1. ALABAMA
BUZZ: Nick Saban won a national title in his third season at Alabama. Jim McElwain is an underrated offensive coordinator. Kirby Smart is gaining more notice for his work with the defense. The position coaches know what they are doing, too.

2. VIRGINIA TECH
BUZZ: In the ACC, a league that has featured plenty of coaching turnover the past five seasons, the Hokies have thrived on continuity. Defensive coordinator Bud Foster is one of the best, if not the best, in the nation. Running backs coach Billy Hite churns out good ones on an annual basis.

3. IOWA
BUZZ: Kirk Ferentz's staff has been together for a long time. Offensive coordinator Ken O'Keefe operates a conventional two-back, two-wide attack that is a throwback in some ways. The Hawkeyes always want to establish the run first, setting up defenses for play-action passes. Defensive coordinator Norm Parker keeps things simple -- and it works. The Hawkeyes operate out of a 4-3 scheme and Parker rarely blitzes. Instead, Iowa employs a bend-but-don't-break philosophy

4. FLORIDA
BUZZ: Urban Meyer has won two national titles in five seasons. Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin arrives from the NFL's Arizona Cardinals and has big shoes to fill in replacing Charlie Strong, who became coach at Louisville. Offensive coordinator Steve Addazio is in his second season and was promoted to replace Dan Mullen, who became coach at Mississippi State after the 2008 season. Defensive line coach Dan McCarney is a good one.

5. OKLAHOMA
BUZZ: Six conference championships under Bob Stoops says it all. Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson seems destined to be a head coach sooner rather than later.

6. TEXAS
BUZZ: Mack Brown consistently produces 10-win teams, Defensive coordinator/coach-in-waiting Will Muschamp is elite, and offensive coordinator Greg Davis is under-appreciated.

7. PENN STATE
BUZZ: Joe Paterno keeps rolling along. Coordinator Galen Hall is a sage play-caller who has done wonders with this offense since returning to his alma mater in 2004. But also credit Jay Paterno for updating this offense in recent years with his "Spread HD" scheme and for his standout work in developing quarterbacks. Tom Bradley is a primo defensive coordinator.

8. OHIO STATE
BUZZ: Jim Tressel has great staff stability, which has helped. Jim Heacock is one of the nation's top defensive coordinators. Co-defensive coordinator Luke Fickell is a rising star. Tressel calls plays, but coordinator Jim Bollman is a valuable asset. Wide receiver coach Darrell Hazell is on the fast track.

9. TCU
BUZZ: Are there 10 head coaches in the nation better than Gary Patterson? Is there a single defensive coordinator better than Dick Bumpas?

10. BOISE STATE
BUZZ: Coach Chris Petersen took over a program on the rise and now has the Broncos living in rarified air. He and offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin work well together, and you would think Harsin will get a chance to run his own program relatively soon. The Broncos will miss defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox, who was hired for the same job at Tennessee.

11. GEORGIA TECH
BUZZ: Nobody's arguing anymore about whether Paul Johnson's option attack can work in a major conference. His new defensive coordinator is Al Groh, and his work will go a long way toward determining whether the Yellow Jackets can continue to be a legit ACC contender.

12. OREGON STATE
BUZZ: Nobody gets more out of the talent on hand than Mike Riley and defensive coordinator Mark Banker. Riley, who played for Bear Bryant at Alabama, takes under-recruited players and turns them into consistent producers.