It seems that every season there are a handful of teams that emerge and end up disrupting the delicate balance of the college football world, much to the surprise of the pundits that overlooked them well before the season began.
Teams such as Ole Miss, Mississippi State, TCU, and even Marshall crept up on many of us as they racked up wins each week over teams that were supposed to be much better than them. The Mississippi schools controlled the volatile SEC for most of the season, and TCU came off of a 4-7 2013 season to wreak havoc in the Big 12 en route to narrowly missing a College Football Playoff spot.
While it’s always hard to predict what exactly is in store for each Power-Five conference, the five teams below are very capable of turning their respective conferences upside down, and perhaps even the playoff race.
ACC
North Carolina Tar Heels – 2014 record: 6-7, 4-4 – The Tar Heels actually began last season ranked in the Top 25, but struggled with the early part of their schedule, and found themselves 2-4 by mid-October. Larry Fedora’s team turned it around somewhat after that and found ways to outscore four out of their last seven opponents, with an emphasis on the outscore part — the Tar Heels were one of the worst defense in all of FBS last season.
Fedora has orchestrated a major overhaul with his defensive staff this offseason, most notably with the hiring of former Auburn head coach Gene Chizik as defensive coordinator. The Tar Heels 2015 recruiting class featured an emphasis on defense as well, highlighted by the signing of four-star defensive end Jason Strowbridge.
North Carolina will be a force on offense again next season, and should improve somewhat defensively. If they can hold opponents to even a touchdown or so less than their 39.0 points allowed last season, their offense, led by dual-threat quarterback Marquise Williams, should do more than enough to make up the difference. The Tar Heels could very well find themselves at the top Coastal division by season’s end, especially if Duke and Georgia Tech fail to match their play from 2014.
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Big Ten
Minnesota Golden Gophers – 2014 record: 8-5, 5-3 – Gophers head coach Jerry Kill has done an impressive job in his four seasons with the program. Minnesota has been largely ignored for quite awhile in the Big Ten, but certainly drew some attention last season on their way to a Citrus Bowl birth. Four of the Gophers’ five losses were to Top-25 teams.
Minnesota’s defense was solid last year, and kept them in every game. They return with a good portion of their starters in 2015, and stand to be even better with the experience. They will have to find a suitable replacement for departed leading rusher David Cobb, but quarterback Mitch Leidnars’ running skills should help soften the blow somewhat until a reliable tailback surfaces.
The Big Ten West division is somewhat up in the air next season, and with Wisconsin and Nebraska facing some uncertainty, the Gophers stand a good chance to sneak past them and challenge an Ohio State team that will no doubt be sitting atop of the East when all is said and done.
Big 12
Oklahoma State Cowboys – 2014 record 7-6, 4-5 – 2014 was a setback year for Mike Gundy’s team, as he witnessed one of the most young and inexperienced teams in the country struggle when conference play began.
Things took a turn for the better with just two regular season games remaining when Gundy pulled struggling second-string quarterback Daxx Garman and replaced him with true freshman Mason Rudolph. Burning Rudolph’s redshirt paid immediate dividends, as the Cowboys hung tough with No. 7 Baylor, defeated rival Oklahoma in the regular season finale, and took down Washington in the Cactus Bowl.
Oklahoma State’s struggling and depleted offensive line took major steps forward in their last three games, corresponding with Rudolph’s immediate upgrade in quarterback play. The Cowboys did lose perhaps their best playmaker in running back Tyreek Hill, who was dismissed after an arrest, but received immediate help with the signing of four-star junior college running back Chris Carson. With their quarterback position finally settled, and with an improved defense, the Cowboys should be right back to where they were prior to 2014, and will look to challenge Baylor and TCU for top honors. ESPN’s Brad Edwards even went so far as to include Oklahoma State in his picks for 2015’s playoff teams.
Pac-12
Utah Utes – 2014 record: 9-4, 5-4 – The Utes Struggled in the final half of the season somewhat, but ended the year on a high-note with a 45-10 dismantling of Colorado State in the Las Vegas Bowl.
While the Utes did finish towards the bottom of the highly competitive South division, it’s worth noting that one loss was by a single point to Washington State, and another by three in overtime against a ranked Arizona State team. The Utes were excellent in running the ball in 2014, and should be just as good if not better with the return of starting running back Devontae Booker, who ran for 1,512 yards in 2014. Travis Wilson returns for his final season as well after an efficient 2014 that saw him throw only five interceptions. Wilson and Booker are two of as many as 16 starters that should be back on the field this fall. The Utes were also able to address some deficiencies at wide receiver in this year’s recruiting class.
The Pac-12 will surely be just as competitive in 2015, but the Utes stand a good chance to climb if they can avoid the razor-thin losses and inconsistent offensive performances that hindered them this past season.
SEC
Tennessee Volunteers – 2014 record: 7-6, 3-5 – The Volunteers recovered nicely from a 3-5 start in 2014, making an incredible turnaround after Joshua Dobbs took over for injured quarterback Justin Worley. Tennessee lost two games by three points or less, and were a few plays away from beating a ranked Missouri team. They finished the season with a resounding 45-28 victory over Iowa in the Taxslayer Bowl.
Vols coach Butch Jones has been a solid recruiter in his short time with the program, and Tennessee’s team is loaded with lots of young talent. 2015’s fourth-ranked recruiting class has supplied them with even more. Dobbs will enter the spring as the favorite for the starting quarterback position, and freshman running back Jalen Hurd will look to improve upon the 899 yards he racked up in his first season as a Volunteer.
Georgia and Missouri should again challenge for the top spot in the SEC East, but don’t be surprised if the Volunteers have surpassed them both by the time December rolls around, especially if their defense continues its play from 2014.
