10 college football predictions, from Week 1 to CFP national champion pick

LSU performs No. 23 USC in a neutral-site sport in Las Vegas, and the groups have some eerie similarities. Each groups are changing Heisman-winning quarterbacks and making an attempt to repair disastrous defensive items.

Miller Moss (USC) and Garrett Nussmeier (LSU) get the nod as beginning quarterbacks after promising bowl sport appearances final season.

With linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. returning and Kyren Lacy poised to take over the mantle as the following nice LSU vast receiver, the Tigers will begin the season in unfamiliar territory: 1-0.

Colorado misses bowl sport: The Buffaloes misplaced six in a row to finish 2023 after a 4-2 begin. Except Colorado’s protection and offensive line have drastically improved, it needs to be extra of the identical in Yr 2 beneath head coach Deion Sanders. 

Colorado performs 5 preseason top-25 groups in its first yr again within the Massive 12, plus rivalry video games in opposition to Nebraska and Colorado State on the highway in consecutive weeks.

Even with quarterback Shedeur Sanders and cornerback/vast receiver Travis Hunter among the many high gamers within the sport this yr, the Buffaloes have a mountain to climb to complete the common season bowl-eligible.

Nebraska makes bowl sport: Conversely, the Cornhuskers will snap their seven-year bowl drought with hyped freshman Dylan Raiola taking on at beginning quarterback. The five-star recruit initially dedicated to Georgia earlier than altering course to turn into the highest-profile addition of the Matt Rhule period.

With the quarterback improve, the Cornhuskers ought to have an improved offense. In addition they return a number of key items to a protection that ranked Thirteenth in factors allowed (18.3) and eleventh in complete protection (303.5 yards per sport) a season in the past.

Florida has one other dropping season: Gators head coach Billy Napier is getting into his third season and would possibly want a successful marketing campaign to make it to Yr 4. Sadly, Florida’s schedule is school soccer’s most daunting, together with 5 video games in opposition to preseason high 25 groups in November. For the primary time for the reason that Thirties, Florida could have 4 consecutive dropping seasons.

Michigan misses the playoff: The Wolverines’ 2023 championship celebration will probably be short-lived. No. 9 Michigan has changed a number of key contributors from a season in the past, together with quarterback J.J. McCarthy, working again Blake Corum, vast receiver Roman Wilson, cornerback Mike Sainristil and linebacker Michael Barrett, in addition to head coach Jim Harbaugh.

The roster upheaval and a difficult schedule, together with video games in opposition to Related Press No. 4 Texas, No. 23 USC, No. 3 Oregon, and No. 2 Ohio State, will hold Michigan from defending its title within the expanded playoff.

Utah wins Massive 12: Utah is getting into its first season within the Massive 12, however that should not be a problem for a program that deftly transitioned from the Mountain West Convention to the Pac-12 in 2011.

Fifth-year senior quarterback Cam Rising, who missed all of 2023 (knee) after main the Utes to back-to-back Pac-12 championships (2021 and 2022), returns. He’ll be a steadying power for No. 12 Utah because it takes over in a convention with a vacated throne following the departures of Oklahoma and Texas.

Missouri is the primary group out of the Faculty Soccer Playoff: The Tigers have a comfortable out-of-conference schedule that includes video games in opposition to Murray State, Buffalo, Boston Faculty and UMass. Their hardest sport is an Oct. 26 highway date in opposition to No. 5 Alabama, however they end the season with video games in opposition to South Carolina, Arkansas and Mississippi State, groups predicted to complete Thirteenth-Fifteenth within the 16-team SEC.

No. 11 Missouri might breeze to the convention championship weekend, which might make or break its playoff hopes. With few probabilities to show itself in opposition to high quality opponents within the common season, Missouri is likely to be unable to afford a decisive loss within the SEC title sport.

Georgia QB Carson Beck, Texas QB Quinn Ewers and Miami (FL) QB Cameron Ward are the Heisman finalists: Beck was overshadowed by the distinctive expertise round him final season, however with tight finish Brock Bowers, vast receiver Ladd McConkey and working again Daijun Edwards among the many gamers to depart for the NFL Draft, he’ll have the highlight to himself to emerge because the face of the No. 1 group within the nation.

Ewers turned much more essential to Texas this offseason after the Longhorns’ working again depth took a success with accidents to starter CJ Baxter and backup Christian Clark. 

Ward transferred to No. 19 Miami throughout the offseason after two spectacular seasons at Washington State. He’ll profit from a robust Hurricanes offensive line that options three returning starters and Indiana switch middle Zach Carpenter. 

Group of 5 champion will get blown out in first-round of CFP: The stakes are excessive for the Group of 5 (AAC, CUSA, MAC, MWC, Sunbelt) [G5] over the following two seasons. With the long run format of the CFP unsure, the mid-majors want wins within the expanded playoff to show they deserve an automated berth.

“There’s concern that entry and distribution for the G5 could also be short-lived,” wrote Yahoo Sports activities’ Ross Dellenger on Aug. 15.

The switch portal has already drastically shifted the calculus in school soccer to the purpose the place Group of 5 faculties act as farm programs for the 4 energy conferences — ACC, Massive Ten, Massive 12 and SEC.

In a probable 12-vs.-5-seed first-round playoff sport because the highway group in opposition to the highest automated qualifier, the Group-of-5 consultant on this yr’s CFP could have the chances stacked in opposition to it, which will probably be an excessive amount of to beat.

Ohio State wins the nationwide championship: ESPN’s Jim Trotter wrote concerning the Buckeyes’ $20 million “championship or bust” roster.

No. 2 Ohio State not solely returns a number of outstanding seniors however added elite transfer-portal expertise, together with former Ole Miss working again Quinshon Judkins and Alabama defensive again Caleb Downs.

The Buckeyes additionally added quarterback Will Howard, who led Kansas State to a Massive 12 title in 2022.

However vast receiver Emeka Egbuka put it bluntly in Trotter’s ESPN article, saying, “No one on this group has received an enormous sport of their profession at Ohio State.”

“We have got to win each single sport — no ifs, and or buts about it,” stated cornerback Denzel Burke.

The Buckeyes perceive the project: something lower than a championship is not going to do. Ohio State has the roster to finish its high-wire act.