School soccer’s Week 0 offered drama followers have missed since final 12 months, however now the true enjoyable begins.
With Week 1 quick approaching, listed here are 10 burning questions for the brand new season.
1. Will the expanded playoff format work?
Now that includes 12 groups, the brand new playoff in all probability will keep away from an argument like final season, when an undefeated convention champion (Florida State) and a one-loss defending nationwide champion (Georgia) have been snubbed for a one-loss SEC champion (Alabama). However will including two further weeks to the season profit or hinder the power to crown an undisputed nationwide champion?
2. Is convention realignment over?
The previous 12 months have seen faculty soccer bear dramatic modifications. Texas and Oklahoma leaping to the SEC led to the to the demise of the Pac-12, sending 10 of its members scattering to the ACC, Huge Ten and Huge 12 to financially survive and to remain aggressive. Smaller conferences noticed their very own flurry of exits and additions because of the vacuum, however how lengthy will the present panorama maintain because the NCAA navigates the NIL period?
3. Who will win the Heisman trophy?
Predicting the Heisman winner at this stage is anybody’s guess, however among the many early favorites are quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel (Oregon), Carson Beck (Georgia) and Quinn Ewers (Texas). That listing is bound to develop and fluctuate because the season progresses, however it is not far-fetched to imagine the main contenders for the playoff will characteristic the three finalists in New York Metropolis come December.
4. Do the non-playoff bowls imply something anymore?
With the brand new playoff absorbing all the New Yr’s Six bowls into the format (4 within the quarterfinals and two within the semifinals on a rotating foundation), groups not within the expanded 12-team discipline — however having at the least six wins — will take part within the remaining 36 minor bowls.
Nevertheless, these bowls have been shedding luster for awhile now with many draft-eligible starters opting out lately. So will anybody care in regards to the Unhealthy Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl apart from the 2 groups in it? And can iconic video games such because the Rose and Fiesta bowls imply something if they have been relegated to stepping-stone video games forward of the nationwide championship?
5. Is Ohio State head coach Ryan Day in bother?
After shedding to Michigan for a 3rd 12 months in a row and lacking out on the ultimate four-team playoff final season, Ohio State’s Ryan Day is a type of hot-seat coaches. The persistence of Ohio State followers might be working skinny if the Buckeyes cannot carry dwelling their first nationwide championship for the reason that 2014-15 season. And one other loss to the Wolverines — even when Ohio State makes the playoffs — could be the ultimate straw for Day.
6. Is it playoff-or-bust for Alabama and new head coach Kalen DeBoer?
Changing Nick Saban will not be simple, however it does not harm to inherit a program and roster like Alabama’s. DeBoer, recent off a nationwide championship look with Washington, will not have the identical grace interval most coaches get of their first season. Following up on final season’s SEC title with one other convention championship will troublesome, however it’s nonetheless achievable. Something wanting a berth within the 12-team playoff can be thought-about a catastrophe in Tuscaloosa.
7. Will there nonetheless be a playoff snub?
Whereas the expanded playoff was meant to get rid of a Florida State fiasco like final season, there’s sure to be at the least one crew on the surface trying in that feels snubbed. In actual fact, the brand new format is structured so groups ranked within the top-12 should not all assured to make the playoff. So, it is fully doable that the No. 12 crew may very well be overlooked for a lower-ranked Group of 5 champion.
8. Will anybody go undefeated?
Sporting an undefeated season sometimes has earned a crew a spot within the authentic four-team playoff (sans 2017 Central Florida and 2023 Florida State). Nevertheless, now an undefeated season will not be essential to safe a spot within the expanded format. It is very possible a one-loss crew — and maybe even a two-loss crew — might discover its manner into the brand new playoff. The period of undefeated nationwide champions may very well be up to now.
9. Is the ACC a free-for-all?
With a shocking upset in Eire on Saturday over Florida State, Georgia Tech severely hampered the No. 10 Seminoles’ quest for an additional convention title and a top-four seed within the playoff. Now ACC groups Miami, Clemson and Virginia Tech are squarely within the convention title hunt.
10. Is Georgia actually the crew to beat?
The Bulldogs got here in at No. 1 within the AP preseason ballot and boast a Heisman favourite in quarterback Carson Beck, however will the highway to the nationwide championship truly run by Athens? Georgia is not any lock within the SEC, particularly with No. 4 Texas coming into the image, and No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Oregon will definitely have one thing to contribute to the dialog from the Huge Ten as properly.
