🏈 The SI preseason Top 25, complete with scouting reports on each of the 25 teams:

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Alabama finished last season atop the college football world after beating Clemson in the College Football Playoff title game. The Crimson Tide have a strong chance to end this season in the same spot. That's the best explanation for why the Alabama is No. 1 in our preseason rankings. Coach Nick Saban's crew will face plenty of competition, though, starting with two ACC powerhouses (No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 Florida State), a Big Ten heavyweight on the rise (No. 4 Michigan) and a familiar SEC West foe (No. 5 LSU).

All of those teams look like safe bets to factor into the playoff conversation, but the national pecking order is less clear after that. Will Oklahoma (No. 6) emerge from the Big 12 to make another appearance in the national semifinals? Can Ohio State (No. 9) reload after enduring heavy losses to the NFL draft this off-season? Is either Washington (No. 7) or Tennessee (No. 10) capable of living up to the preseason hype? There are more questions than answers right now, but don't worry: The start of the season is just a few weeks away.

Sports Illustrated's preseason Top 25 rankings

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  Alabama Crimson Tide
  2015 record: 14–1
  For the third consecutive year, Alabama will build an offense around a first-year starting quarterback. And for the first time since the Crimson Tide started winning big in 2008, they don’t return either of their top two rushers from last season.
  
  Don’t be fooled by the short list of returning starters on defense. Linebackers Tim Williams and Ryan Anderson and nose guard Da’Ron Payne played plenty as part of a ridiculously deep front seven rotation during Alabama’s national title run. With Jonathan Allen, Williams and Anderson, this may be the Tide’s best group of pass rushers in the Saban era.
  
  Click here for Alabama's complete scouting report.