The 2017 NCAA College Football Season is now over and the Alabama Crimson Tide took home another National Championship under Nick Saban. The SEC showed once again, why they are the elite conference in the NCAA. They put not only the Crimson Tide in the National Championship game but they also were in a no lose situation with the Crimson Tide’s opponent being the Georgia Bulldogs.
That leaves us looking towards next year and sort of an early pre-season look at the 2018 NCAA College Football National Championship picture and some future wagers that may be interesting to follow.
Alabama Returning Favorite For 2018
No surprise, the Alabama Crimson Tide are the favorite to win next year at 5/2. The Crimson Tide are a young team and as we seen on Monday Night they were led by a true freshman at quarterback. This team is loaded up with talented young prospects and should contend once again for another National Title.
With Nick Saban at the head coaching spot for the Crimson Tide, this team will be there in contention each and every year. He continues to build a legacy with each year and what started out as just a winning season several years ago, has now turned into a dynasty of championships.
Clemson Second At 6/1
The Clemson Tigers came up short this year but lost to the eventual national champions, Alabama Crimson Tide. Clemson will return a decent amount of young players and with the ACC being so weak, there is no doubt the Tigers will be back in the hunt next year.
Ohio State and Georgia Share third Spot
The Ohio State Buckeyes didn’t get a chance to play for the National Championship but still come in sharing the third spot at 8/1 with the opponent of the Crimson Tide, the Georgia Bulldogs. First off, let’s take a look into the Buckeyes. They are going to be without 5th year starting QB JT Barrett and a new era will begin with a new QB. The job is up for grabs but most likely Dwayne Haskins will win the starting job. Haskins played in Barrett’s absence this year and actually looked good for a young prospect.
For the Bulldogs, they also have some growing pains to encounter as they will lose both Sony Michel and Nick Chubb, there two top rushing threats in the backfield. The Bulldogs shouldn’t have a tough time replicating their win streak from this year, next year as they face a very laid back out of conference schedule. They will play Austin Peay, Middle Tennessee State, UMass and of course their annual game with Georgia Tech. The Bulldogs have an easy path but can they replace the rushing attack left behind by Michel and Chubb?
Pair of Scott Frost Teams are 200/1
Many people, including myself, are upset that the Central Florida Knights did not have a chance to compete against the teams in the National Championship Playoffs. UCF went on to beat Auburn, who ironically beat both teams that played in the National Championship this year.
Scott Frost’s new team, the Nebraska Cornhuskers are looking for an immediate impact and are hoping that Frost can make these kids in Nebraska believers like they were in Central Florida. Both Nebraska and Central Florida are 200/1 longshots to win the National Championship in 2018.
Can Harbaugh Contend For College Football Playoffs?
The Michigan Wolverines may be at the end of the rope for Jim Harbaugh and his days at Michigan could very well be limited if he does not at least contend next year for the playoffs. Harbaugh and the Wolverines come into the 2018 season at 10/1 to win the National Championship and for good cause.
The Wolverines will have a new QB under center next year as Ole Miss transfer Shea Patterson will most likely take over the starting role from Brandon Peters, who struggled in the bowl game and was injured last season. If Patterson, or Peters, can figure out Harbaugh’s offense and their defense returns to just a fraction of how good they were in 2017, this team could seriously stir up some feathers in the College Football Playoff picture.
USC Rebuilding Era Starts
One team that you won’t find many supporters of this year for winning the National Championship is the USC Trojans. They will lose their top QB in Sam Darnold, who will be entering the NFL Draft, as well as RB Ronald Jones and WR Deontay Burnett. USC has opened up at 40/1 and head coach Clay Helton realizes he has a much larger chance of winning the National Championship with the large loss of players at one time. They are in a rebuilding phase of the team and we will just have to sit tight and see what the future holds.
