Texas Longhorns

There's still seven months before the start of the 2013 season, and the teams and their order figure to change frequently, but it's never too early to take a look at the Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2013.

And with three national championships in the past four years, there's no reason to change the team that's on top. Texas, with plenty of talent returning, is 11th in the rankings.

Also see:

• RecruitingNation's Too Early Top 25 recruiting update
• Early 2013 power rankings for the Big 12, and all the conferences

Auburn bid farewell to head coach Gene Chizik on Sunday. Could the Tigers also be saying goodbye to a trio of ESPN 150 recruits who could take their talents elsewhere?

Each week, RecruitingNation summons its writers from around the country to compile a list of the top 10 battles for elite football recruits leading up to February's signing day.

Here are this week's top battles , and you can take a shot at ranking the top 10 recruiting battles on SportsNation.

West Virginia and its high-powered offense led by Heisman frontrunner Geno Smith might appear downright impossible to shut down, but that wasn’t always the case.

For all of coach Dana Holgorsen’s statistical magnificence, there have also been blemishes. The Mountaineers’ Air Raid attack might be unstoppable on its best days, but on others it’s not unbeatable.

Last year, the Mountaineers dropped their big nonconference home test against LSU, 47-21. Smith set school passing records on that night that he has since shattered, and he got WVU as close as 27-21, but the Tigers pulled away and scored the game’s final three touchdowns.

That didn’t come as a surprise. The Tigers went on to hold down a No. 1 ranking for much of the season and played for the national title. No shame in that loss.

But the other two losses on West Virginia’s slate last year, well, they raise some questions. How exactly did two Big East foes beat the Mountaineers? What’s the secret?

The first was a legitimate stunner. No. 11 West Virginia traveled to Syracuse for a Friday night game last Oct. 21. The Carrier Dome was packed with its largest crowd in three years. The local fans went home happy. Syracuse won 49-23 by playing a near-flawless game.

Quarterback Ryan Nassib threw for four touchdowns, three to his tight end. His offense owned the line of scrimmage, producing 194 rushing yards and no rushes for loss, and Syracuse returned a kickoff for another score.

Thanks to a bye week, the Orange had plenty of time to draw up a savvy defensive game plan. Defensive end Chandler Jones, a future NFL first-rounder, recorded two sacks and six solo stops, and Syracuse forced two Smith interceptions at critical junctures in the game.

"It's quite simple," Holgorsen said after the game. "We knew what we were getting ourselves into. Syracuse beat us physically on all three sides of the ball. They outplayed us and outcoached us. It's as simple as that."

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