From a great post I read on Rivals National Board:
Ask any college football fan in the country who they would consider "on top" in today's college football world, and USC, Ohio State, LSU and Texas are probably the first answers you will get. I think we get so caught up in those teams and what's happening right now, and forget to look at other programs on the rise, and those storied programs on the way down.
For example, from 1999 to 2005, Rutgers was 23-56. This year, they're ranked in everyone's Top 15 entering the season, after going 11-2 last season and winning the Texas Bowl. Greg Schiano, the Knights head coach, turned down the head coaching job at MIAMI in the offseason. Now, let that sink in for a minute. The head coach at Rutgers went 11-2, and turned down Miami, who went 7-6, just four short years after playing for back-to-back National Championships.
West Virginia, who has always been good for a 7, 8, occasionally 9 win season, mixed in with some three and four win seasons every couple years, was able to keep their head coach, Rich Rodriguez, after he turned down the coaching vacancy at ALABAMA. Why? Because his Mountaineers have a great shot at winning at least 11 games for the third consecutive season in 2007. After Pat White and Steve Slaton leave, who knows what might happen there. But for Rodriguez to turn down that job, made a big statement as to how far his program had come and will continue to grow, and maybe how far the Alabama program had fallen.
Whatever was wrong with Alabama, more than likely got fixed when they went out and hired Nick Saban from the Miami Dolphins. The same Saban who just 4 seasons ago won the National Championship at LSU. Alabama fans have waited a long time to be so excited. Their last appearance in the SEC Championship Game was in 1999 (a 34-7 win over Florida). Saban is expensive (4 million a year expensive), but in my opinion, Alabama will be back in that SEC Championship Game very soon. A lot of people may disagree, but I think it could be as soon as THIS season. With Arkansas, Georgia, LSU, and Tennessee all having to go to Tuscaloosa, it won't surprise me at all to see Nick Saban and John Parker Wilson lead them to Atlanta in 2007.
Another SEC team, the Florida Gators just won a National Championship without Steve Spurrier. That's weird enough in itself, but to think that Florida had to knock down a late-game FG attempt against Spurrier's squad of South Carolina in order to win that National Championship is almost spooky. Florida averaged almost 5 losses per year in the four seasons prior to the championship run. And almost as quickly as Percy Harvin gets to the endzone on a reverse play, the Gators are back on top under head coach Urban Meyer.
Wake Forest won the ACC Championship in 2006, in a conference with Florida State, Miami, Virginia Tech, Boston College, Clemson, and NC State, the Demon Deacons won the ACC Championship while going 11-3. The same Wake Forest who had gone 28-41 in the first six seasons of this decade.
Another ACC team who is at a crossroads right now, Florida State, went on a mission this offseason to re-build its coaching staff. What they ended up with are two coaches, now as coordinators for the 'Noles, who could be named head coach of a lot of different programs around the country (Chuck Amato, Jimbo Fisher), not to mention DC Mickey Andrews. Isn't it ironic that Alabama and FSU square off against eachother this season? Two programs who know as well as anyone what it's like to be on top, and are going well beyond their reach to be there again? Mark that one on your calendar, September 29 in Jacksonville, Florida.
Something else that would have shocked all of college football 10 years ago, had fans seen it coming, is what has happened with Nebraska football. For the past three seasons, they've averaged more PASSING yards per game than they have RUSHING. But that's not even the weird part. For the past three seasons, they've also averaged five losses, which is abnormal, to say the least. They are improving every year under Bill Callahan, but things just aren't the same in Lincoln, these days. Great recruiting the past few years should help them get back to the days of dominating the North Division of the Big 12.
Then you have a program like Boise State, who has been knocking on the big door for some time now, finally broke it down this past January, with a Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma, a program that has been more than dominant this decade. In fact, Boise State is 58-7 in the past five seasons. That includes three seasons with only one loss, and last year's season with zero losses. The boys in Idaho are real.
Going into this next season, three of the top Heisman candidates hail from schools like: Arkansas, Rutgers,and Hawaii. Colt Brennan, Darren McFadden and Ray Rice are all worthy contenders for the trophy, and in years past, it's just hard to believe a true Heisman contender would have come from either of those schools.
So, just keep this in mind. You hear a lot and see a lot in college football these days. Pay attention to it now, because someday you'll look back and say "Remember when Rutgers was like 1-11 every year and then won 11 games the next year?", or "Remember the days when Nebraska ran for 300 yards a game instead of passing for 300?".
College football is in a really weird transition mode right now that is very hard to predict. Not all programs such as LSU, USC, and Ohio State will remain on top. Not all programs like Nebraska, Alabama, Miami and FSU will be down very much longer... and so the college football world turns.
Full Version: As the College Football World Turns
Well, at least it was good not to be mentioned in the "programs that are down" section. 
Damn can't September just get here already!!!!!!!!
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