Everyone loves lists. The best this, the strongest that. Let’s apply that randomly to college football shall we?
Sleeper teams to make the playoff.
1. Penn State
2. Washington
3. Oregon
4. Texas
5. Kansas State
Breakdown: Penn State has the defense and rushing attack to compete for a title in the Big Ten and if Drew Allar can be a Trevor Lawrence kind of talent they can make a run. Washington and Oregon have elite offenses and great QBs while Texas has the roster talent if they can put it together. Kansas State showed last year how well coached they are and they could run the Big 12 if they replace some key starters.
Teams who have stepped up recruiting with recent coaching change.
1. Miami
2. Notre Dame
3. Oregon
4. Wisconsin
5. South Carolina
Breakdown: Mario Cristobal is an elite recruiter and he’s already taken Miami to heights we haven’t seen in decades. Marcus Freeman has proven to be an upgrade on the recruiting trail to Brian Kelly and it’s remarkable that Dan Lanning has raised the bar Cristobal set in Oregon. I see a distinct change in recruiting for the Badgers already under Luke Fickell and Shane Beamer has the Gamecocks recruiting like I haven’t seen in a long time — maybe ever as legendary coaches like Lou Holtz and Steve Spurrier weren’t masters in that area.
Coaches who need a huge bounceback season.
1. Mel Tucker, Michigan State
2. Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M
3. Brent Venables, Oklahoma
4. Mario Cristobal, Miami
5. Billy Napier, Florida
Breakdown: Tucker needs a big season badly or that ridiculous contract of his will become a major issues for the fan base. Fisher also has a ridiculous contract and much more to work with recruiting in Texas but last season was a joke. And three first year head coaches make the list as their debuts were far from what the fans expected. Cristobal is safe for awhile but if Venables and Napier have another bad season they could be in trouble.
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