Interesting question to Stewart Mandel of The Athletic this week for his weekly college football mailbag that includes Tech and a parting shot at Aggy:
Is there any team that could make a run like TCU this year? Not expected to make their conference championship and then go on to make not only the CFP but the championship. — Jasper Schmidt, Crosby, Minn.
Never say never, but my hunch as of today is that 15 years from now we will look back and marvel at TCU’s remarkable rags-to-riches run as something akin to the wildly upside-down 2007 season — a moment in time unlikely to be repeated. TCU reaching the CFP after being picked in the preseason to finish seventh in the Big 12 was one thing; TCU, a non-blueblood that came into the season ranked 45th in SP+ reaching the national championship game, is something we will marvel at for years to come.
So no, I will not try to predict a comparable 2023 run quite that deep, but I’m happy to entertain some out-of-nowhere conference title possibilities. Let the record show that I’m fully aware most or all of these will seem ridiculous by mid-October, so don’t go screenshotting this to Old Takes Exposed.
ACC: Louisville fell off the map after starting 2-3 last season, but rebounded to win six of its last eight, including against Pitt, Wake Forest and NC State. The Cardinals led the country in sacks. Now enters Jeff Brohm, who you’d expect to ignite Louisville’s offense much the way Sonny Dykes did TCU’s. No more Malik Cunningham at quarterback, but Brohm reunites with his former Purdue QB Jack Plummer, who was decent at Cal last season and inherits upstart RB Jawhar Jordan.
Big 12: First, let’s acknowledge that Oklahoma jumping from seventh place in Brent Venables’ rocky debut season back to title contention would not exactly be a Cinderella story. That leads me to Texas Tech, which went 8-5 in Joey McGuire’s debut season, beating Ole Miss in a bowl game. McGuire boldly proclaimed at the start of spring ball: “I think this team right now beats (last year’s) bowl team by 14 points.” QB Tyler Shough is poised for a big season (provided he holds onto the job) and will benefit from a more experienced offensive line.
Big Ten: I feel confident saying there will not be a surprise Big Ten champion. Better luck next year, Maryland.
Pac-12: UCLA. You’ve got to look a bit deep down the depth chart given the league finished last season with five of the top 17 teams (Washington, Utah, USC, Oregon and Oregon State). Though the Bruins finished 9-4 last season, they beat the Huskies and Utes and lost to the Trojans by a field goal. They lose staples Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Zach Charbonnet, but perhaps five-star freshman QB Dante Moore comes in and lights it up.
SEC: Texas A&M.
Just kidding.
Is there any team that could make a run like TCU this year? Not expected to make their conference championship and then go on to make not only the CFP but the championship. — Jasper Schmidt, Crosby, Minn.
Never say never, but my hunch as of today is that 15 years from now we will look back and marvel at TCU’s remarkable rags-to-riches run as something akin to the wildly upside-down 2007 season — a moment in time unlikely to be repeated. TCU reaching the CFP after being picked in the preseason to finish seventh in the Big 12 was one thing; TCU, a non-blueblood that came into the season ranked 45th in SP+ reaching the national championship game, is something we will marvel at for years to come.
So no, I will not try to predict a comparable 2023 run quite that deep, but I’m happy to entertain some out-of-nowhere conference title possibilities. Let the record show that I’m fully aware most or all of these will seem ridiculous by mid-October, so don’t go screenshotting this to Old Takes Exposed.
ACC: Louisville fell off the map after starting 2-3 last season, but rebounded to win six of its last eight, including against Pitt, Wake Forest and NC State. The Cardinals led the country in sacks. Now enters Jeff Brohm, who you’d expect to ignite Louisville’s offense much the way Sonny Dykes did TCU’s. No more Malik Cunningham at quarterback, but Brohm reunites with his former Purdue QB Jack Plummer, who was decent at Cal last season and inherits upstart RB Jawhar Jordan.
Big 12: First, let’s acknowledge that Oklahoma jumping from seventh place in Brent Venables’ rocky debut season back to title contention would not exactly be a Cinderella story. That leads me to Texas Tech, which went 8-5 in Joey McGuire’s debut season, beating Ole Miss in a bowl game. McGuire boldly proclaimed at the start of spring ball: “I think this team right now beats (last year’s) bowl team by 14 points.” QB Tyler Shough is poised for a big season (provided he holds onto the job) and will benefit from a more experienced offensive line.
Big Ten: I feel confident saying there will not be a surprise Big Ten champion. Better luck next year, Maryland.
Pac-12: UCLA. You’ve got to look a bit deep down the depth chart given the league finished last season with five of the top 17 teams (Washington, Utah, USC, Oregon and Oregon State). Though the Bruins finished 9-4 last season, they beat the Huskies and Utes and lost to the Trojans by a field goal. They lose staples Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Zach Charbonnet, but perhaps five-star freshman QB Dante Moore comes in and lights it up.
SEC: Texas A&M.
Just kidding.
