Programs like Nebraska and Oklahoma are ahead of us because of tradition. Even OSU is not 7 spots better than us. We had very comparable seasons last year except we lost to them at the horseshoe, in overtime, with our back-up QB. At most they are 2 or 3 spots better.
But, we didn't blow people out last year and the Big 10 is still fighting its image problem. And considering our huge question mark at O-Line, which could derail our season, I think 9 is fair.
All things considering, #9 is great, gives us a chance to compete this year. Undefeated we go to the national championship game, 1 or 2 losses and we still are in a BCS game. Lose more than that, it doesn't matter where we are ranked anyways.