Predicting the Top 10 Defenses in College Football for 2019 (Bleacher Report)

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If you choose to grade these predictions at the end of the season, the stat we're aiming for is yards per play. Points per game can be skewed by touchdowns on defense or special teams, and yards per game is dependent upon field position and how many snaps a team is able to take. Thus, yards per play is the best "basic" statistic for comparing defenses.

With one big exception (Ohio State), each team in our top 10 ranked in the top 25 in yards allowed per play in 2018. In several cases, the team has been in the top 25 in at least five consecutive years, as some programs just keep churning out great defenses regardless of roster attrition.

For each of these teams, we'll take a look at the star players as well as the potential weaknesses the should-be-great defenses will need to avoid/address.

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Noteworthy Teams Destined for Negative Regression

Mississippi State Bulldogs: 4.13 YPP (1st), 263.1 YPG (1st), 13.2 PPG (2nd)

Mississippi State came out of nowhere last year, leading the nation in yards per play after six consecutive seasons ranked 40th or worse. A return to mediocrity is likely in the Bulldogs' future after they lost three first-round draft picks (Jeffery Simmons, Montez Sweat and Johnathan Abram) to the NFL.

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7. LSU Tigers

2018 Rankings: 4.81 YPP (21st), 338.7 YPG (25th), 21.8 PPG (26th)

Key Players: In early April, Athlon Sports rated LSU's Grant Delpit as the eighth-best player and the No. 1 defensive player in the country for this coming season. The Tigers safety did a little bit of everything last season, finishing with 74 tackles, five sacks and five interceptions. If there's a Jabrill Peppers or Derwin James type of defensive star in 2019, you're probably looking at him. Delpit is just one piece of the returning puzzle, though. LSU gets back six of last year's seven leading tacklers.

Potential Weakness: Who replaces Devin White and Greedy Williams? LSU doesn't lose much quantity from last year's roster, but two consensus 2018 All-Americans is significant quality out the door. K'Lavon Chaisson is the presumed successor to White, but how will he look after tearing his ACL in the 2018 season opener? And will true-freshman cornerback Derek Stingley—the No. 3 overall recruit in 2019—be ready for a starting gig right away?

What to Expect: LSU is one of five power-conference teams to rank in the top 33 nationally in yards allowed per play in each of the past five seasons. The others are Alabama, Clemson, Michigan and Penn State. That's good company if you're looking for good defense, and the Tigers should easily finish in the top 33 again this season. If Delpit stays healthy and if Stingley is even half as good as advertised, this might be the best defense in the SEC.

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6. Georgia Bulldogs

2018 Rankings: 4.94 YPP (25th), 314.3 YPG (13th), 19.2 PPG (14th)

Key Players: Despite losing 2018 Thorpe Award winner Deandre Baker, Georgia should be loaded in the secondary. Richard LeCounte and J.R. Reed both return after leading the Bulldogs in tackling last season, Tyson Campbell is ready to build on a strong freshman campaign, and Eric Stokes (nine pass breakups) had an unexpected breakout year in 2018. That quartet won't be picked apart often, if at all.

Potential Weakness: Where will the pass rush come from? D'Andre Walker had 7.5 sacks last season, and the current Tennessee Titan was the only Bulldog to record more than two sacks in 2018. Opposing quarterbacks completed 61.0 percent of pass attempts and only threw eight interceptions in the entire season, and that's largely due to the lack of pressure.

What to Expect: Georgia has now had five consecutive recruiting classes ranked sixth or better by 247Sports, which means the Bulldogs have an embarrassment of riches on their depth chart. Just between the 2018 and 2019 classes, they have signed nine defensive players rated No. 45 overall or better, including the No. 1 overall recruit in this year's class, Nolan Smith. Spoiler alert: Georgia will be tough to score against.

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1. Alabama Crimson Tide

2018 Rankings: 4.89 YPP (24th), 319.5 YPG (16th), 18.1 PPG (12th)

Key Players: To the surprise of no one, Alabama has star players at all three levels. Raekwon Davis and LaBryan Ray are back to clamp down from the defensive ends. Dylan Moses and Anfernee Jennings return at linebacker after a combined 136 tackles and 23 tackles for loss last year. And a secondary anchored by Xavier McKinney and Patrick Surtain Jr. is bound to cause problems for opposing quarterbacks. Even if they get next to nothing this season out of the 15 4-star or 5-star defensive recruits in this year's class, the Crimson Tide will be stout.

Potential Weakness: It has been a while since defensive tackle was of any concern for Alabama. In A'Shawn Robinson, Dalvin Tomlinson, Daron Payne and Quinnen Williams, the Crimson Tide have had four consecutive first- or second-round draft picks holding down that spot over the last four years. But it's unclear who fills that role this year. It might be redshirt sophomore Phidarian Mathis, or it might be true freshman DJ Dale. Neither one is a sure thing to dominate.

What to Expect: An off year for Alabama was still damn good. It felt like the Crimson Tide had a major deficiency on defense after three straight seasons ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 in yards allowed per play, but they were still top 25 in all three categories, despite replacing their entire starting secondary from 2017. There are holes to fill—most notably DT Quinnen Williams and S Deionte Thompson—but more playing time for guys like Eyabi Anoma and Trevon Diggs won't be a bad thing.

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