At some point during this season, we'll see things like [TEAM HERE] is a legitimate national championship contender. Some of those teams will likely be the usual suspects: Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Florida State; strong 2016 finishers like Penn State and USC; maybe even Michigan. However, that's eight teams. Unless my math is…
Fewer than two months remain until the 2017 college football season kicks off. The Open Man's Preview Listapalooza transitions into a Rankapalooza! Fans and pundits alike often lament the imbalance and other imperfections of nonconference play. Why do some Power Five teams go without scheduling a single Power Five opponent? Why don't the leagues have…
The Open Man's college football 2017 Listapalooza kicked off with the spotlight on offensive players. It's the defense's turn, and this coming season's crop of players features countless potential playmakers. Derek Baity, Kentucky CB One could fairly argue Kentucky's Derek Baity already had his breakout season. After all, the cornerback ranked second among all SEC…
Much of college football's allure resides in the sport's unpredictability. Yet, for as much chaos as ensues in any given autumn, the Alabama Crimson Tide provide stability. For as much as fans and pundits might insist that any four teams are surefire contenders for the Playoff, accurately forecasting the field at this juncture might as…
ESPN released its Week 1 broadcast schedule on this, the 100-day mark until the first full weekend of college football. Thursday's release does not cover the network's entire Week 1 plan -- ESPN 2, ESPNU and SEC Network games remain TBD -- but the full slate of contests on the main ESPN and ABC are…
Everyone dreams big. Very few make their wildest dreams reality. Deshaun Watson is one of the exceptions. As a high schooler four years ago, Watson foretold Monday night's performance. Me. In a National Championship Game. I'm just waiting on that moment.— Deshaun Watson (@DeshaunWatson4) January 8, 2013 Watson had his moment in 2016, skewering the…
Nick Saban-coached teams are tough to beat. Saban-coached teams with a lead at halftime, as Alabama owns over Clemson in the National Championship Game, are virtually unbeatable. The Crimson Tide took a 14-7 lead into intermission over Clemson. If the Tigers rally, they'll be just the seventh opponent in Saban's decade-long tenure at Alabama to…