Way too early top 25 for next year

Clemson is losing nearly its entire defensive line, but the offense could be college football's best with the return of quarterback Trevor Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne. Head coach Dabo Swinney has the program in a position where it is just reloading every year, similar to his alma mater, Alabama.

As usual, the Crimson Tide are set to reload in 2019 despite losing multiple key pieces like Damien Harris, Irv Smith Jr., Jonah Williams, Quinnen Williams, Raekwon Davis and Deionte Thompson. The most important player to return is quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, and he will have plenty to work with.

Georgia had a relatively disappointing year, failing to make the College Football Playoff and getting upset by Texas in the Sugar Bowl. Despite the disappointing finish, the Bulldogs should be favored to get back to the College Football Playoff with the return of quarterback Jake Fromm and running back D'Andre Swift.

It's a new chapter at Ohio State with the retirement of Urban Meyer and likely departure of quarterback Dwayne Haskins. But the Buckeyes are in good hands with new head coach Ryan Day and likely new quarterback starter Justin Fields. The team remains loaded on both sides of the ball.

Can Jim Harbaugh get over the hump? He's yet to beat Ohio State and make a College Football Playoff since joining his alma mater in 2015, and the team's loss to Florida in the Peach Bowl, albeit without key NFL prospects, was another disappointment. The good news is that quarterback Shea Patterson has opted to return, and the team's depth remains strong.

Oklahoma checked one box by giving hot NFL head coaching candidate Lincoln Riley a contract extension, but which player will be the 2019 quarterback remains to be seen. There's speculation that Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray will return next season after playing pro baseball over the summer, and that possibility would certainly make the team a favorite to return to the playoff.

Notre Dame's season got a jump-start with Ian Book under center, though the Irish were completely overmatched vs. Clemson in the CFP semifinals. The defense has key losses in Jerry Tillery and Julian Love, but there is enough here for Notre Dame to challenge for the CFP.

LSU took a step forward on offense with quarterback Joe Burrow, and head coach Ed Orgeron continues to recruit well. The Tigers defense continues to put them in consideration as a top 10 team, but will the offense finally hold up its end next year?

Tom Herman has major momentum going into next season after upsetting Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Entering his third year in the program, Herman has his quarterback in Sam Ehlinger, and his recruits are starting to pay dividends.

Quarterback Kellen Mond continued to develop throughout the year and is a dark horse to win the Heisman Trophy next season. Overtime wins vs. Kentucky and LSU in 2018 showed the team's upside. It's hard to find a team with a much tougher schedule next season, however, as the Aggies visit Clemson in Week 2, host Alabama in mid-October and then travel to Georgia and LSU to close out the year.

It looks like Dan Mullen might have finally found his quarterback with the strong play of Feleipe Franks in the Peach Bowl. Florida loses several key pieces on defense but should have enough reinforcements.

The return of Justin Herbert is huge for the Ducks, and based on his Redbox Bowl performance vs. Michigan State, it looks like the right decision. Head coach Mario Cristobal has an excellent recruiting class for 2019 as well.

Gus Malzahn's offense looked far better with him calling the plays in Auburn's bowl win, and that's expected to continue next year. The team might need to notch double-digit wins for Malzahn to stick around more than one more year, but the talent is there for him to do it.

Head coach Matt Campbell is one of the hottest names not only in college circles, but even in the NFL. After a 1-3 start, he turned the Cyclones into a real Big 12 contender with freshman quarterback Brock Purdy, and the defense is legitimate.

We're finally seeing turnover in the Penn State offense with Tommy Stevens taking over at quarterback next season, and James Franklin has plenty of talent returning on defense. Getting over the hump of Ohio State and Michigan is a tall order, however.

Head coach Chris Petersen has successfully built a second-tier powerhouse at Washington, but things will be much different next season without Jake Browning and Myles Gaskin. Jacob Eason is a highly capable replacement and arguably an improvement at quarterback, however.

Utah quietly won nine games in 2018 and will get quarterback Tyler Huntley back from a fractured collarbone. Just as important is the return of running back Zack Moss, who averaged 6.1 yards per carry.

There's no escaping the fact that it was a disappointing year for the Badgers, but the team still pulled off an eight-win season. Head coach Paul Chryst has running back Jonathan Taylor returning, and he's a legitimate Heisman candidate after rushing for a combined 4,171 yards over his first two seasons.

Scott Frost's return to Lincoln couldn't have been much worse in the beginning, but the team looked formidable in the second half of the year, winning four of six games. Those included big wins against Minnesota and Michigan State. Adrian Martinez looks like a potential keeper at quarterback.

Mizzou has some huge losses, including quarterback Drew Lock, running back Damarea Crockett, wide receiver Emanuel Hall, tight end Albert Okwuegbunam and defensive lineman Terry Beckner. Still, the Tigers got a big boost when former Clemson starting quarterback Kelly Bryant committed for 2019, so the offense could remain a major force.

Head coach Pat Fitzgerald was rumored to be getting NFL consideration, which says a lot for what he's built at Northwestern. Clemson transfer Hunter Johnson will replace Clayton Thorson at quarterback, and several key pieces of a defense that allowed only 23.2 points per game in 2018 will also be back.

Kirk Ferentz's program has won at least eight games in four straight seasons, and quarterback Nate Stanley will return after throwing 26 touchdowns last season. Iowa has become Tight End U, with possible first-round pick Noah Fant off to the NFL after following in the footsteps of NFL star George Kittle.

It remains to be seen if quarterback McKenzie Milton will return next season after a scary leg injury, but we're certainly pulling for him. Even without Milton, Darriel Mack Jr. looks like a formidable replacement, and head coach Josh Heupel successfully established himself with an undefeated regular season. Also of note is running back Greg McCrae, who averaged a ridiculous 8.9 yards per carry in his sophomore campaign.

Army is coming off an 11-2 season, as head coach Jeff Monken has completely turned the program around with three straight bowl wins. Quarterback Kelvin Hopkins Jr. is the straw that stirs the drink in the triple-option offense, and he's looking to build off a junior season in which he rushed for 17 scores.

Quarterback transfer Gardner Minshew was a revelation for the Cougars in 2018, and Mike Leach has his work cut out for him in maintaining the production of Minshew and Luke Falk before him. Based on Leach's track record with at least eight wins in four straight seasons, it would be foolish to doubt him.