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| Team | 2002 record | Comment |
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| 1. Oklahoma | 12-2 | QB Jason White coming back from two ACL tears |
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| 2. Miami | 12-1 | Opened season Thursday against Louisiana Tech |
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| 3. Ohio State | 14-0 | Aims to take out frustrating summer on Huskies |
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| 4. Texas | 11-2 | 3 WRs have totaled 5,653 career yards, 49 TDs |
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| 5. Michigan | 10-3 | Toughest games are at home, which helps |
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| 6. Auburn | 9-4 | Kudos for opening up with USC, albeit at home |
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| 7. Virginia Tech | 10-4 | Will start hot; can it avoid another 1-3 November? |
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| 8. Kansas State | 11-2 | Beat Cal 42-28 last week; scored 44.8 ppg in '02 |
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| 9. USC | 11-2 | Carson Palmer is gone; tough time to go to Auburn |
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| 10. Georgia | 13-1 | Freshman and four sophomores starting on OL |
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| 11. N.C. State | 11-3 | Wolfpack seek best season in school history |
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| 12. Pittsburgh | 9-4 | Brandon Miree (Winton Woods)
ran for 943 yards last season |