranks among the nation's top five returning QBs in completions, yards and TDs |
| 35 | OREGON STATE | 5-6 | 17 | 57 |
| No preseason No. 1 this year, with sophomores replacing QB Jonathan Smith and RB Ken Simonton |
| 36 | BYU (25) | 12-2 | 12 | 80 |
| Junior QB Bret Engemann takes over an offense that had an NCAA-best 543 yards per game |
| 37 | WISCONSIN | 5-7 | 13 | 23 |
| Senior WR Lee Evans smashed David Boston's Big Ten receiving yards record last year, with 1,545 |
| 38 | UCLA | 7-4 | 13 | 2 |
| Coach Bob Toledo, who's 17-17 over the past three seasons, is on the hottest of hot seats |
| 39 | NOTRE DAME | 5-6 | 14 | 14 |
| Ty Willingham's first five games: Maryland, Purdue, Michigan, Michigan State, Stanford. Good luck |
| 40 | IOWA | 7-5 | 14 | 55 |
| The Hawkeyes have lost four straight to in-state rival Iowa State; they get another shot on Sept. 14 |
| 41 | PURDUE | 6-6 | 17 | 51 |
| Sophomore WR Taylor Stubblefield (73 catches, 910 yards) is questionable after a July 4 skull fracture |
| 42 | MISSISSIPPI | 7-4 | 16 | 32 |
| Eli Manning's second-year stats (2,948 yards, 31 TDs) look awfully close to Peyton's (2,954, 22) |
| 43 | STANFORD | 9-3 | 10 | 13 |
| Junior WR Luke Powell tops the Cardinal record book in yards per reception (22.3) |
| 44 | SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI | 6-5 | 18 | 67 |
| Can Derrick Nix return to the form that saw him rush for more than 1,000 yards in 1998 and '99? |
| 45 | PITTSBURGH | 7-5 | 16 | 58 |
| Following a 1-5 start, the Panthers won six straight, including a Tangerine Bowl victory over N.C. State |
| 46 | BOISE STATE | 8-4 | 15 | 112 |
| Senior S Quintin Mikell had 87 tackles in '01, junior RB David Mikell (no relation) 1,441 total yards |
| 47 | IOWA STATE | 7-5 | 15 | 34 |
| Seneca Wallace, the Big 12's top offensive newcomer in 2001, could be its best signal-caller |
| 48 | GEORGIA TECH (24) | 8-5 | 16 | 25 |
| QB A.J. Suggs, who started four games for Tennessee in 2000, takes over the offense |
| 49 | SYRACUSE (14) | 10-3 | 10 | 40 |
| The Orangemen lost nine starters on offense, though not speedy junior QB R.J. Anderson |
| 50 | COLORADO STATE | 7-5 | 15 | 39 |
| With RB Cecil Sapp healthy, Henri Childs (841 rushing yards) will see time at H-back |
| 51 | VIRGINIA | 5-7 | 13 | 10 |
| Groh as in throw: The Cavs tossed a school-record 451 passes in 2001, Al Groh's first season as coach |
| 52 | CINCINNATI | 7-5 | 17 | 73 |
| QB Gino Guidugli (2,573 yards, 16 TDs) was the first freshman to win Bearcats MVP honors |
| 53 | FRESNO STATE | 11-3 | 17 | 77 |
| Junior Jeff Grady, the successor to David Carr, has thrown just 23 career passes |
| 54 | MISSISSIPPI STATE | 3-8 | 16 | 17 |
| Senior LB Mario Haggan has had double-digit tackles in 13 of his 20 regular-season starts |
| 55 | LOUISIANA TECH | 7-5 | 18 | 78 |
| Junior QB Luke McCown has passed for 300 or more yards in 12 of his 19 games as a starter |
| 56 | CENTRAL FLORIDA | 6-5 | 11 | 98 |
| QB Ryan Schneider is ahead of Daunte Culpepper's two-season pace, with 5,257 yards and 38 TDs |
| 57 | BOWLING GREEN | 8-3 | 14 | 116 |
| Junior Josh Harris (1,022 passing yards) and senior Andy Sahm (1,326 yards) will see time at QB |
| 58 | WAKE FOREST | 6-5 | 17 | 45 |
| Defensive Demon: Senior end Calvin Pace has 19 sacks over the past two seasons |
| 59 | MEMPHIS | 5-6 | 17 | 87 |
| QB turned WR Travis Anglin, a 6'4" senior, caught five passes for 131 yards in the spring game |
| 60 | OKLAHOMA STATE | 4-7 | 18 | 24 |
| Junior WR Rashaun Woods led the Big 12 in receptions (80) and yards (1,023) as a sophomore |
| 61 | NEW MEXICO | 6-5 | 15 | 82 |
| Junior QB Casey Kelly started the final seven games of the season, leading the Lobos to a 5-2 finish |
| 62 | MISSOURI | 4-7 | 14 | 7 |
| All-Big 12 wideout (and Tigers b-baller) Justin Gage caught 74 passes last year as a junior |
| 63 | ARIZONA | 5-6 | 17 | 20 |
| Junior TB Clarence Farmer led the Pac-10 in rushing, with 1,229 yards (5.9 per carry) |
| 64 | HAWAII | 9-3 | 15 | 110 |
| QB Timmy Chang (medical redshirt in 2001) threw for 3,041 yards as a freshman in '00 |
| 65 | NORTH CAROLINA | 8-5 | 10 | 8 |
| The Tar Heels are still looking for a force to replace '01 Lombardi winner Julius Peppers |
| 66 | MINNESOTA | 4-7 | 16 | 56 |
| Not-so-Golden Gophers start only one senior on defense, CB Mike Lehan |
| 67 | WEST VIRGINIA | 3-8 | 17 | 28 |
| Senior RB Avon Cobourne aims for a Mountaineers first: four straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons |
| 68 | MIDDLE TENNESSEE | 8-3 | 16 | 114 |
| RB Dwone Hicks set school records for rushing TDs (20) and points (148) in 2001 as a junior |
| 69 | NORTHWESTERN | 4-7 | 11 | 49 |
| Sophomore Tony Stauss has the tough task of replacing record-setting QB Zak Kustok |
| 70 | EAST CAROLINA | 6-6 | 14 | 83 |
| All-Conference USA T Brian Rimpf held his own in games against Julius Peppers and Dwight Freeney |
