It’s only Week 1.
I’m not eliminating anybody from the College Football Playoff conversation yet, but after finally getting to watch these teams play, nine programs stand above the rest as my national championship contenders.
This isn’t a ranking. There is no particular order.
Ohio State
Ohio State looked exactly like the No. 1 team should.
The Buckeyes destroyed Ball State 56-3, with Julian Sayin throwing for 320 yards and Jeremiah Smith putting up 151 yards and two touchdowns.
We’ll learn much more when Ohio State travels to Texas this weekend.
Georgia
Georgia played Tennessee State, so I’m not going crazy over a 63-3 victory.
But Gunner Stockton went 15-of-16 with three touchdowns, Georgia scored touchdowns on its first five possessions and the defense completely overwhelmed its opponent.
The Bulldogs still look loaded everywhere.
LSU
Nobody impressed me more than LSU.
Lane Kiffin’s first game ended with LSU embarrassing Clemson 51-10, outgaining the Tigers 644-145.
If LSU can play anything close to that consistently, this team can absolutely win the national championship.
Miami
Miami might have the most explosive passing attack in the country.
Darian Mensah threw for 401 yards and five touchdowns in a 45-6 destruction of Stanford, while Malachi Toney had 234 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Miami looks legit.
Texas
Texas handled business with a 59-7 win over Texas State, and Arch Manning threw for 305 yards and four touchdowns.
Now comes the real test.
Beat Ohio State this weekend, and Texas might become the team to beat nationally.
Oregon
Oregon was probably the least impressive team on this list.
The Ducks had to fight back to beat Boise State 34-27, but Dante Moore still threw for 378 yards and three touchdowns.
I’m not dropping Oregon from the title conversation because of one difficult opener against a good team.
Notre Dame
Notre Dame eventually pulled away from Wisconsin for a 41-13 victory, and CJ Carr looked comfortable leading the offense.
The Fighting Irish have enough talent on both sides of the ball to make another serious playoff run.
Indiana
Don’t forget about the defending national champions.
Indiana crushed North Texas 52-16, and Josh Hoover threw four touchdowns in his first game replacing Fernando Mendoza.
Until somebody knocks Indiana off, the Hoosiers belong in this conversation.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma might be the team people aren’t talking about enough.
The Sooners shut out UTEP 51-0, and their defense looked as nasty as expected.
We’ll learn a lot more against Michigan this weekend.
Those are my nine after Week 1: Ohio State, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Texas, Oregon, Notre Dame, Indiana and Oklahoma.
There are plenty of other talented teams out there, but right now, these are the teams I can realistically see holding the trophy at the end of the season.
