Livescore
You, the fans, deserve to have your demands met. The college football offseason — or talkin’ season, according to Steve Spurrier — is a glorious time when we all make predictions for the upcoming season and then get ripped to shreds by all of you who not only think that we’re wrong, but believe we hate your team due to long-tenured personal bias. If you had that reaction, then this column is specifically tailored to you.
The world severely lacks accountability these days, but I won’t stand for that. I write this end-of-the-season accountability story every offseason, condemning myself to a life of despair due to my dumb preseason predictions, But, I do have to pat myself on the back a little bit as well.
We just finished an incredible 2022 college football season, so here’s my parting gift as we head into the new talkin’ season.
The ugly: A down year for Michigan
In our preseason Big Ten preview, I picked Michigan as the most overrated team in the conference. In fact, I had the Wolverines third in the conference with very little hope of making the College Football Playoff or even flirting with a New Year’s Six Bowl.
All they did was win the conference for the second straight year — this time with an unblemished record. It was a banner year for coach Jim Harbaugh, and quite frankly, one that I didn’t see coming. I’m sorry, Michigan fans. I won’t doubt you again (unless Harbaugh leaves).
The good: Texas A&M didn’t deserve the hype
The Aggies entered the season with questions at quarterback, uncertainty in the trenches and with a coach — Jimbo Fisher — who is among the most stubborn in the country. Yet, the media picked them to finish second in the division and they actually had three first-place votes. I didn’t buy it. I said they’d finish fourth in the division and picked them as the most overrated team in the conference.
“The truth is that the quarterback situation is questionable; banking on their ability to take the top off of opposing defenses through the air is based on hope more than reality,” I wrote. “Texas A&M also lacks experienced depth up front on the defensive line — something championship-caliber teams absolutely need in order to win at a high level.”
While I was right about the Aggies being overrated, I don’t think anybody on the planet picked them to finish last in the West. It was that bad of a year in College Station.
The bad: Miami winning the Coastal
A brand-new coach with a pedigree of success (Mario Cristobal)? Check. Up-and-coming quarterback with incredible upside (Tyler Van Dyke)? Check. Those two things would vault the Hurricanes to their second ACC Coastal title since the division split, right?
Nope. They finished 5-7, missed a bowl and lost to Middle Tennessee during the regular season. Granted, Van Dyke was hampered by a shoulder injury, so it wasn’t really his fault. Still, I won’t believe in the ‘Canes until they prove they can win at an elite level.
The ugly: LSU struggling
I picked LSU to win the SEC West last season, which landed in the “ugly” section of last year’s end-of-the-year accountability story. Well, LSU made a return appearance to the section because I thought the Tigers would go .500 and have to catch a few breaks to even get to that sixth win.
Instead, they topped Alabama in a thriller and won the SEC West. Now, in my defense, I wasn’t alone in this prediction. But it was too much of a miss to ignore. To head coach Brian Kelly, I’m sorry. I won’t doubt you heading into 2023, especially with Jayden Daniels returning to take the snaps.
The good: Tennessee on the rise
CBS Sports HQ viewers heard from me all offseason that Tennessee was on the rise and emerging as Georgia’s biggest threat in the SEC East. Well, what do ya know, the Volunteers finished second in the division — just as I predicted. In fact, I had Tennessee finishing the regular season at 9-3 which was only one game away from its actual record.
Head coach Josh Heupel has developed his program into one of the most dangerous units in the country, and it’s clear that it should be taken very seriously from this point forward.
I had South Florida finishing third in the AAC. Why? Here’s my justification.
“There’s this notion out there that the Bulls are due for another dreadful season after a 2-10 record under Jeff Scott last year,” I wrote. “Don’t fall into that trap. The Bulls return 19 starters, including five on the offensive line and their entire back seven on defense.”
Well … they finished 1-11. I repeat: 1-11. Scott was fired on Nov. 6 after a 4-26 record in two-plus years in Tampa and only had one win over an FBS opponent (Temple in 2021). I wish I could explain further why I had love for the Bulls, but I can’t. I am sorry for being so bad at AAC predictions. I truly am.
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