Joel Klatt Explains why he has Ohio State Ranked over Georgia

Christian Goeckel | May 9, 2024

Dec 31, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes place kicker Noah Ruggles (95) / John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Fox's Joel Klatt, one of the biggest voices in college football, unvieled his preseason rankings. He gave the Ohio State Buckeyes a slight edge over Georgia for the top spot.

2024 is a historic season for college football. Texas and Oklahoma will make their SEC debuts while Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA all make the jump to the Big Ten. Joel Klatt of Fox Sports recently revealed his preseason top 25 for this historic season. The Big Noon Saturday commentator (the top weekly Big Ten game), has the Ohio State Buckeyes at No. 1, just ahead of Georgia.

"Ohio State's going to be number one for me, Georgia is going to be number two," began Klatt. "I couldn't make up for the fact that Ohio State's roster is the best roster in the sport. What they did this offseason, in a lot of ways is unprecedented, keeping the talent that they had off of their own roster, acquiring talent not only through high school recruiting but also through the portal."

To be fair, the Buckeyes did have a big offseason in the portal, landing Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins, Alabama quarterback Julian Sayin, and Alabama safety Caleb Downs. It's not just roster makeup that has the Buckeyes No. 1 in Klatt's eyes, but also the schedule. Georgia's is brutal and could potentially be a hindrance.

"Let's start with Georgia really quickly at No. 2," continued Klatt. "Carson Beck, I think he's going to be a Heisman front-runner along with Quinn Ewers. There's never going to be a question at UGA with talent. Their last five recruiting classes have all been in the top four with a couple of those being number one, the front seven is going to be great. It's always great. Mykel Williams is terrific off the edge, likely a first-round pick next year. Malaki Starks at safety, he's maybe along with Will Johnson, one of the best defensive backs in the country. They're 46 and two in their last 48 games. That's ridiculous. Them and Michigan have just dominated the sport for the last couple of years. Their schedule, though is tough."

"Georgia doesn't get any favors, because they've got to open with Clemson who's in my top 15. That's in Atlanta. Road games against Alabama, Texas, and Ole Miss and a home game against Tennessee. So they've got to face Texas, Alabama, and Ole Miss. So the two other best teams in the SEC, three other best teams in the SEC, all top 10 teams, they've got to go on the road, Bama, Texas, Ole Miss. That ain't easy. So Georgia is up against it. They've had a lot of kids transfer out. So I'm looking at that schedule, I get it, their quarterback is back, I get it the way that they've recruited. And you know that Kirby Smart has a couple of rings on the mantle. And they no doubt will be there in the end. There's not a doubt in my mind. But the offseason that Ohio State had and the roster that they're going to put on the field to me makes them number one."

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