Welcome to Year 154 of college football where, still, some things never change. They were talking about paying players (improperly) back in the 19th century. Coaches are still overvalued and overhyped. Bowl games are still a big deal. (Hey, what else are you going to watch in December?)
This season might as well be the jumping off point for the future. It is the last year of the four-team College Football Playoff, after all. We are on the brink of paying players (legally) beyond NIL. And realignment just … won’t … stop. That’s why there will never be another season like 2023.
As Texas coach Steve Sarkisian likes to say, “adapt or die.” Deion Sanders is bringing in the equivalent of a small front-range mining town to Colorado via the transfer portal. Jim Harbaugh has his best team ever at Michigan and may be a no-show in the first month.
Look for some new blood in the CFP if the likes of USC gets hot. Their potential excellence, along with that of Washington, is part of a bittersweet farewell in 2023 of what used to be the “Conference of Champions.” The Pac-12 appears to have saved (some of) its best for last.
Nevertheless, the game will endure. Here are 23 things to watch before wading into Season 154.
College football’s 23 for 2023
1. Georgia three-peat? The two-time reigning champions will attempt to win three national titles in a row. That’s never been done before in the wire service era (since 1936). And that’s all that counts. Before then, you could win a national championship by proclamation of the guy’s poll down the street. These Bulldogs are on the brink of completing the greatest run of all time. Coach Kirby Smart has installed a culture of “eating off the floor.” His players have bought in. In the process, Smart has…
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