Change is swirling in college football once again, with Texas and Oklahoma requesting admission to the Southeastern Conference. Their weariness of being attached to eight programs that they perceive as lesser, in the Big 12, has prompted that decision. Whether the SEC will accept them, and whether Texas and Oklahoma become independents, join another conference or stay in the Big 12, will make seismic changes to the structure of the support. If the Big 12 lost Texas and Oklahoma, the “Power 5” would essentially become the Power 4, and those four leagues might well break away from the NCAA. In terms of the coming football season, will anyone be able to knock off Alabama in the SEC? If Oklahoma makes the College Football Playoff, will the Sooners be able to avoid yet another national embarrassment in a semifinal rout?
Check out some of our brash college football betting predictions for the year ahead.
NCAA News: 5 Bold Betting Predictions for the 2021 Football Season
Oklahoma runs the table in the regular season
The problem for the Sooners during their recent run of excellence has been their defense. With quarterbacks like Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray and now Spencer Rattler, Lincoln Riley’s offense has been able to score with anyone. The problems come when it is time to keep the other team off the scoreboard. Defensive coordinator Alex Grinch supposedly has the problems fixed this time, with a combination of scheme and returning talent. Oklahoma has made a practice of winning the Big 12 in recent years, as TCU and Baylor have returned to mediocrity, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State have also refused to install a workable defense, and Texas has yet to find a strong coach (and we’re not predicting that Steve Sarkisian is the answer, either). For Oklahoma, Rattler started 11 games in 2020, throwing for 3,031 yards and 28 scores while running for six more and completing 67.5% of his passes. If the defense is as stout as we’re hearing, the Sooners should breeze through that Big 12 slate and take one of the top two seeds in the College Football Playoff.
A new team will appear in the College Football Playoff
Tired of Alabama, Clemson, Oklahoma, Notre Dame and Ohio State, or maybe Georgia occupying semifinal slots? This could well be the year that a team shows up for the first time. North Carolina, Texas A&M and USC could all make the playoff for the first time. The Aggies would likely have to knock off Alabama in the SEC West to do it — or go 11-1 with a close loss to the Crimson Tide and hope that the SEC East has a champion with at least two losses, but it could happen. North Carolina and Texas A&M met in a bowl game last year, and both impressed — and neither lost much talent to the NFL draft. USC plays Notre Dame and BYU in non-conference play, which could give them a pair of quality wins, and their toughest Pac-12 game is a visit to Arizona State.
Coastal Carolina takes the top Group of Five slot
For now, the top Group of Five (the next five conferences beyond the Power Five) get their top team a slot in the New Year’s Six. Last year, that was almost Coastal Carolina, and they have 19 of their 22 starters coming back. Quarterback Grayson McCall and All-American defensive lineman C.J. Brewer return — and the Chanticleers have a much lighter schedule than the likes of Cincinnati, UCF, Louisiana and SMU.
Georgia wins the national championship
We did say that these were bold predictions, right? The Georgia roster has more talent than anyone in the nation — and Derion Kendrick and Arik Gilbert transferred from Clemson and LSU, respectively, leaving behind starting roles at their schools. J.T. Daniels will return at quarterback, and he helped the Bulldog offense explode when he took over the reins last season. We’ll learn a lot after the opener, when Georgia beats Clemson; after that, the Bulldogs have a very friendly schedule. Can Kirby Smart get over the mental hurdles associated with beating the likes of Nick Saban and Dabo Swinney?
No Big Ten team will make the CFP
Ohio State has four straight Big Ten titles, and Justin Fields was the quarterback for two of those teams. Now he’s in Chicago with the Bears. On the offensive line, the Buckeyes have holes to fill, with new starters at center and both guard positions, and at linebacker, the Buckeyes lost three starters. C.J. Stroud takes over at quarterback, but the Buckeyes no longer have Trey Sermon to pound the ball and bail out the offense. The other top teams in the Big Ten are Penn State and Wisconsin, but neither has shown the complete game needed to put up an unbeaten or one-loss season.
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