There is no doubt about the strength of some of the top defenses in college football. That said, there is every reason to expect the high flying offenses in college football to continue to thrive in 2016. From Houston’s “smashmouth spread” to Washington State’s Air Raid system, and even Georgia Southern’s run-based offense, the best attacks in college football will continue to produce high scoring shootouts. Here is a look at the most dangerous offenses in college football heading in to next season.
Clemson Tigers
All eyes will be on Deshaun Watson to see what he has in store for an encore after he became the first quarterback in FBS history to top 4,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a single season. Watson will be in tough to top the marks he set in 2015, but he returns with another year of experience under his belt and a strong supporting cast once again. Artavis Scott, Mike Williams and Wayne Gallman lead an impressive cast of returning weapons and as long as Watson stays healthy the Tigers will be tough to stop in 2016. He’ll start the season as one of the Heisman Trophy favorites and if this offense delivers, he’ll likely win the award.
Washington State Cougars
Luke Falk led the nation in pass attempts last season and there is no reason to think he won’t do it again in 2016. Washington State’s Air Raid system is absolutely loaded with Falk responsible to spread the catches between Gabe Marks, Gerard Wicks, Keith Harrington and Jamal Morrow. The Cougars are a dark horse contender in the Pac-12 and their offense should be fun to watch this season.
Houston Cougars
Houston pushed its way in to the spotlight with a brilliant 2015 season and they appear to be on the upswing heading in to next season with a loaded offensive cast once again. Quarterback Greg Ward Jr. is clearly a better runner than passer at this point so it’s no surprise that head coach Tom Herman has made the most of his dual-threat ability. Herman has also put Ward in the best possible position to succeed with his arm, as evident by his 67-percent completion rate last season. Houston lost top receiver Demarcus Ayers to the NFL, but they have more than enough young talent to replace him and it won’t be a surprise if their offense doesn’t miss a beat in 2016.
Baylor Bears
The Bears were destroyed by injuries a year ago, but they are fairly healthy heading in to the spring and expectations are high for 2016. It certainly helps that quarterback Seth Russell is 100-percent and Art Briles has done an excellent job reloading with young talent at the skill positions on offense. Running back Shock Linwood won’t be ready until late summer, but he is expected to make a full recovery and will combine with Johnny Jefferson, Devin Chafin and Terence Williams to make up an impressive stable at the position. Baylor has an excellent mix of rushers and pass catchers and with their star quarterback healthy again they should thrive in the Big 12.
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Oklahoma State would be considered a legitimate contender in the Big 12 if it had a better defense. For now, the Cowboys will lean on their explosive offense with Mason Rudolph the undisputed starter at quarterback following J.D. Walsh’s graduation. Oklahoma State will welcome back its entire offensive line as well as its top four running backs and a talented cast of wide receivers. The fact that they will have to lean so heavily on their offense should lead to plenty of scoring with the Cowboys involved in plenty of shootouts in 2016. We’ve seen what the Big 12 looks like these days: all offense, no defense. The Pokes are going to play in a lot of shootouts until their defense proves that they’re capable of elevating this team. The good news is that they’ll start with Southeastern Louisiana, Central Michigan and Pittsburgh before they really start to get into the meat of their schedule with Baylor and Texas.
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