The storylines have reached a boiling point with two weeks until college football begins. In arguably the highest-anticipated season to date, the unknowns are few and far between to comprehend, including the future of the College Football Playoff.
For now, however, the postseason extravaganza remains put with four teams making the final field on top of bowl games, and as usual, it’s drama-filled.
While the four teams who have qualified in recent years are generally agreed with, the outliers are normally left with head-scratching results and angry fans.
By season’s end, plenty of clear contenders could end up in Houston, Texas after navigating through some highly difficult and anticipated games. With their returning roster and past success, Georgia, Alabama, and Michigan are the rightful favorites for the title the week after the New Year begins.
On the other side of the coin, some teams may not have the strength of schedule or were upset along the way to ruin national title hopes. While it may stir debate, these three teams could miss the College Football Playoff entirely, even with a division title under their belts.
Ohio State
Let’s face it – Ohio State used to be the big brother of the Big Ten. The Buckeyes’ prolific offensive attack would coast through the regular season at a frenetic pace for about a decade or so.
No matter who the quarterback was, whether that’d be C.J. Stroud, J.T. Barrett, or Justin Fields, the Buckeyes would overpower teams on offense to win. Now, Ohio State must rely on Kyle McCord or Devin Brown to lead the offense, both of whom lack experience. Thankfully, whoever starts will have help at the wide receiver position with Marvin Harrison Jr., as he’s back for his junior season.
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In 2022, Harrison Jr. tore up the Big Ten in more ways than one, hauling in 14 touchdowns and helping propel the Buckeyes to an 11-2 record. However, he couldn’t help enough in The Game as for the second straight year, Ohio State was done in by Michigan. In this case, the 45-23 home loss, crushed their division title dreams in the process.
Because of the defeat, the pressure has shifted toward Ryan Day and his late-season struggles against the Wolverines. It also remains to be seen whether Day will get the shaft at season’s end if things don’t change. However, given how deep the playoff field could get, with Texas and USC as potential conference winners in the Big 12 and Pac-12, the Buckeyes will likely have to go unbeaten to win a conference title and make the CFP.
That expectation will be easier said than done with more difficult challenges than just Michigan. Penn State and Notre Dame will be very good, plus feisty Michigan State and Maryland teams who think they are underrated.
Nonetheless, a lot will have to go Ohio State’s way, and it would be hard-pressed to say that the 2023 season is the most critical when examining Day’s tenure thus far. In Columbus, Week 13 is all that matters, and although Day has an impressive 45-6 record, his 1-2 mark against Michigan and a 1-3 playoff stint could define a dark, forgettable era of inconsistent Buckeye football when it matters most.
LSU
Although the LSU Tigers upset Alabama last November and prevented Nick Saban from reaching another national title game, it’s still the Crimson Tide’s West division to lose. The Tigers have high expectations yet again; they overachieved in Brian Kelly‘s first year and return the electric Jayden Daniels at quarterback. Their defense however will have to take another step forward, as the unit ranked forty-first in total defense a season ago.
Barring any early-season struggles against Florida State, Arkansas, or Ole Miss, the Tigers should coast toward a November showdown in Tuscaloosa. Alabama will be gunning for revenge, but this is certainly a winnable game for LSU.
Similarly to his time at Notre Dame, it could take a few seasons for Kelly to adjust and build a consistent winner in Baton Rouge. We just don’t know if 2022 was a flash in the pan after Ed Orgeron set the program back, or if it’s the new status quo.
Looking ahead, the Tigers are the biggest threat to Alabama’s revenge tour. Even if they go 11-1 with their only loss to Alabama, LSU could very well miss the playoff to say an undefeated or even one-loss conference champion like USC or Texas.
Iowa
The Iowa Hawkeyes had a disastrous offensive performance in 2022 but still managed to put themselves one win away from a berth in Indianapolis. The Hawkeyes were so bad that they averaged only 17.69 points per game and had more punts than touchdowns through the first half of the season.
After Spencer Petras decided to move into a coaching role while nursing a nagging shoulder injury, the Hawkeyes went to the transfer portal to get some much-needed help, adding quarterback Cade McNamara from Michigan and complimenting him with former Buckeye, Kaleb Brown.
Although Brown had just one catch in Columbus, he was a highly-touted recruit coming out of high school a few years ago. It was hard for him to find the field with all of their talent, so Brown could seriously put himself on the national stage while wearing Hawkeye Black and Gold.
Defensively, the Hawkeyes also added depth to continue their long-standing tradition of excellent linebacker play. While they are losing Jack Campbell to the NFL, they brought in Nick Jackson from Auburn to replace him and returned Kaevon Merriweather and Riley Moss to keep the secondary afloat.
Despite the offseason moves, the Hawkeyes and Kirk Ferentz aren’t a sexy pick to make the College Football Playoff. Not to mention the fact the Big Ten West is more talented than in years past with a revamped Wisconsin and Nebraska teams, in addition to an Illinois team riding high after its best season since 2007.
A slip up at any point, likely in Week 4 against Penn State or a Week 7 tilt in Madison could smell disaster. Even if they can skate through the regular season unphased, Iowa will have to break history and become the first Big 10 West team to win the Conference Championship Game. It’s not impossible – but it won’t be easy.
The first game to kickoff the 2023 season will be Notre Dame vs. Navy in Dublin, Ireland. Kickoff is set for Aug. 26 at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, with the Fighting Irish favored by nearly three touchdowns as of writing.
