By Mike Farrell and Matt Perkins
National Columnist Mike Farrell is here with the 3-Point Stance, ranking the defensive back rooms in the ACC for next season, coaches people should be talking about more, and ranking the new starters in the Big Ten.
Best ACC Defensive Backfields
— We move to the ACC for the best defensive backfields by Power Five conference as Clemson leads the way.
1. Clemson
— Andrew Mukuba and RJ Mickens could be the best safety tandem in the country, and this is yet another Clemson position group that is loaded.
2. Florida State
— Transfer Fentrell Cyrpess II makes this unit stronger with his lockdown potential, and this is a deep group.
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3. Miami
— Kam Kinchens is a superstar on a unit that was honestly embarrassing at times last year but will be vastly improved. James Williams gives them a great safety 1-2 punch.
4. NC State
— Aydan White is a star that no one talks about enough, and he could push for double-digit pass breakups again.
5. Louisville
— Quincy Riley has a ton of potential for a breakout season, and this is a fast and explosive unit.
Coaches Who Should Be Talked About More
— Everyone is yapping about Deion Sanders and others, but these coaches aren’t being talked about enough.
1. Lance Leipold, Kansas
— If Jalon Daniels doesn’t get hurt last season, Kansas is talked about a lot more, but let’s not lose focus on how he’s turned that program from a joke to a threat.
2. Joey McGuire, Texas Tech
— He won a ton of close games last season, which came down to coaching decisions, and his in-game coaching ability is amongst the best in the country.
3. Kalen DeBoer, Washington
— I know he’s talked about a bit, but is it enough? It seems other coaches get the headlines in the PAC 12, but the job he did last year was arguably the best.
4. Willie Fritz, Tulane
— Tulane is the prohibitive favorite for a New Year’s Six Bowl and he somehow held onto QB Michael Pratt, who could have transferred anywhere.
5. Jonathan Smith, Oregon State
— The hardest place to win in the Power Five? It could be Oregon State with little tradition, a horrible location for recruiting and living in the shadow of Phil Knight money.
Best New Big Ten Starting Quarterbacks
— And finally, Matt Perkins ranks the new starters in the Big Ten, and his order may shock you.
1. Drew Allar, Penn State
Allar has as much upside as any quarterback that we’ve seen in Happy Valley in a generation. A huge arm talent with good athleticism, he’s got the highest upside of anyone on this list. With the requisite weapons around him, he’s got a chance to put the Nittany Lions over the hump in 2023.
2. Tanner Mordecai, Wisconsin
The most proven of the new quarterbacks on this list, Mordecai lit up the AAC over the past two seasons. He threw for over 7,100 yards and 72 touchdowns for SMU, and he’s a perfect fit for new offensive coordinator Phil Longo’s air raid system.
3. Cade McNamara, Iowa
The intraconference transfer was very efficient back in 2021 for the Wolverines, and he brought one of his favorite targets, TE Erick All, with him to Iowa. The biggest wildcard with him is OC Brian Ferentz, whose offenses have been putrid over the past couple of seasons.
4. Hudson Card, Purdue
I know that the Godfather himself is much higher on Card than I am, but he got beat out twice at Texas, which has to count for something. He and Graham Harrell should, however, make for an excellent QB-OC pairing. The cradle of quarterbacks is alive and well once again.
5. Kyle McCord, Ohio State
McCord might finish the season with the best numbers of anyone on this list simply because of the massive amount of talent around him at Ohio State. He doesn’t have one true elite trait, but he’s good to very good at everything.
