School’s almost in for thousands of student-athletes, participating in everything from baseball to wrestling. Here are five defending champions of note on the men’s side:

FBS: Louisiana State
FCS: Appalachian State
Soccer: Wake Forest
Water Polo: California
Cross Country: Oregon

LSU is 20-1 on the futures market to retain the BCS championship. Appalachian State’s football team is in a much stronger position to defend; the Mountaineers have collected three titles in a row, and the FCS (formerly Division I-A) uses a playoff system to determine its champion. There is some turnover, though, on this year’s Appalachian State squad.

Wake Forest is the preseason No. 1 in soccer, boasting nine returnees from the team that went 22-2-2 last year. Cal, the top-ranked preseason water polo program, is looking for a three-peat. The Ducks are Cross Country kings for the first time since the early 1970s; they’ll get a good challenge from Wisconsin. I’ll take the Demon Deacons in this fivesome.