
A guide to Alabama-Ole Miss, TCU-Texas and the rest of Week 11’s best games
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3 years agoon
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ESPN staff
Drama highlighted a Week 10 of college football, and while Week 11’s slate doesn’t quite provide the firepower of two top-10 matchups and Clemson’s trip to Notre Dame, there’s still plenty on the line.
If Alabama wants to keep any hope alive to make the SEC title game, it will have to beat Lane Kiffin and the one-loss Rebels in Oxford. The Crimson Tide enter the crucial SEC West matchup with two losses, something typically unthinkable in mid-November under Nick Saban.
The next step for the upstart No. 4 TCU Horned Frogs is a trip to Austin, where they’ve beaten Texas four of the past five times they’ve headed south. The Horned Frogs clinched a berth in the Big 12 title game already but will have to keep a perfect record rolling if they want to stay in the College Football Playoff mix.
Speaking of the playoff, No. 3 Michigan hosts Nebraska, opening as a 31-point favorite. The Wolverines will likely use the game as a tune-up before hosting a ranked Illinois team and a trip to Columbus for the biggest game of the season.
Out west, Oregon hopes to keep its playoff hopes alive as rival Washington heads to Eugene looking to play spoiler. And UCF and Tulane meet in one of the biggest Group of 5 matchups this season.
These are the biggest storylines ahead of Week 11’s action.
No. 9 Alabama (7-2, 4-2) at No. 11 Ole Miss (8-1, 4-1): Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS
This isn’t a terribly complicated game to figure out. Ole Miss wants to do one thing in particular on offense: run the football. The question is, can Alabama stop it?
On the face of it, the answer might be yes. The Crimson Tide are giving up the third-fewest rushing yards per game in the SEC this season (104.0). But dig deeper, and 37.6% of rush attempts have resulted in 5 or more yards gained. And, removing sacks, opposing quarterbacks are averaging 5.32 yards per rush.
During Saturday’s loss at LSU, quarterback Jayden Daniels ran for 95 yards and a touchdown. A few weeks earlier, during Alabama’s other loss to Tennessee, Hendon Hooker ran for 56 yards.
Don’t think for a second that Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin didn’t notice that. His quarterback, Jaxson Dart, is plenty capable in the run game, totaling 473 yards on the ground this season.
What’s more, Dart has two great running backs to play off. Quinshon Judkins, the bruiser and lead back, has 1,036 yards rushing. Zach Evans, a more explosive change-of-pace back, has 680 yards.
Alabama coach Nick Saban called the Rebs “one of the best running teams in the country.” They’re third nationally with 267.4 yards per game.
“They do a really good job with formation multiples, motions, trying to get the defense to adjust,” Saban said. “They’ve got really good running plays, but they’re running those same plays out of all those different multiples, which is trying to put different players in different positions, so you make a mistake, you have a gap open and they hit a play on you.
“So this is one of those where you have to have 11 guys on the same page doing the right things or they’re going to find a way to get to you.”
Ole Miss’ 83 runs of 10 or more yards is the most in the FBS — and 13 more than the second-ranked teams, North Texas and Oregon.
Further complicating matters is the question of motivation for Alabama, which has two losses before the Iron Bowl for the first time since 2010.
Unless LSU implodes and loses both of its remaining SEC games — unranked matchups on the road at Arkansas and Texas A&M — the Tide won’t reach the SEC championship game.
“I know people have kind of written us off to some degree,” Saban said, “but at the same time, I think we have a lot of pride as an organization. I think we need to get focused on what it takes to win games.” — Alex Scarborough
No. 4 TCU (9-0, 6-0) at No. 18 Texas (6-3, 4-2): Saturday, 7:30 ET on ABC
The Horned Frogs roll into Austin in one of the biggest games in school history, the same week they landed at No. 4 in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Yet, they’re a 7-point underdog to the Longhorns, the most points the Horns have been favored by over a top-five team since the 1978 FBS/FCS split.
“We haven’t beaten a top-five team here at [Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium] since 1999, so it’s a great opportunity for us to hopefully prepare well and play well for our fans,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “I’m looking forward to an electric and a great intimidating environment.”
Texas jumped out to big first-half leads at Oklahoma State and Kansas State and ended up losing to the Cowboys and holding on against the Wildcats. That’s been an issue since the beginning of last season, as the Longhorns have blown four 14-point leads over that time, most in the FBS. Meanwhile, the Horned Frogs are 4-0 this year when trailing in the second half, tied with 2010 Auburn and 2012 Ohio State as the only teams to go 4-0 or better in that instance in the past 15 seasons.
The Texas defense (including special assistant Gary Patterson, the former TCU coach) will face a challenge with the big-play Frogs. TCU has 13 touchdowns of 40-plus yards this season, the most in the FBS and the most in a season in at least 15 seasons. The Texas D, meanwhile, has allowed just seven plays of 40 yards all year, tied for third fewest in the Big 12.
The matchup also features the top two rushers in the league, Bijan Robinson (1,129 yards) and Kendre Miller (1,009). Robinson leads the FBS in missed tackles forced with 68, while Miller is fourth with 55.
The game is a massive chance for Texas to stay in the Big 12 race. ESPN Analytics gives Texas a 73% chance to make the Big 12 title game with a win and just a 39% chance with a loss. TCU, meanwhile, would clinch a spot with a win and fall to 86% with a loss.
It’s also a huge statement chance for TCU in the College Football Playoff race. The Horned Frogs ranked seventh in the first College Football Playoff ranking, leading to concern that their “brand” wasn’t getting the respect of the committee, before bumping up to fourth this week after Clemson and Alabama losses. A win at Texas would go a long way toward earning more respect.
“I do think there’s always extra motivation when you play against the big-brand team, whether it’s Oklahoma, whether it’s Texas,” TCU coach Sonny Dykes said. “They’ve got a lot of Twitter followers, TikTok followers, all that.” — Dave Wilson
0:49
Heather Dinich discusses why TCU has to win out if it wants a chance at the playoff.
Nebraska (3-6, 2-4) at No. 3 Michigan (9-0, 6-0): Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN App
Michigan’s offense this season has gone through running back Blake Corum, who is tied for the most rushing touchdowns among FBS backs with 16.
Corum is No. 4 in rush yards with 1,187, No. 1 in rushing first downs and No. 11 in runs for 10 or more yards this season. With 17 total touchdowns this season, Corum has accounted for nearly 40% of Michigan’s offensive touchdowns.
“He’s definitely having an MVP season for us here at Michigan. Be hard to imagine that he wouldn’t, the way he’s going, win the Heisman Trophy,” coach Jim Harbaugh said. “Leading in touchdowns, leading points scored, consistently really good every game, and there’s been quite a few backs who have won the Heisman Trophy. And I would bet my truck that Blake Corum is on pace or ahead of many of those running backs that have won that Heisman Trophy.”
Corum has run his way into the Heisman conversation, and Nebraska now has the challenge of slowing him down. Nebraska is allowing an average of 182.9 rush yards per game, which ranks 108th among all FBS programs.
The team is allowing 4.51 yards per rush, which ranks 99th, and has allowed 18 rushing touchdowns this season, ranked 106th among all teams.
Interim coach Mickey Joseph knows the team will have its hands full with Corum this weekend and will need to focus on stopping the run.
“He is probably one of the top backs in the country. I think he is getting Heisman votes right now,” Joseph said. “If you watch the film, he runs low to the ground, he runs with violence and he has a really good burst. When he sees it, he sees it and he bursts through the hole. He is a really good football player.”
Joseph has had the unenviable task of keeping focused a team whose head coach was fired just three games into the season. He not only has to prepare the team for its weekly opponent but also has to make sure it continues to fight through the end of the season.
“We talk to them about having a lot of pride, about not being broken, and to continue to fight, and that we started something and we are going to finish it against adversity, but we have to bow our neck and we have to play football,” Joseph said. “That is the only way you can approach it, but like I said, it is a good group. It is a good group of kids, and they are not going to quit.” — Tom VanHaaren
No. 25 Washington at No. 6 Oregon (8-1, 6-0): Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, Fox
The arc of the Ducks’ season has taken on a storybook approach. After getting welcomed into the year with a blowout at the hands of Georgia, that valley has quickly turned into an eight-week-long peak: eight wins, zero losses and at least 40 points scored in each game. And, aside from that disappointing season-opening performance, the Ducks have handled the two other top-25 opponents they’ve faced in UCLA and BYU with relative ease. Washington sneaked into the top 25 this past week, making it the third ranked opponent the Ducks have welcomed to Eugene and giving this week’s matchup a bit more juice than expected, especially given the games Oregon is facing in the near future.
“This is one of those weeks that you don’t have to give any extra fuel for our players to be excited and ready to roll,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said earlier this week. “They all understand the significance of this game, how important it is, and they’re definitely ready to attack.”
Any concern with Oregon looking ahead to big games against Utah and rival Oregon State won’t faze his team, according to Lanning. If anything, it appears that all the waking up the Ducks needed happened in Week 1, and they have not taken any opponent lightly since. It helps that quarterback Bo Nix has looked the part of a Heisman contender, not only throwing for nearly 2,500 yards and 22 touchdowns but also being more efficient and less turnover-prone. The Huskies’ defense will require another stellar performance after two easy weeks against Cal and Colorado.
Of course, a stumble against the Huskies — who have looked much better of late and are still led by one of the better quarterbacks this season in Michael Penix Jr. — could jeopardize not just a conference championship for Oregon but a playoff run too. To hear Lanning talk about it, though, the Ducks are hitting their stride at the perfect time.
“Obviously coming on from Game 1 wasn’t the result we wanted,” Lanning said of how the schedule has shaken out. “But since then, our players have done a really good job of having great resolve and attacking what we can get better at each week, and that really hasn’t changed.”
Should the Ducks keep winning, the Georgia loss will continue to look less and less like a blemish and more like the spark they needed. — Paolo Uggetti
No. 22 UCF (7-2, 4-1) at No. 17 Tulane (8-1, 5-0): 3:30 p.m., ESPN2
A year after stumbling to a 2-10 season, Tulane has put together one of the most remarkable turnarounds in college football this season — not only ranked in the CFP for the first time but also 5-0 and alone in first place in the AAC for the first time as well.
Its home game Saturday against UCF will most certainly have an impact not only on who plays for a conference championship but also who gets the coveted Group of 5 spot in the New Year’s Six. UCF and Tulane are the only two Group of 5 teams in the latest CFP rankings.
A UCF win would give the Knights the edge to play for the American championship, as they would have beaten both Tulane and Cincinnati head-to-head. Plus they finish out the season with Navy and USF, two teams with losing records.
A Tulane win would keep it undefeated and atop the standings, but it has a much harder finish to its season — with games left against two winning teams, SMU and Cincinnati. With a handful of teams all in the mix to play in the conference championship game, there are no clinching scenarios on the table for this week.
For his part, Tulane coach Willie Fritz has tried not to hype up what the game against UCF means with his team. Nor has he tried to overplay the historical significance of where Tulane is headed down the stretch. But make no mistake, this is a huge opportunity that awaits.
This matchup against UCF marks the first time a ranked Tulane team hosts another ranked team since Nov. 26, 1949, when No. 10 Tulane hosted No. 13 LSU … in an SEC matchup. Tulane has lost 60 consecutive games against AP-ranked teams, the longest streak in the poll era (since 1936).
“I just think it’s my job to try to have our guys as prepared as they can possibly be and talking about what-ifs, and this, that and the other thing — I leave that to other people to do,” Fritz said during his news conference this week. “We just want to go 1-0.”
Tulane has had success this season thanks to its defense, which ranks No. 11 in the nation in scoring defense (16.9 points per game) and No. 16 in total defense (307.3 rushing yards per game). Against UCF, the Green Wave, in all likelihood, are preparing for two quarterbacks.
UCF coach Gus Malzahn has not said whether Mikey Keene or John Rhys Plumlee will start Saturday. Plumlee sustained a concussion against Cincinnati two weeks ago, and Keene came into the game and led the Knights to the upset win. Keene got the start last week, leading them to another win, 35-28 at Memphis. — Andrea Adelson
Clinching scenarios for Week 11
Power 5
ACC
• Clemson has clinched the Atlantic Division.
• North Carolina clinches the Coastal with a win at Wake Forest OR losses by Duke (vs. Virginia Tech) and Georgia Tech (vs. Miami). According to ESPN Analytics, there’s a 51% chance the Tar Heels clinch the division this week.
Big 12
• TCU clinches a spot in the Big 12 championship game with a win at Texas. According to ESPN Analytics, there’s a 27% chance the Horned Frogs clinch a spot in the championship game this week.
SEC
• Georgia clinches the East with a win at Mississippi State OR a Tennessee loss to Missouri. According to ESPN Analytics, there’s an 85% chance the Bulldogs clinch the division this week.
• LSU clinches the West with a win at Arkansas AND an Ole Miss loss to Alabama. According to ESPN Analytics, there’s a 54% chance the Tigers clinch the division this week.
Group of 5
Conference USA
• UTSA clinches a spot in the Conference USA championship game with a win against Louisiana Tech. According to ESPN Analytics, there’s an 84% chance the Roadrunners clinch a spot in the championship game this week.
• North Texas clinches a spot in the Conference USA championship game with a win at UAB AND a Rice loss at Western Kentucky. According to ESPN Analytics, there’s a 30% chance the Mean Green clinch a spot in the championship game this week.
MAC
• Toledo clinches the West with a win Tuesday against Ball State AND a Western Michigan loss Wednesday against Northern Illinois. According to ESPN Analytics, there’s a 40% chance the Rockets clinch the division this week.
Sun Belt
• Coastal Carolina clinches the East with a win against Southern Miss OR losses by Georgia State (vs. UL Monroe) and Old Dominion (vs. James Madison). According to ESPN Analytics, there’s a 75% chance the Chanticleers clinch the division this week.
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Areas of concern: What could trip up each of our top 25 teams
Published
2 hours agoon
July 9, 2025By
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While optimism runs high at most every college football program this time of year, even the rosiest picture has some lurking shadows.
That is true even for the 25 teams in our post-spring Power Rankings. No matter how deep the rosters seem, everyone has some question marks or potential weak spots.
Our college football reporters take a look at the biggest areas of concern for each of the top teams, the potential Achilles’ heel that could keep them from reaching their goals for the season.
Area of concern: Wide receiver
The Nittany Lions addressed the wide receiver spot in the portal with Syracuse’s Trebor Pena and others, but until they actually elevate their production, questions will linger. Penn State has had only one wide receiver rank among the top 10 in the Big Ten in receiving in the past three seasons (Tyler Warren played tight end). Both Warren and top receiver Harrison Wallace III are gone, and Penn State needs its portal haul — Pena, a second-team All-ACC wideout in 2024, as well as Devonte Ross (Troy) and Kyron Hudson (USC) — to give quarterback Drew Allar enough capable targets this fall. Although Allar’s big-game struggles are also concerning, he hasn’t had a great group of receivers at his disposal during his Penn State career. — Adam Rittenberg
Area of concern: Running back
The position group that has been discussed more than any other since the spring at Clemson is running back — the only position on offense that loses the bulk of its production with Phil Mafah off to the NFL. But the Tigers have plenty of depth at running back, and that should help ease any concerns as they move into fall camp. Particularly because running back traditionally has been an area where Clemson has excelled, even when other groups on offense took a step back. (Clemson has had a 1,000-yard rusher 11 of the past 16 years, and that does not include 2023, when Mafah and Will Shipley split the carries nearly evenly and combined for more than 1,700 yards.) It is easy to see true freshman Gideon Davidson as a breakout player, considering the success Clemson has had with true freshman backs since Dabo Swinney arrived. Clemson also has receiver Adam Randall taking reps at running back to help round out the depth in a room that also features Keith Adams Jr. and David Eziomume. Jay Haynes continues to rehab a knee injury. — Andrea Adelson
Area of concern: Offensive line
The Longhorns lost four starters on the O-line to the NFL draft and are breaking in a new quarterback, although Arch Manning made two starts last season, as well as several key receivers with the losses of Matthew Golden, Isaiah Bond and tight end Gunnar Helm. They lost tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., the 2025 No. 9 draft pick, but Trevor Goosby got some key playing time last year at the position when Banks was injured. The Longhorns also lost 56-game starter Jake Majors at center and face Ohio State in Week 1, posing a quick learning curve for an almost completely new offensive line group. — Dave Wilson
Area of concern: Pass rush
The Bulldogs lost six veteran contributors on their front seven on defense, none more important than edge rushers Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams and Chaz Chambliss. Walker and Williams were first-round picks in the NFL draft, and Chambliss was an unheralded contributor over four seasons. They combined for 18 sacks and 28.5 tackles for loss in 2024. Making matters worse, Damon Wilson, a projected replacement on the edge, transferred to Missouri. Georgia feels good about Gabe Harris Jr., and it added Army transfer Elo Modozie, who had 6.5 sacks for the Black Knights last season. — Mark Schlabach
Area of concern: Quarterback
Quarterback Will Howard was everything the Buckeyes could have hoped for last year in his lone season at Ohio State. He was spectacular during the College Football Playoff, posting a QBR of 97.2 over four games during the Buckeyes’ march to the national championship. With Howard now in the NFL, the Buckeyes will be turning to either former five-star freshman Julian Sayin or Lincoln Kienholz this season, pending who wins the job during camp. Throwing to all-world wideout Jeremiah Smith will bolster whomever the starting quarterback winds up being. But even with Smith and All-American safety Caleb Downs anchoring each side of the ball, it’s difficult envisioning the Buckeyes truly contending again unless Ohio State gets good-to-great quarterback play like it did last season. — Jake Trotter
Area of concern: Offensive line
I don’t know that LSU has to necessarily worry about the offensive line because of moves made this offseason, but it has to be something to keep an eye on just because of the magnitude of the losses. The Tigers had one of the best tackle duos in all of college football last season in Will Campbell and Emery Jones, who were first- and third-round NFL draft picks. They lost four starters across the line in total. DJ Chester and Tyree Adams are back in different spots, while Brian Kelly added Braelin Moore from Virginia Tech. — Harry Lyles Jr.
Area of concern: Tight end
Since 2011, the Fighting Irish have had a whopping 10 tight ends selected in the NFL draft, including last season’s leading receiver, Mitchell Evans, who had 43 catches for 421 yards with three touchdowns. While the Irish feel they’ve upgraded their wide receiver group with the additions of Virginia transfer Malachi Fields and Wisconsin’s Will Pauling, tight end remains a bit of a question mark heading into preseason camp. Senior Eli Raridon has the size (6-foot-7) and hands to excel at the position, but he was plagued by injuries during his first couple of college seasons, after tearing an ACL as a freshman. He had 11 catches for 90 yards with two touchdowns in 2024. The status of another tight end, Cooper Flanagan, who tore his left Achilles tendon in the Sugar Bowl, is in question. — Mark Schlabach
Area of concern: Defensive line
It’s hard to say whether this is an area of concern just yet, but there are question marks with Oregon’s defensive line as the Ducks lost both Derrick Harmon and Jordan Burch from last year (as well as Jamaree Caldwell). Defensive end is a strength with Matayo Uiagalelei holding down the edge, but the rest of the line will require some newcomers to step up, such as USC transfer Bear Alexander and rising lineman Aydin Breland, who could be in line for a breakout season. A’mauri Washington, one of the few returning players, will likely be a fixture of the new-look line as well. — Paolo Uggetti
Area of concern: Pass rush
Alabama finished 13th in the SEC last season in quarterback sacks, and while sacks aren’t the end-all when it comes to rushing the passer, the Crimson Tide need to be more consistent in getting to the opposing quarterback. There’s not a pure edge pass rusher in the mold of Will Anderson Jr. or Dallas Turner on this roster, meaning Alabama will need to get more pressure from its interior linemen and perhaps a breakout season from redshirt sophomore outside linebacker Qua Russaw. — Chris Low
Area of concern: Quarterback
When the season ended, quarterback figured to be an obvious strength for BYU considering Jake Retzlaff was set to return. But with him expected to transfer as of late June, the Cougars are left without an established starter. McCae Hillstead showed flashes at Utah State in 2023, Treyson Bourguet started eight games in two years for Western Michigan and true freshman Bear Bachmeier was a big-time recruit who enrolled briefly at Stanford earlier this offseason before leaving for Provo. The expectation is that all three will have a chance to earn the starting job in fall camp, without a clear-cut front-runner. — Kyle Bonagura
Area of concern: Offensive explosiveness
The Illini had a good and efficient offense in 2024, but they weren’t particularly explosive, tying for 64th nationally in plays of 10 yards or longer and tying for 66th in plays of 20 yards or longer. Although quarterback Luke Altmyer and a veteran offensive line return, Illinois needs to replace its top two receivers in Pat Bryant and Zakhari Franklin, who are off to the NFL, and leading rusher Josh McCray, who transferred to Georgia. Offensive coordinator Barry Lunney thinks Collin Dixon, who averaged 14.7 yards per catch in limited work last fall, and incoming freshman Brayden Trimble can spark the offense. “Overall, we’re going to have a little bit more vertical speed in what we’re doing to stretch the defense than what we did,” Lunney told me. “That’s no slight on Zakhari or Pat at all. Those were just kind of bigger, stronger guys.” — Rittenberg
Area of concern: Pass rush
ASU’s late-season surge, from a decent team to one capable of coming within one play of the CFP semifinals, took place primarily thanks to players who are returning in 2025. Obviously losing star running back Cam Skattebo hurts, but the Sun Devils have some of the best overall returning production numbers in the country. We don’t know that they have a pass rush, though. It was an issue last season — ASU ranked just 110th in sacks per dropback — and while both of their sacks leaders (Clayton Smith and Elijah O’Neal) return, that duo combined for just 8.5 sacks between them. Kenny Dillingham evidently thought he had the answers in house, as he didn’t add a single edge rusher in the transfer portal, but while the secondary is sound and experienced, giving QBs too much time to find receivers can bring down even the most seasoned defense. — Bill Connelly
Area of concern: Defensive front
What was perhaps South Carolina’s biggest strength last season could be its biggest concern going into 2025. Gone up front are stalwarts Kyle Kennard, Bam Martin-Scott, Demetrius Knight and TJ Sanders, among others. That left a lot of holes to fill, and the Gamecocks largely addressed them by hitting the portal hard. Rising star Dylan Stewart will be the flashiest player and Bryan Thomas is the lone established senior, with transfers Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy, Davonte Miles and Justin Okoronkwo filling a big void. But perhaps the biggest name to know is sophomore Fred “JayR” Johnson, a rangy linebacker with lauded leadership skills who South Carolina hopes will blossom into the centerpiece of the defense after playing a small role as a freshman in 2024. — David Hale
Area of concern: Wide receiver
With receivers Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins both off to the NFL — having been drafted by the Houston Texans in back-to-back rounds — receiver is a good place to start. Noel and Higgins combined for nearly 2,400 receiving yards last season and that type of production will need to be replaced by more than just two players. But even with those holes to fill, the lack of a pass rush last season remains a glaring question mark. If the Cyclones can’t improve upon their conference-worst sack total, it’s hard to see how they can make a run at the Big 12 title, especially given the unknowns at receiver. — Bonagura
Area of concern: Defensive line
One of the most underappreciated keys to SMU’s playoff run last season was the veteran talent up front on defense. Elijah Roberts, Jared Harrison-Hunte and Jahfari Harvey all came from Miami and had multiple years as a starter under their belts in 2024. There won’t be nearly so much experience this year. Add in the departures of Ahmad Walker and Kobe Wilson at linebacker, and there’s a vacuum waiting to be filled in terms of leadership. SMU does return safety Isaiah Nwokobia, who was an All-ACC performer last season, and there’s buzz surrounding East Carolina transfer Zakye Barker at linebacker, but establishing some key voices — and performers — on the D-line remains a question. — Hale
Area of concern: Defense
Does the defensive makeover actually work? The Red Raiders’ D can’t get much worse than what it was in 2024, and that’s not hyperbole. Texas Tech finished 126th in total defense in 2024. The secondary was 132nd in passing yards per game. Shiel Wood takes over as defensive coordinator, and there have been tons of portal additions to this side of the ball. Players such as Stanford linebacker David Bailey and Georgia Tech end Romello Height stand out, along with five transfer defensive backs. There’s really only one way for this group to go, and it’s up. — Lyles Jr.
Area of concern: Defense
Despite the fact that talented defensive end Mikail Kamara is returning, the transfer-heavy unit that allowed the fewest rushing yards per game in the Big Ten last season lost some key contributors. Gone to the NFL are CJ West and James Carpenter, and while Indiana did not hesitate to dip into the transfer portal to reload with players such as Hosea Wheeler (Western Kentucky), Stephen Daley (Kent State), Dominique Ratcliff (Texas State) and Kellan Wyatt (Maryland), one of the Hoosiers’ strongest position groups last year has a lot to prove and live up to in 2025. — Uggetti
Area of concern: Stopping big plays
K-State’s offense was delightfully explosive last season, but the defense often gave up as many big plays as the offense created. The Wildcats blitzed a lot and harassed QBs well, but they ranked 110th in Total QBR allowed and 107th in completions of 10 or more yards allowed. That’s a concern considering the defense lost both leading pass rusher Brendan Mott and four of last year’s five starters in the secondary. Defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman might have to fiddle with the risk-reward balance to get the most out of this defense and help the Wildcats contend in the ultracompetitive Big 12. — Connelly
Area of concern: Wide receiver
One of the reasons Florida is expected to improve in 2025 is because of the talent that quarterback DJ Lagway brings. But the Gators’ top receivers from last season, Elijhah Badger and Chimere Dike, left for the NFL. Eugene Wilson III is back, but also coming off season-ending hip surgery. It will be up to Vernell Brown III, Dallas Wilson, Naeshaun Montgomery and J. Michael Sturdivant (UCLA transfer) to help establish themselves. — Lyles Jr.
Area of concern: Wide receiver
The Wolverines ranked 129th last season with just 1,678 passing yards. Quarterback play was part of the issue, as Michigan cycled through three quarterbacks (Davis Warren, Jack Tuttle and Alex Orji) in its first season after losing national champion JJ McCarthy. But Michigan’s receivers collectively didn’t make enough plays, as no wideout caught more than 27 passes or totaled more than 248 yards. The onus will be even greater on Michigan’s receivers with tight end Colston Loveland — the Wolverines’ only reliable target last year — now playing for the Chicago Bears. Instant impact from transfers Anthony Simpson (UMass) and Donaven McCulley (Indiana), combined with internal improvement from the likes of Fredrick Moore and Semaj Morgan, will be paramount if Michigan is going to threaten opposing defensive backfields in 2025. — Trotter
Area of concern: Linebacker
The Hurricanes did another fantastic job shoring up positions across the roster in the transfer portal, especially considering how much turnover they had from last season. But if there is one position that still has some questions, it is linebacker, mainly because depth may become an issue as the season wears on. Miami returns three key veterans in Wesley Bissainthe, Jaylin Alderman and Popo Aguirre, and signed NC State transfer Kamal Bonner and Rutgers transfer Mo Toure. Miami often looked slow and out of position at linebacker last season, but the new scheme from defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman should help. The player to keep an eye on here is Toure, whom Hetherman coached while he was at Rutgers. Toure is coming off a knee injury (his second torn ACL in three years), but his potential to fit into this defense, considering his past with Hetherman, is huge. — Adelson
Area of concern: Defensive end
For the past three years, Louisville was able to rely on a genuine star off the edge in Ashton Gillotte, who racked up 21.5 sacks from 2022-24. Gillotte is off to the NFL now, a third-round pick by the Chiefs. That leaves a major void at defensive end. Louisville has a couple of transfers — Wesley Bailey from Rutgers and Clev Lubin from Coastal Carolina — hoping to fill the void, but the strength of the D-line will certainly be on the interior, where the Cards have much more established depth. As Louisville works to remedy issues defending the pass, finding someone — or, ideally, a few guys — who can get after the QB will be one of the most critical jobs for the defense as it prepares for 2025. — Hale
Area of concern: Wide receiver
Just like last season, a big question for the Aggies’ potential is how their wide receiver room will shake out. The Aggies lost Noah Thomas, a bright spot in an otherwise spotty position for A&M and new offensive coordinator Collin Klein, to Georgia after Thomas caught 39 passes for 574 yards and eight touchdowns last year. No other player caught more than two TDs or eclipsed 400 yards on the season as the Aggies fought through a QB change from Conner Weigman to Marcel Reed. This year, the Aggies are looking toward NC State transfer KC Concepcion (71 catches, 839 yards, 10 TDs in 2023, 53-460-6 last year), Mississippi State transfer Mario Craver (17-368-3 as a freshman), as well as returners Ashton Bethel-Roman, 6-2, 220-pound freshman four-star recruit Jerome Myles and dynamic 2024 five-star recruit Terry Bussey, who played something of an all-purpose role last year. As this group goes, so will Reed and the offense. — Wilson
Area of concern: Quarterback
Austin Simmons seems like a talented individual — we’re talking about someone who is athletically gifted enough to play baseball for Ole Miss as well. But anytime you are replacing one of the better quarterbacks in your conference, in this case Jaxson Dart, who was a first-round NFL draft pick, there has to be some level of concern. But from what we’ve seen out of Simmons, there’s promise. His drive against Georgia last season, where he led a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to tie the game while Dart was injured, should give the Ole Miss faithful something to be excited about. — Lyles Jr.
Area of concern: Tight end
It’s been a struggle at tight end for the Sooners, and there’s again uncertainty around the position heading into the 2025 season. Granted, there was plenty of blame to go around for Oklahoma’s struggles on offense last season, but finding more consistency at tight end in both the receiving and blocking categories would be a big boost for an offense that has tons of new faces. There isn’t a definitive starter at tight end entering preseason camp. Transfers Will Huggins (Kansas and Pittsburg State) and Carson Kent (Kennesaw State) are expected to battle with converted linebacker Jaren Kanak for the job. — Low
Sports
UCF’s Frost: Nebraska job ‘wasn’t a good move’
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2 hours agoon
July 9, 2025By
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Associated Press
Jul 8, 2025, 09:28 PM ET
FRISCO, Texas — Scott Frost’s celebrated return as coach at UCF comes with the backdrop of a failed tenure at Nebraska, the alma mater he said he didn’t want to talk about at Big 12 football media days Tuesday. Even though he did.
Frost said, “I really want to keep it about UCF,” just a few hours after telling a reporter from The Athletic that he never wanted to take the Nebraska job in the first place coming off a 13-0 season in 2017 that sparked debate about whether the Knights should have had a chance to play for the national championship in the four-team playoff.
“I said I wouldn’t leave unless it was someplace you could win a national championship,” Frost told The Athletic. “I got tugged in a direction to try to help my alma mater and didn’t really want to do it. It wasn’t a good move. I’m lucky to get back to a place where I was a lot happier.”
When the same reporter asked Frost in a one-on-one interview what he learned from his time in Nebraska, the former Cornhuskers quarterback said, “Don’t take the wrong job.”
Frost’s tone was quite a bit different in two settings with reporters at the 12,000-seat indoor stadium that is also a practice field for the Dallas Cowboys.
“When you go through something that doesn’t work, just ready for another chance, and I’m ready for another chance,” Frost said. “This is about the Big 12. This is about UCF. Everybody has success in life and has failures in life, for all sorts of different reasons. I’m excited to get back in a place where my family and I get treated well.”
Frost inherited an 0-12 team at UCF and turned it into an undefeated American Athletic Conference champion in only two years. Nebraska fans were ecstatic when he made the move 20 years after leading the Cornhuskers to a perfect 1997 season and a split national title with Michigan in the final season before a championship game was established.
Three games into his fifth season in Lincoln, Frost was fired with a 16-31 record. Almost three full college seasons later, it’s back to Orlando — after one year working under Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay.
“I really enjoyed two years off,” Frost said. “I got to spend a whole year with Ashley and the [three] kids, and I’ll never get that time back. I played more catch with my son and touch football in the yard with him and going to little league and seeing my daughter do gymnastics. And then some time out in L.A. really, really helped reset me, too.”
Images endure of Frost celebrating a 34-27 Peach Bowl victory over Auburn that clinched UCF’s perfect 2017 season almost a month after he had been named the coach at Nebraska.
Fast-forward almost eight years, and Frost was delaying a scheduled roundtable with reporters to take a few pictures with the players he brought with him to media days.
“Yeah, being around the guys,” Frost said of that moment. “I’m sorry, I’d rather be around the guys than you guys.”
And there are times when Frost brings up the old days with his new guys.
“We talk to them about all those things,” Frost said. “What happened in 2017 is at times relevant, but this is a new team. So we only point those things out, not to live in the past, but just to help them with any lessons that we want to learn.”
Frost wasn’t sharing the lessons he learned in Nebraska with everyone.
Sports
Big 12’s Yormark ‘doubling down’ on 5+11 model
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2 hours agoon
July 9, 2025By
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Adam RittenbergJul 8, 2025, 12:52 PM ET
Close- College football reporter; joined ESPN in 2008. Graduate of Northwestern University.
FRISCO, Texas — Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark is “doubling down” on the so-called 5+11 future College Football Playoff format, while acknowledging that it might benefit his league more in the future than currently.
The Big 12 and ACC have pushed the model, which would award automatic bids to the five highest-rated conference champions, plus 11 at-large bids determined by the CFP selection committee. The 5+11 model gained some support at the SEC’s spring meetings, while the Big Ten has focused more on a model that would award four automatic bids to Big Ten teams and to SEC teams, plus two apiece to the Big 12 and the ACC.
Yormark, his fellow commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua must determine the CFP format for 2026 and beyond by Dec. 1.
The Big 12 had only one representative, champion Arizona State, in the inaugural 12-team CFP last year. Arizona State lost to Texas in two overtimes in a CFP quarterfinal matchup at the Peach Bowl.
“Five-11 is fair,” Yormark said Tuesday in his opening address at Big 12 media days at The Star. “We want to earn it on the field. It might not be the best solution today for the Big 12 … but long-term, knowing the progress we’re making, the investments we’re making, it’s the right format for us. And I’m doubling down today on 5+11.”
Yormark added that he expects ACC commissioner Jim Phillips to take the same position when that league holds its media days this month in Charlotte, North Carolina. The ACC sent two teams, champion Clemson and runner-up SMU, to the 12-team playoff last year. Yormark touted the Big 12 as the “deepest football conference in America” and said he believes the league will have multiple CFP entries this season.
“I have a lot of faith in the selection process,” Yormark said. “They are doing a full audit of the selection process to figure out how they can modernize and contemporize and how they use data and how certain metrics can be more heavily weighted.”
Yormark told ESPN that he’s “relatively confident” that the CFP will go to 16 teams in 2026 and laid out the next steps to making it happen.
“The first step is we got to figure out, with the selection process, we’re kind of doing a deep dive,” he said. “Where can we improve it? Where can we modernize it? Are we using the right metrics? Are things weighted appropriately or not? So we’re going through that conversation, and I think on the heels of that, we’ll move into the format because I think for the room people need to get confident, more confident, in that selection process. And assuming they do, which I’m confident they will, we’ll be able to then address the format that makes sense.”
In March, the CFP named a Big 12 athletic director, Baylor’s Mack Rhoades, as the chair of its selection committee. Yormark said that in addition to schedule strength, “new metrics” will be added to the selection process to ensure fairness to all conferences.
The Big 12 will have the Week 0 stage as Iowa State and Kansas State renew their rivalry in Dublin. Other key nonleague Big 12 matchups include Baylor-Auburn, Baylor-SMU and Iowa State-Iowa.
“I’m confident we’ll get to the right place,” Yormark said. “And ultimately, I’m confident we’ll go to 5+11.”
ESPN’s Pete Thamel contributed to this report.
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