The first full week of college football has arrived — and with it comes certainly one of the most loaded slates of the season.
But earlier than we get to Week 1, we’ve to prognosticate on how it’ll all play out this yr. Will Arch Manning ship on outsized expectations? Will Bill Belichick thrive in his first season as a college football coach? Who will be hoisting the nationwide championship trophy in January?
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Our workforce of college football specialists breaks it all down with their annual predictions, choosing convention winners, title sport matchups, surprises, disappointments and extra.
Feel free to disagree, or to make your personal picks in the feedback under.
(Editor’s Note: All picks under have been made earlier than Week Zero.)
The Yahoo Sports college football workers makes their predictions for the upcoming season. (Dillon Minshall/Yahoo Sports)
Here’s my largest query of the season: Will the SEC return to dominance? The league did not have a workforce taking part in in the nationwide championship sport the final two years. That was the first such occasion since 2004-05. The SEC had a minimum of one workforce competing in the title sport in 16 of 18 years, ending with that Michigan-Washington championship sport in 2023. Can heavyweights Georgia, Texas, LSU and Alabama regain the convention’s place atop the sport? We might know loads after Week 1. Alabama performs at FSU, Texas at Ohio State and LSU at Clemson.
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There are a lot extra factors of intrigue. What occurs to Texas Tech, maybe the largest NIL spender of the offseason? The stress’s on in Lubbock for a roster reported to be effectively over $20 million. North Carolina’s destiny is of curiosity. Can Bill Belichick — offseason distractions and all — present that he can win in college like he did in the execs? And we won’t overlook about Arch Manning, the child with the well-known household lineage main top-ranked Texas right into a season opener in opposition to Ohio State with an almost completely new offensive line and defensive entrance. Good luck, Arch!
Meanwhile, as the SEC and Big Ten proceed to seize extra decision-making energy in the sport’s future, it’s as much as the ACC and Big 12 to alter the trajectory of the sport. Clemson, Miami, Florida State, Baylor, Tech, Colorado… can any of them squash the “Power Two” narrative by not simply beating Big Ten and SEC groups throughout the common season however advance deep into the College Football Playoff? The arc of the whole sport’s future may rely upon it.
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Will Arch Manning’s first season as a starter finish with one thing his uncles could not do? Peyton misplaced the Orange Bowl in 1997 and the Vols completed the season 11-2. Ole Miss went 10-3 in Eli’s final season there, which included a win in the Cotton Bowl.
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I feel Texas will once more make a deep playoff run however will come up brief once more. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney has talked about his workforce being the first 16-0 program in college football historical past. The Tigers might not go undefeated, however they’re certainly one of the finest in college football and will not solely take down LSU in Week 1, however they will beat the Longhorns in January for the nationwide championship.
I feel Utah takes down Texas Tech in the Big 12 title sport as the convention is the most wide-open in the nation once more. The Utes simply merely want competent quarterback play from Devon Dampier to be a playoff-caliber workforce.
The ACC has each my shock workforce and my disappointing workforce. Virginia Tech might not beat South Carolina in Week 1, however the Hokies’ convention schedule traces up effectively to be close to the high of the convention after a number of down years. Conversely, Syracuse appears destined for a giant drop-off from 2024 even when the workforce is not demonstrably worse than final yr’s 10-3 model. The Orange have certainly one of the hardest schedules in the nation.
There hasn’t actually been a season like this one the place so lots of the groups we anticipate to compete for a nationwide championship have quarterbacks we have not seen play very a lot. Texas, Ohio State, Georgia, Oregon and Alabama are perhaps 5 of the most gifted eight or 9 groups in the nation, however we actually simply do not understand how they’re going to operate at the most vital place on the discipline. And, sure, that features Texas as a result of Arch Manning — for all the hype and pedigree — hasn’t performed a significant snap in opposition to workforce exterior of particular packages the place he runs the ball briefly yardage.
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Conversely, there are groups we all know have good quarterbacks however loads of different questions. You may belief Drew Allar’s expertise, however can James Franklin really win the large one? Cade Klubnik improved quickly at the finish of final season, however do we actually suppose Clemson’s expertise stage is much like that 2015-2019 run? LSU goes to attain loads of factors with Garrett Nussmeier, however have they actually mounted the protection? Does Miami have the self-discipline and training to lock in each week behind Carson Beck?
Because of these cross-currents with the high groups, I feel it’s going to be a risky season with 7-8 groups in the combine to win a nationwide championship. In the finish, whoever will get to the playoff with the healthiest roster and the quarterback who has improved the most from September to December will be in an incredible place.
In the broader politics of the sport, we will see loads of dialog round what future playoff fashions ought to appear to be with the Big Ten and SEC at odds over codecs. Ultimately, I feel they will fail to return to any settlement and the 12-team mannequin will be in place for a minimum of one other yr.
Picking the No. 1 preseason workforce to win the nationwide championship may appear as chalk as it will get, however that is going to be something however a routine season for Texas. A Week 1 loss to Ohio State and a November loss to Georgia aren’t reaches, however Texas will get higher as the season goes on. The SEC will be a dogfight each weekend, the Big Ten will be one lengthy put-up-or-shut-up quest for Penn State. Jeremiah Smith will escape of the Heisman pack because of a mix of identify familiarity, voluminous numbers and good-but-not-great QB play.
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Auburn goes to get a pair large surprising wins, and Miami goes to take some ugly surprising losses, resulting in some exhausting questions on paying rent-a-players such huge checks. And Bill Belichick will stay in the highlight whether or not he desires to or not. Clemson will ship on all its preseason hype, whereas LSU most undoubtedly will not, resulting in Brian Kelly/hot-seat speak dominating 2026. Ohio State, Georgia and Alabama will all ship reliably sturdy seasons, however a well-honed Texas and a pushed Penn State will outlast the competitors.
Every college football season is a fireworks show, however this one’s going to be Grand Finale-level explosiveness from August to January.
I see Cade Klubnik constructing on his 43-touchdown junior season, and he’s bought the supporting forged to win the ACC once more, maybe this time in additional convincing vogue. The Big 12 is up for grabs, and who is aware of what we’ll get after final yr, however my finest guess is Kansas State — I’m using with the dual-threat upside of Avery Johnson and an aggressive protection that may wreak sufficient havoc in a convention that’s piloted by offense anyway.
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Now let’s flip to the energy convention winners I’ve taking part in for the nationwide championship.
Penn State is making an attempt to comply with the same blueprint as Ohio State, which adopted the same blueprint as Michigan (minus that complete sign-stealing scandal). It goes like this: Return a slew of NFL prospects who may have gone to the league, lean on a suffocating protection and pair it with a top-15 offense that pops with fireworks when it issues most. It’s resulted in back-to-back nationwide championships for the Big Ten, and I’m predicting a 3rd is on the manner. Penn State poached former Buckeyes coordinator Jim Knowles to run a protection that introduced again key gamers at each place from a unit that allowed 16.5 factors per sport final yr. James Franklin nonetheless must beat the can’t-win-big-games allegations, and this yr’s portal swing for large receiver assist wants to return by for quarterback Drew Allar, however Penn State’s preseason hype is justified.
As for my runner-up decide, Alabama’s due for a bounce again. Head coach Kalen DeBoer is reunited together with his right-hand man, offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. They’ve gained loads of video games collectively over the years at Sioux Falls, Eastern Michigan, Fresno State and Washington. I don’t see the Crimson Tide offense vanishing down the stretch this yr. They have an offensive line that would win the Joe Moore Award and clear the path to an SEC championship and a visit to the nationwide title sport.