| Rank | Team (Final Rank) | 2002 Record | Returning Starters |
| 26 | PURDUE | 7-6 | 19 |
| Senior FS Stuart Schweigert has 13 career INTs, two more than Boilermakers great Rod Woodson |
| 27 | COLORADO STATE | 10-4 |
15 |
| Bradlee Van Pelt, son of former NFL LB Brad, is MWC's best quarterback (206.6 yards per game total offense) |
| 28 | TCU (23) | 10-2 | 11 |
| Entire front four back from top-ranked defense that held opponents to 240.2 yards a game |
| 29 | FRESNO STATE | 9-5 |
16 |
| Sophomore QB Paul Pinegar (2,929 passing yards, 20 TDs) could be next David Carr |
| 30 | ALABAMA (11) | 10-3 | 16 |
| Senior TB Shaud Williams and sophomore QB Brodie Croyle are new coach Mike Shula's top weapons |
| 31 | MINNESOTA | 8-5 | 17 |
| Gophers should go bowling, with home games against Michigan and Wisconsin, and no Ohio State on schedule |
| 32 | NEBRASKA | 7-7 | 15 |
| Huskers will need better performance from erratic senior QB Jammal Lord (12 TD passes, 12 INTs) |
| 33 | UCLA | 8-5 | 14 |
| Former Denver Broncos wide receivers coach Karl Dorrell (age 39) brings new energy to Westwood |
| 34 | FLORIDA | 8-5 | 9 |
| Wide-open race among three candidates to succeed Rex Grossman at quarterback |
| 35 | OREGON STATE | 8-5 | 17 |
| Junior TB Steven Jackson was busy Beaver, rushing for school-record 1,690 yards last season |
| 36 | MISSISSIPPI | 7-6 | 17 |
| Eli Manning can throw to superior set of wideouts in senior Chris Collins (55 receptions) and junior Bill Flowers (53) |
| 37 | COLORADO (20) | 9-5 | 11 |
| Olympic skier and sophomore WR Jeremy Bloom is punt-return mogul: 15.0 yard average, 2 TDs |
| 38 | MISSOURI | 5-7 | 17 |
| Sophomore QB Brad Smith (3,362 total yards) leads group of nine returning starters on offense |
| 39 | IOWA (8) | 11-2 | 12 |
| Junior-college transfer Nathan Chandler takes over at QB for Heisman runner-up Brad Banks |
| 40 | ARKANSAS | 9-5 | 19 |
| Injury-plagued fifth-year TB Cedric Cobbs hopes to fulfill promise of '99, when he was Hogs' best-ever freshman rusher |
| 41 | WEST VIRGINIA (25) | 9-4 | 10 |
| Junior Rasheed Marshall's 666 rushing yards broke Big East QB mark Michael Vick set at Virginia Tech |
| 42 | MIAMI (OHIO) | 7-5 | 12 |
| RedHawks are touting junior QB Ben Roethlisberger (3,238 passing yards, 22 TDs ) for Heisman |
| 43 | WASHINGTON STATE (10) | 10-3 | 14 |
| Junior wideout Devard Darling (54 receptions, 11 TDs) has surest hands in Pac-10 |
| 44 | NEW MEXICO | 7-7 | 19 |
| Hope to build on success of RB DonTrell Moore (1,134 yards, 13 TDs), Mountain West Freshman of the Year |
| 45 | MARSHALL (24) | 11-2 | 12 |
| Junior QB Stan Hill (52 of 83, 536 yards) has big shoes to fill, taking over for departed Byron Leftwich |
| 46 | NORTHERN ILLINOIS | 8-4 | 14 |
| Senior TB Michael (the Burner) Turner set MAC ablaze with conference-record 1,915 rushing yards |
| 47 | AIR FORCE | 8-5 | 17 |
| Senior QB Chance Harridge is fifth Cadet to both rush and pass for 1,000 yards in same season |
| 48 | CLEMSON | 7-6 | 14 |
| CB Justin Miller led ACC with eight INTs and school-record 35.1 yards per punt return last year as freshman |
| 49 | SOUTH FLORIDA | 9-2 | 15 |
| Automatica III? Junior PK Santiago Gramatica -- younger brother of NFL's Martin and Bill -- hit 16 of 21 field goals |
| 50 | HAWAII | 10-4 | 14 |
| Junior QB Timmy Chang aims for Hawaii Five-O00 -- as in 5,000 passing yards -- after monster season (349 of 624, 4,474 yards) |
| 51 | TULANE | 8-5 | 12 |
| Wave's offense led by QB J.P. Losman (2,468 yards passing) and RB Mewelde Moore (1,138 rushing) |
| 52 | GEORGIA TECH | 7-6 | 12 |
| Senior DE Greg Gathers (school-best 31 career sacks) returns after missing '02 with kidney disorder |
| 53 | SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI | 7-6 | 15 |
| Thorpe Award semifinalist Etric Pruitt (139 tackles) provides senior leadership at free safety |
| 54 | SOUTH CAROLINA | 5-7 | 9 |
| Gamecocks will shift from 3-3-5 alignment to four-man front under new defensive coordinator Chris Cosh |
| 55 | MICHIGAN STATE | 4-8 | 16 |
| New coach John L. Smith led Louisville to five consecutive bowl games |
| 56 | CINCINNATI | 7-7 | 10 |
| Junior QB Gino Guidugli set Bearcats marks for attempts (472), completions (258) and yards (3,543) |
| 57 | CENTRAL FLORIDA | 7-5 | 10 |
| Senior QB Ryan Schneider (3,770 yards, 31 TDs ) should surpass Daunte Culpepper's career marks |
| 58 | NORTH CAROLINA | 3-9 | 15 |
| All-ACC FS Dexter Reid was second in nation with 13.8 tackles per game as junior |
| 59 | ILLINOIS | 5-7 | 14 |
| Senior FB Carey Davis is Illini's leading returning rusher (319 yards) and receiver (201 yards) |
| 60 | CALIFORNIA | 7-5 | 9 |
| Cal was golden last season, but having just two starters back on defense could make for more bearish year |
| 61 | BOISE STATE (15) | 12-1 | 10 |
| Nation's best offense in '02 has senior QB Ryan Dinwiddie (20 TDs, 3 INTs) back but little else |
| 62 | BYU | 5-7 | 18 |
| Bring the Payne could be special teams' rallying call as junior punter Matt Payne led nation with 47.6-yard average |
| 63 | BOSTON COLLEGE | 9-4 | 12 |
| Senior TB Derrick Knight (1,432 yards) should give Eagles sixth straight year with 1,000-yard rusher |
| 64 | IOWA STATE | 7-7 | 16 |
| Senior WR Lane Danielson led Cyclones with 63 catches for 1,073 yards |
| 65 | NORTH TEXAS | 8-5 | 14 |
| Senior LB Brandon Kennedy, the Sun Belt MVP, had 24 tackles for loss (second in nation), team-best nine sacks |
| 66 | BOWLING GREEN | 9-3 | 14 |
| New coach Gregg Brandon has two-way threat in senior QB Josh Harris (2,425 yards passing, 737 rushing) |
| 67 | KENTUCKY | 7-5 | 12 |
| Jumbo-sized (6'4", 260 pounds) senior QB Jared Lorenzen also had big-time stats (24 TDs, only five INTs) |
| 68 | MISSISSIPPI STATE | 3-9 | 15 |
| Coach Jackie Sherrill, now in his 12th season, has gone 6-17 in past two years |
| 69 | LOUISVILLE | 7-6 | 14 |
| Junior QB Stefan LeFors (49 yards) replaces three-time C-USA Player of the Year, Dave Ragone |
| 70 | SYRACUSE | 4-8 | 13 |
| Coach Paul Pasqualoni had first losing season in 12 years -- Orange fans unlikely to accept repeat |
