Way Too Early 2023 College Football Top 25

The college football season still isn’t quite over, but next year still can’t come soon enough. With that, here are the way too early 2023 college football top 25.

25-21

25. Kentucky Wildcats

Kentucky went 7-6 in 2021, but they are bringing back offensive coordinator Liam Coen and hit the transfer portal hard. They should improve in 2023 with quarterback Devin Leary at the helm.

24. Mississippi State Bulldogs

Losing Mike Leach will make things difficult this offseason, as will losing players to transfer and the draft. Will Rogers will be back at quarterback for the Bulldogs and promoting defensive coordinator Zach Arnett to head coach will keep some consistency.

23. South Carolina Gamecocks

South Carolina finished off the regular season great and Shane Beamer’s program showed progress. They may be without Spencer Rattler, who may go pro, but he didn’t play great, so they may be able to figure things out even without him.

22. UTSA Roadrunners

Quarterback Frank Harris has announced that he will return and operate UTSA’s high-powered offense. After winning 11 games in 2022, the Roadrunners can do well again in 2023.

21. Troy Trojans

Jon Sumrall took Troy from not qualifying for a bowl game to winning 12 games in his first year as head coach. Troy should be favored to win the Sun Belt in 2023.

20-16

20. North Carolina Tar Heels

North Carolina has to fix their defense, but having Drake Maye back at quarterback can help them finish near the top of the ACC.

19. Tulane Green Wave

While the Green Wave will lose Tyjae Spears to the NFL, quarterback Michael Pratt is returning. After winning the Cotton Bowl and having several teams leave the AAC, Tulane is in a really good spot for 2023.

18. Kansas State Wildcats

Kansas State will have to deal with the losses of running back Deuce Vaughn, cornerback Julius Brents and possibly edge rusher Felix Anudike-Uzomah, but Chris Klieman has built a good foundation in Manhattan.

17. Texas Longhorns

Bijan Robinson is headed to the NFL and the Longhorns need Quinn Ewers to improve at quarterback for the offense to take a step forward. If not, Archie Manning may get some playing time as a true freshman.

16. Oregon State Beavers

Oregon State won 10 games even without great quarterback play. They have Clemson transfer D.J. Uiagalelei coming in, where he will have a chance to prove himself again.

15-11

15. Washington Huskies

Kalen DeBoer won 11 games in his first season with the Huskies. With quarterback Michael Penix Jr. returning for another season, the Huskies could be competing for a Pac-12 Championship.

14. TCU Horned Frogs

TCU had a fantastic year, which ended with them being in the National Championship. Sonny Dykes did a good job this season and his hit the transfer portal hard, but they slide to start next year due to the impending probable losses of: Quarterback Max Duggan, wide receiver Quentin Johnston, cornerback Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson and many more.

13. Oregon Ducks

After a tumultuous few seasons at Auburn, Bo Nix played great for the Ducks in 2022, as they won 10 games. Oregon loses a lot on defense, including linebacker Noah Sewell and cornerback Christian Gonzalez, but they have enough in the tank to have a similar season in 2023.

12. Utah Utes

Utah made the Rose Bowl for the second-straight season and now head into 2023 with some decent expectations. Getting Cameron Rising back at quarterback and a lot of players in the trenches returning could be the difference in the Utes going back to the Rose Bowl.

11. LSU Tigers

In year one at LSU, Brian Kelly won the SEC West with 10 total victories. Plenty of players were out for their bowl game and they dominated Purdue. Harold Perkins will be a player to watch after 7.5 sacks as a true freshman.

10-6

10. Clemson Tigers

Moving to Cade Klubnik was a necessary move that gives Clemson hope for 2023. The problem is that they lose a ton from their defense to the NFL and their offense showed real problems this year no matter who was at quarterback.

9. Tennessee Volunteers

Tennessee loses a lot including quarterback Hendon Hooker and their top wide receivers. Joe Milton looked good in the bowl game and is capable of leading Tennessee to another successful season.

8. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Notre Dame finished the season with nine wins in Marcus Freeman’s first season at the helm. They hit the transfer portal to get Sam Hartman at quarterback from Wake Forest. Their offensive line and running game should be good again, so improvements will be expected in South Bend.

7. Florida State Seminoles

Mike Norvell broke through in year three with 10 wins. Quarterback Jordan Travis returns and so do plenty of other starters. If Florida State improves this season, they could be playing for an ACC Championship.

6. Penn State Nittany Lions

The only two losses for Penn State this season were to Michigan and Ohio State. Drew Allar is a highly-touted recruit who will step in at quarterback. He will join an offense with plenty of key pieces returning in left tackle Olu Fashanu and running back Nick Singleton. If Allar can make do, Penn State could even improve on the 2022 season.

5-1

5. USC Trojans

It was a great turnaround for USC, as they made the Cotton Bowl in the first year of Lincoln Riley’s tenure. Heisman-winning quarterback Caleb Williams returns, but the Trojans really need to improve the defense if they want to make the College Football Playoff.

4. Alabama Crimson Tide

Alabama had a down year and still won 11 games, including the Sugar Bowl. There has been a big exodus of players from the NFL Draft and the transfer portal, but that hasn’t stopped the Crimson Tide before. Figuring out whether Jalen Milroe or Ty Simpson will be the starting quarterback will be the first order of business this spring.

3. Ohio State Buckeyes

The probable loss of quarterback C.J. Stroud and some talented offensive linemen will hurt. Ohio State still has plenty of talent, specifically at the skill positions and on the defensive line that should help them compete for the Big Ten in 2023.

2. Michigan Wolverines

Michigan made the College Football Playoff two seasons in a row. Quarterback J.J. McCarthy and running back Donovan Edwards can create a dynamic duo next season for the offense. The defense was solid all season before the TCU game and will need to figure things out for next season, but the Wolverines are in play to make a third-straight College Football Playoff.

1. Georgia Bulldogs

There were doubts about Georgia heading into the season because of how much they lost to the NFL and that may be the case again this season. They have some talented transfers and recruits coming in, but they also have some talented players who will step into key roles next season. Stetson Bennett will be gone, but the Bulldogs could improve at the position with either Carson Beck or Brock Vandagriff stepping in.

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