Can't Wait For Saturday Bonus year for Chambliss could lead Ole Miss back to CFP

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Aug. 6—

Once again, I will represent the state of Illinois on The Associated Press AP Top 25 panel. It is an honor and one of my favorite parts of the job I have been doing for 38 years.

Of course, some of you won't like how I rank the teams each week and that's cool. We are all entitled to our opinions. I will take any criticism you want to deliver. If you make a convincing argument, I will change my mind.

The poll starts with a preseason Top 25 that will be released Aug. 17. To get the poll talk going, I'm going to use this space over the next month and a half to count down my Top 40.

Why 40? Because that is number of teams I usually track

closely during the year, give or take a team or two.

Who is unveiled today …

— Without Lane Kiffin lurking around every corner while waiting for his bigger, better deal, the team is definitely more likable. Pete Golding, in his first full year in charge, did a solid job handling all the distractions and keeping his team together. And he did an even better job landing the No. 2 transfer portal class. Yes, LSU was No. 1. No big deal.

Golding added guys mostly from Power Four schools, Thirteen were from other SEC teams.

— Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss found the right people to say "you get another year of eligibility." I'm just glad we can watch him play again. He passed and ran for more than 4,500 yards and 30 touchdowns. No wonder he finished in the Too 10 in Heisman votes. He will contend again.

— Running back Kewan Lacy, who began his career at Missouri, was one of the nation's top producers in 2025. He gained 1,567 yards and scored 24 touchdowns on the ground. He added another 177 on 29 catches.

Sept. 19 vs. LSU. It is the circleiest game of them all, the night Kifin dares to show his face in Oxford. It was obviously not a happy parting of the ways. Best way for the home team to show its feelings is to win in a romp. Possible. Texas, Georgia and Oklahoma come later in what will be a challenging schedule.

10. Texas A&M SEC

11. BYU Big 12

12. Michigan Big Ten

13. LSU SEC

14. Southern California Big Ten

15. Houston Big 12

16. Washington Big Ten

17. Alabama SEC

18. Penn State Big Ten

19. Texas Tech Big 12

20. Missouri SEC

21. Utah Big 12

22. SMU ACC

23. Louisville ACC

24. Iowa Big Ten

25. Tennessee SEC

26. Boise State Pac-12

27. TCU Big 12

28. Clemson ACC

29. Florida SEC

30. Illinois Big Ten

31. South Carolina SEC

32. Arizona Big 12

33. Virginia Tech ACC

34. Auburn SEC

35. Kansaas State Big 12

36. Georgia Tech ACC

37. Pitt ACC

38. Arizona State Big 12

39. Virginia ACC

40. UCLA Big Ten

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