Winners and Losers from the 2013 College Football Offseason

From the Johnny Manziel autograph saga to seven-year old Jack Hoffman scoring a touchdown at the Nebraska spring game, the college football offseason had its fair share of winners and losers.

With the college football season now just over a week away, it's time to dive deeper into those stories and many more.

We all know the months from February through July can drag on for college football fans, but they have finally passed, and it's time for some football. However, we must first look back at the college football offseason that was. 

Loser: Jeremy Hill

The offseason is always filled with plenty of drama and arrests, but one of the more publicized was that of LSU running back Jeremy Hill.

Hill was charged with simple battery for a fight outside of a bar in Baton Rouge.

The problem got worse when video of the fight surfaced. While Hill is still on the team, it's certainly a black eye for the LSU program.

Winner: Oregon Ducks

Oregon is one of the major winners this college football offseason because the Ducks avoided a postseason ban.

That was excellent news for a team that is likely to contend for the national championship.

The Ducks committed major recruiting violations, but only suffered the loss of two scholarships. There was no bowl ban involved. That is reason enough for the Ducks to be one of the huge winners as first-year head coach Mark Helfrich takes over the program.

Loser: Urban Meyer

Even though it is not fair to blame Urban Meyer for arrests of his former players, that has been the case over the past few months.

The Aaron Hernandez saga did not shine a good light on Urban Meyer and neither did the trouble of players like Carlos Hyde and Bradley Roby over the past few months.

While his reputation is under attack, it is hard to question his abilities as a head coach. Meyer is still one of the best in the business.

Winner: The State of Alabama

It seems like Alabama is always a winner when it comes to college football, but this is for a completely different reason.

The state of Alabama is at the top of the list when it comes to college football conversation. Needless to say, the state of Alabama loves its college football and an offseason study proved that to be true.

Emory Marketing Analytics released a study that showed the percentage of all Twitter conversations, relating to college football over a six-month period.

Topping the list was the state of Alabama, followed by three other SEC-dominant states.

Loser: Everett Golson and Notre Dame

Even with the loss of quarterback Everett Golson, Notre Dame is still a top-tier team, but losing its starting quarterback might make it very difficult for the Fighting Irish this year.

Golson was banned from Notre Dame for academic reasons, but could be back on the team as early as next season.

Quarterback Tommy Rees will replace Golson, but it is not going to be the same in South Bend this season for the Fighting Irish.

Winner: Kentucky Wildcats

Everybody knows that Kentucky has always been a basketball school, but new head coach Mark Stoops is trying to turn that around right now.

He put together a solid recruiting class in February and is on track for an even better one in 2014.

While it might take a few years before this team is ready to compete in the SEC, there is no question that Kentucky is having an excellent offseason.

Loser: Austin Hill

When the best player on a team goes down with a season-ending injury in spring practice, that is never a good thing.

That was exactly the case for Arizona star wide receiver Austin Hill. Last season Hill caught 81 passes for 1,364 yards and 11 touchdowns. The junior was not only slated to be one of the top wide receivers in the Pac-12, but one of the best in the nation.

It will be extremely difficult for head coach Rich Rodriguez to find a replacement in 2013.

Winner: Jack Hoffman

By now most people have heard about seven-year-old Nebraska fan Jack Hoffman. He is battling brain cancer and running for touchdowns in front of more than 60,000 fans at the same time.

In what was one of the most emotional moments of the college football offseason, Hoffman scampered 69 yards for a touchdown in the Nebraska spring game.

The video above tells the full story.

Loser: Johnny Manziel

There is no bigger loser this offseason than Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel.

Manziel has been in the news on multiple occasions. The most recent could have the most significant long-term effects. Manziel is being investigated by the NCAA for signing autographs in exchange for a lump sum of money. That is huge no-no as far as the NCAA is concerned.

It seems like it will only be a matter of time before Manziel is suspended by the NCAA. That will be devastating news to the Texas A&M program and the entire college football world.

Winner: Ole Miss Rebels

While Kentucky had an excellent recruiting class, it was nowhere close to what conference rival Ole Miss put together.

The Rebels had one of the top recruiting classes in the entire country. The group has a chance to make an immediate impact as early as 2013.

While, there is now an investigation underway into how exactly that class came about, the Rebels are still a major winner as far as the offseason is concerned. This is a team that could be a player in the SEC for years to come with head coach Hugh Freeze running the show.

Loser: Jake Ryan

Michigan star linebacker Jake Ryan is one of the best players in the country at his position. That made it all the more difficult when he went down with a torn ACL in spring practice.

He is on track to possibly return in October. That would be a huge boost for a Michigan defense that will be relied on heavily in 2013.

Head coach Brady Hoke is going to have to find an adequate replacement for his star. That is something that is not easy to do.

Winner: Jadeveon Clowney

The legend of South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney continued to grow this offseason.

Clowney did everything from catching a pass in the spring game to winning an ESPY for best play when he nearly took off the head of Michigan running back Vincent Smith.

With the type of productive offseason he has had, Clowney will certainly be in the Heisman conversation throughout the 2013 season.

Did we mention he also completely destroyed a tackling sled?

Loser: USC Trojans

USC is another team that had its fair share of injuries this offseason.

The most notable names were running back Silas Redd and safety Su'a Cravens. Both players had surgery during the spring to repair torn meniscus. They, however, should be ready for the start of the season.

Perhaps the most devastating injury, as far as the regular season goes, is that of wide receiver George Farmer.

Farmer tore his ACL and will be forced to miss the entire 2013 season.

Head coach Lane Kiffin and his squad suffered so many injuries that tackling was not allowed during the spring game.

 

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