We are just on week away from the opening Saturday of the college football season and we are only five days from the Thursday kickoff games. I continue my top 25 rankings with previews of five teams that could push into the playoff picture with a bit of luck.
10. Georgia Bulldogs (10-3, 6-2, 2nd in SEC East)
Last year, coach Mark Richt and the Bulldogs were a part of one of the weirdest college football seasons. The team was loaded with talent and it all started with running back Todd Gurley. Gurley got injured but before anyone could doubt the Bulldogs, Nick Chubb stepped in to carry the offensive load. Georgia had big wins that including road games against Missouri and Arkansas, seemingly locking up the SEC East in October. Then a poor performance in their rivalry game turned into a 38-20 loss to a mediocre Florida team. The next two weeks had Georgia blowing out Kentucky on the road and rivals Auburn at home. They dropped the regular season finale against Georgia Tech before crushing Louisville in the bowl game. Consistency was a problem last year and many people think it could be the same in 2015.
Offense: Chubb is all the offense that a team needs and Georgia realizes that. The season starts in just one week but the Bulldogs have yet to name a starting quarterback. Brice Ramsey and Greyson Lambert are still battling for the job in Athens but it may not matter in the long run. Last season, Chubb ran for 1,547 yards and 14 touchdowns, averaging 7.4 yards per carry. It will be tough for any defense to stop him and the run game but the passing game is not something to overlook. Whoever wins the job will be sitting behind an experience offensive line that has 80 career starts between the five starters. The receiving core is lead by senior Malcolm Mitchel, who has dealt with injuries through his career but is ready to play his first full collegiate season. Mitchell is joined by sophomores Isaiah McKenzie and Jeb Blazevich as the top receivers from last season. The offense will be under the direction of new offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, who comes to Georgia after spending the last nine seasons in the NFL.
Defense: Jeremy Pruitt’s defense was outstanding last season and it all started with the secondary. The Bulldogs’ defensive backs held opponents to a 54 percent completion rate and had 17 interceptions while giving up just 13 touchdowns. Georgia returns four starters in the secondary including junior safety Quincy Mauger who intercepted four passes last season and finished fifth on the team with 42.5 tackles. Georgia loses their top two tacklers from last season at linebacker but have plenty of talent to replace them. Senior Jordan Jenkins leads a strong group that includes Lorenzo Carter and Leonard Floyd and will bring in three four-star freshmen. The linebacking core will also welcome in UAB transfer Jake Ganus who finished last season with 16.5 tackles for a loss and 6.0 sacks for the Blazers. The biggest turnover comes on the defensive line, where they lose the top three producers from 2014. The line still has experience though, returning six players that played last season and bring in four big recruits including defensive tackle Trenton Thompson. Thompson is a Georgia-native and was ESPN’s number six overall recruit last year.
Schedule: Georgia opens up their SEC play on the road against Vanderbilt before playing South Carolina at home. The Bulldogs get Alabama to start the month of October and travel to Knoxville the following week to take on the Volunteers in a game that could decide the SEC East. The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party is the final game of October before the Bulldogs finish the season with road games against Auburn and Georgia Tech in the season’s final three weeks.
Prediction: 10-2 (6-2, 1st in SEC East)
9. Ole Miss Rebels (9-4, 5-3, 3rd in SEC West)
Ole Miss was arguably the best team in the country for the first two months of the season but fell apart at the end of the season. The Rebels were 7-0 before losing by a field goal in Baton Rouge and then losing a heartbreaker against Auburn. Those two losses clearly affected Hugh Freeze’s squad toward the end of the season. They still won the Egg Bowl against their in-state rivals but the victory was sandwiched between two bad losses against Arkansas and TCU by a combined score of 72-3. Inconsistent play by quarterback Bo Wallace didn’t help and neither did losing leading receiver Laquon Treadwell but the Rebels will need to learn how to close a season out if they want a chance at an SEC or national championship in 2015.
Offense: Bo Wallace is gone and the Rebels hope that the offense’s inconsistency goes with him. Junior college transfer Chad Kelly looks to be the guy for the job but the coaching staff has yet to make a decision on the starting role. Kelly completed 67 percent of his passes at East Mississippi Community College, throwing for 325.5 yards per game with 47 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. If Kelly can officially win the job, he will be surrounded by weapons that start with Treadwell. The senior receiver leads a crew that returns six of their top seven producers, including all-conference tight end Evan Engram and slot receiver Cody Core. The running game didn’t see much action last season but leading rusher Jaylen Walton returns after rushing for 5.5 yards per carry. The offensive line, lead by junior Laremy Tunsil, returns all five starters and has 103 starts between the five players.
Defense: The defense in Oxford is once again loaded with talent and is combined with enough experience to give every team trouble. The defensive line returns their top five tacklers including defensive end Marquis Haynes and defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche who combined for 13 tackles for a loss and 9.5 sacks in 2014. The back seven will have to make up for two big losses in D.T. Shackleford and Senquez Golson but the talent is still there. The linebacking core is lead by seniors C.J. Johnson and Christian Russell but lack some depth which could cause issues late in the season. The secondary returns leading tackler Mike Hilton who also added three interceptions and seven pass breakups. Junior cornerback Tee Shepard is finally healthy and could make an immediate impact for the Rebels.
Schedule: Ole Miss faces another tough SEC schedule and it gets started early with a trip to Tuscaloosa in the third week of the season. The Rebels also have road trips to Florida, Memphis, Auburn and Mississippi State. The games in Auburn and Starkville surround home games against Arkansas and LSU.
Prediction: 9-3 (5-3, 3rd in SEC West)
8. Michigan State Spartans (11-2, 7-1, 2nd in Big Ten East)
Head coach Mark Dantonio has been in East Lansing for eight years and has helped build one of the most consistent football programs. Last season, the Spartans lost just two games that both came against the two teams that played for the national championship. They had an impressive comeback against Baylor to cap off the season with a Cotton Bowl victory. Connor Cook is back to take the reigns for Michigan State and has the talent around him to make a push at another 10-win season and maybe a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Offense: Cook is looked at by many as one of the best quarterbacks in the nation. The rising senior completed just 58 percent of his passes last season with 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions. However, what Cook does goes beyond the stat line. He had games where he could pack the box score but it comes down to his management of the game and his offense. Cook and the Spartans just need to find more offensive playmakers. Last season’s leading rusher Jeremy Langford is gone and 30 percent of last season’s offensive production goes with him. Junior Deion Williams looks to be the starter but he will probably split carries with true freshman L.J. Scott. At wide receiver, the Spartans are lead by seniors Aaron Burbridge and Macgarrett Kings Jr. who look to replace Tony Lippett as Cook’s main receiver. The offensive line will once again be strong, returning four starters that include All-American center Jack Allen.
Defense: The Spartans had the best rush defense in the country last year and return all but one player that played on the defensive line last year. Shilique Calhoun finished last season with 12.5 tackles for a loss, 8.0 sacks and a forced fumble. As a whole, the returning linemen combined for 35.5 tackles for a loss and they add three four-star freshmen to help keep everyone fresh. The linebackers will need to replace their leading tackler but are also loaded with experience. Seniors Ed Davis and Damien Harris will lead the group with Davis coming on the blitz (7.5 sacks in 2014) and Harris dropping into coverage (interception and three pass deflections in 2014). Michigan State returns both starting safeties but will need to replace first-rounder Trae Waynes at the cornerback position. The secondary had 13 interceptions last season but only have six between the returning players.
Schedule: Michigan State would be an easy favorite if they were in the other Big Ten division but they are in the East and will now have to travel to both Michigan and Ohio State in 2015. The Spartans host Oregon in the back end of a home-and-home series during the second week of the season. A trip to Nebraska in November could be challenging as well.
Prediction: 11-1 (7-1, 2nd in Big Ten East)
7. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8-5 in 2014)
It seems like every year we see Notre Dame high in the rankings before proving anything to the college football world and I have personally never bought into the hype.
Until now.
After making it to a national championship game in 2012, Brian Kelly’s squad has only seen disappointment. Last year, the Fighting Irish climbed as high as fifth in the rankings before losing a controversial game at Florida State. The season went off the rails after that, losing four of their final five games. Most of the losses came against good teams like USC, Arizona State and Louisville but the home loss to Northwestern was unforgivable. Notre Dame salvaged the season with a big bowl win against LSU. In 2015, Notre Dame has a lot of pieces returning and Kelly has recruited even more talent that could make an immediate impact. Plus, they have a new quarterback to lead the way.
Offense: Malik Zaire is the new signal caller for the Fighting Irish and he showed his talent throughout last season. He took his first collegiate snap against Rice and ran 54 yards for a touchdown. His explosiveness as a runner and decision-making ability as a passer gives Notre Dame fans a good reason to be excited. Zaire finished last season 21 for 35 with 266 yards and a touchdown through the air while running for 198 yards and two touchdowns. Zaire is still young though – just a sophomore – and the Fighting Irish offense could still go through running back Tarean Folston. The rising junior ran for 889 yards last season and could see the bulk of the carries in 2015. Five-star recruit Greg Bryant may have something to say about that after running for 5.4 yards per carry and three touchdowns in limited action last year. Zaire steps into a good situation with one of the nation’s top receiving cores. William Fuller was the main target last season and caught for over 1,000 yards. The junior is joined by four other upperclassmen that recorded at least 23 catches and combined for 1,916 yards last season. The offensive line losers two starters, right tackle and center, but has plenty of options to choose from with eight four-star or higher recruits on the roster.
Defense: Notre Dame loses one starter and just six guys that played a down in 2014. Junior Sheldon Day returns to lead a defensive line that combined for 36.5 tackles for a loss and 12.5 sacks last season. The Fighting Irish were already loaded at defensive tackle but they also bring in four-star recruit Jerry Tillery (6’7″, 300 pounds) who looks to make an immediate impact. The linebackers return their top five tacklers and bring in three more four-star recruits are lead by junior Jaylon Smith. The All-American finished last season with 87.5 tackles, 9.0 for a loss, 2.5 sacks and a fumble return for a touchdown. The secondary returns everyone and was lead last year by cornerback Cole Luke, who finished the season with 11 pass breakups and three interceptions. Unfortunately, the aggressiveness of the defense lead to big plays for the opponents. Even with the talent, the defense finished just 73rd in total defense and 89th in scoring defense. Improvement must happen but the Fighting Irish have the pieces to make it work.
Schedule: This could be another year that Notre Dame breezes through a schedule and people look down on it because of the teams they played. But on paper, this is by no means an easy schedule. They open the season at home against an improved Texas team before traveling to face Virginia in week two and return home the following week to host Georgia Tech. They get an off date against UMASS before traveling to Clemson in the first week of October. That trip is followed up by home matchups against Navy and USC. The last four weeks of the season include trips to Pittsburgh, Boston College and Stanford. An undefeated season should easily get Notre Dame to the playoff but one loss could see them slip too far to comeback.
Prediction: 11-1 as an Independent
6. Oregon Ducks (13-2, 8-1, Pac-12 Champions)
Oregon is entering into a new era with the football program after Heisman winner Marcus Mariota was drafted by the Titans. Oregon still has a lot of talent and has one of the best recruiting records in the past five seasons, yet many people are still saying the Ducks are due for a dropoff. Mariota was a huge part of Oregon’s success, especially in 2014 when he carried a roster riddled with injuries to the championship game. Many of those injured players are back for this season and the replacement players help fill the roster with more experience. If the new quarterback is competent – and when was the last time Oregon had a bad quarterback? – this team will still be the favorite in the Pac-12.
Offense: Eastern Washington transfer Vernon Adams Jr. beat out Jeff Lockie for the Ducks’ starting quarterback job and looks good enough to make sure the offense doesn’t miss a beat from last season. Adams finished 2nd in the Walter Payton Award voting (FCS’ Heisman) after completing 66 percent of his passes and throwing for 35 touchdowns with just eight interceptions. He also ran for 285 yards and six scores for the Eagles. Adams will be surrounded with talent at the skill positions including two phenomenal running backs in Royce Freeman and Thomas Tyner. The duo combined for 1,938 yards, averaging 5.4 yards per carry, and 23 touchdowns on the ground. The Ducks return their top four receivers from last season and bring back Bralon Addison, who lead the team in targets in 2013 but was hurt for all of 2014. Along with Addison, Adams will look toward senior Byron Marshall who finished last season with over 1,000 yards receiving on 75 catches. The offensive line was one of the nation’s best last year and brings back four players who started games last season. Matt Hegarty comes in from Notre Dame to take over the starting center job.
Defense: Last season, Oregon’s defense was good at accomplishing their gameplan. They wanted to play aggressively and were one of the best teams in the country at forcing turnovers and getting to the quarterback. However, as a whole, the defense still ranked 89th in overall offense. Oddly enough they ranked 30th in scoring defense, leading me to believe that this defense works; take risks when you have the opportunity but don’t make any dumb plays to allow a touchdown. It worked for the Ducks. This season, Oregon returns a lot of key players in the front seven. Senior DeForest Buckner is there to lead a defensive line that has five players that played in all 15 games last season. The linebackers lose two of their top guys but have four seniors to help the middle stay strong with depth. The losses in the secondary will hurt the Ducks the most. Eric Dargan, Troy Hill and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu combined for 33 pass breakups, 10 interceptions, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and two touchdowns. They are all gone and Oregon will need the young players – four freshmen, five sophomores and a junior – to keep the Pac-12 passing attacks at bay. Return specialist Charles Nelson averaged 15.5 yards per punt return with two touchdowns last season as a freshman.
Schedule: Oregon is not in the tougher Pac-12 division but a trip to East Lansing in week two may even it up. The Ducks play Adams’ former school, Eastern Washington, in the season opener on September 5 before taking on the Spartans. Oregon’s toughest stretch starts at the end of October where they travel to Arizona State and Stanford in a three-week span before going back to Eugene for a meeting with USC.
Prediction: 11-1 (9-0, Pac-12 Champions)
Caleb Turrentine is a contributor and a show host at WVUA-FM. Follow him on Twitter, @CalebTurrentine.
