Contenders, Pretenders List For The 2023 College Football Season
Every year, we hear about how Team X will be a playoff contender, while Team Y has no shot to make the playoffs. It is spoken throughout the entire off-season and changes weekly during the season. Well, I am here to settle all the debate by releasing my contenders and pretenders list for the upcoming college football season before it begins. I will go through five teams who have a real shot at winning the National Championship and five teams who have title aspirations who stand no chance to win it.
Contender No. 1: USC
Bias aside, I believe USC is a real contender for the National Championship this year. Any team with Caleb Williams and an offensive-minded genius like Lincoln Riley is bound to garner some hype. Last year’s Heisman winner will look to become only the second player to ever go back-to-back, with Archie Griffin being the only man. USC lost Jordan Addison but added Zachariah Branch who will look to light it up his freshman year. The only potential thing holding this USC team back is their defense. The Trojans finished 81st in FBS in scoring defense (27.9 ppg). If they can clean up the defense, the sky is the limit for USC.
Pretender No. 1: Ohio State
I am out on Ohio State in 2023. It isn’t necessarily that I believe they will be a bad team this year, but they have two other schools who are simply better (spoiler alert). They have the best receiver room in the country, headlined by Marvin Harrison Jr. and his running mate Emeka Egbuka, which will help ease the transition for likely starting QB Kyle McCord. This might still be a ten-win team, but road games against Wisconsin, Notre Dame, and Michigan don’t play in their favor. Speaking of Michigan…
Contender No. 2: Michigan
Michigan should be in the running for a playoff spot this year, as they make the contenders part of my contenders and pretenders list for the 2023 College Football season. They have a dynamic duo in the backfield of Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards behind starting quarterback JJ McCarthy. McCarthy is expected to make that next jump in development and this could very well happen with the way the Michigan schedule broke. They may have lost some pieces on the offensive line, but it should still be one of the best in the country and the defense will be as stout as always.
Pretender No. 2: Alabama
Again, this isn’t me saying that Alabama is going to blow it this year. They have the pieces to really make a run at it. It just doesn’t feel like a scary Nick Saban team. Plus there are two teams for sure that are better and one other that I am on the fence about. Dallas Turner is going to develop into a game wrecker and Kool-Aid McKinstry is one of the best corners in the country, but I have concerns behind center. This is probably another 10-win season but not enough to be in playoff contention.
Contender No. 3: Penn State
Now to that other Big Ten school, I mentioned before. I am eating the Penn State cheese this year. Penn State finished 11-2 last season and has the players in place to make a run at a National Championship. Drew Allar might be the missing piece they needed last season, Nicholas Singleton is going to run wild this year and Kalen King, for my money, is the best corner in the country. Penn State also got lucky with the schedule as they get Michigan at home but travel to Ohio State three weeks prior. They go as Allar takes them, which I believe could be very far.
Pretender No. 3: Clemson
Clemson just doesn’t feel like the vaunted team they used to be, right? I know that they continue to win the ACC (perhaps not this year) but they don’t feel like a real threat this year as they make the pretenders side of my contenders and pretenders for the 2023 College Football season piece. Cade Klubinik should develop well with Garrett Riley there, Will Shipley should also perform well in that offense, but there is just something missing. The Tigers are ninth in the preseason AP Top 25 but have a tough schedule including at Duke and a potential trap game at Miami, but do get Florida State and North Carolina at home.
Contender No. 4: LSU
I am also eating the cheese on LSU this year. I know they had some ugly losses last year (27-point home loss to Tennessee and a 15-point loss to a 5-7 Texas A&M team on the road) but this team did all the right things this offseason to make that jump into the elite category. At Alabama and at Ole Miss won’t be fun, and they open with a neutral site game against Florida State, but they should be able to easily find their way back to the SEC Championship again this year. A great offensive line protecting Jayden Daniels throwing to a receiving group headlined by one of the best receivers in the country in Malik Nabers? Sign me up!
Pretender No. 4: Texas
Do I believe Texas is back? I think they might be as close as they have been in quite a while. But are they title contenders? Not quite yet. The loss of Bijan Robinson will hurt the offense only a little as they have Quinn Ewers entering his second year of starting and Xavier Worthy and Ja’Tavion Sanders as weapons to throw to. I believe they have some nice pieces on defense as well, but until they make the move to the SEC and perform well there, I do not believe they are going to be taken seriously as a real threat at the National Championship.
Contender No. 5: Tennessee
Call me crazy, but we might get an LSU-Tennessee SEC Championship game. You want to talk about schools that are back, Tennessee is back. I think I am in on Joe Milton being a legit dude, and he has tons of help around him on both sides of the ball. They have a favorable schedule as well, as they host Texas A&M and Georgia, but their only tough road test is Alabama. Now I know what you’re thinking, well you didn’t list the back-to-back National Champions as a contender, well that’s because…
Pretender No. 5: Georgia
Georgia is not going to three-peat. History won’t be made. I am not even 100 percent sure they make the playoff. I think there are too many talented teams in the country who could upset Georgia and nab a playoff spot, but I also have concerns about their schedule in the fact that it’s a cupcake. They honestly have one tough game all season and that is at Tennessee in November. How can they be tuned up and firing on all cylinders when they face teams like UT Martin, Ball State and UAB? Sure, they can’t help that their division of the SEC is not great, but come on give me a break. Carson Beck is starting but I have some doubts that he can immediately step in and replace Stetson Bennett. Look for Georgia to be a one-loss team this year and be the fifth-ranked team in the country. They are a playoff pretender!
Who do you think is a contender? Who do you think is a pretender? Let us know in the comments!
