Momentum Report for Every Power 5 CFB Team: Is Program Trending Up or Down?
With spring practice in the rearview mirror and the 2015 season still months away, it's a good opportunity to take stock in how college football's power programs look.
Every team's goal is to continue moving forward, and as a result on an upward trend, but that isn't always the case. Injuries, roster defections, off-the-field issues or just poor performance can all lead to a halt in momentum, and often in a turn downward.
Where does your favorite team sit? How about their rival, or the rest of the teams in their conference? We've compiled a progress report for every power-conference team (as well as Notre Dame) where we run down what, if anything, has happened since last season ended and where things are headed in the future.
Alabama
1 of 65
Trending: Down
Alabama's near-constant success under Nick Saban would result in a "trending up" designation, but the Crimson Tide program is a different animal. It's hard to keep going up when you're already at the top, but Alabama has been in somewhat of a downswing of late since the 2014 season ended.
Beyond the Sugar Bowl loss to Ohio State, when it got run over in the second half, Alabama has had an offseason marred by injuries and arrests that have cut into its great depth at several positions. The Tide also have a quarterback competition for the second year in a row, and none of the candidates trying to replace Blake Sims stood out during spring practice.
Whether any of this will translate into a disappointing season really depends on perspective, though. Failing to play in the national title game for a third year in a row would be considered a disappointment to the fanbase, but for nearly every other program that's not a scenario that seems possible.
Arizona
2 of 65
Trending: Up
Arizona is coming off its first division or conference title of any kind since 1993 and its first 10-win season since 1998. The Wildcats may have lost the Fiesta Bowl to Boise State, but with all of their top skill players returning and the best individual defender in the country, there's plenty to look forward to in Tucson.
Quarterback Anu Solomon and running back Nick Wilson are sophomores, while top receivers Cayleb Jones, Trey Griffey and Samajie Grant are entering their junior years. That group helped Arizona average 463.6 yards and 34.5 points per game.
And on defense, linebacker Scooby Wright won the Bednarik, Lombardi and Nagurski awards and led FBS in tackles, tackles for loss and forced fumbles.
Arizona State
3 of 65
Trending: Up
With 28 wins the past three seasons, including back-to-back 10-win campaigns, Arizona State is in the midst of its best stretch since the 1970s. That was when Frank Kush was pacing the sidelines at Sun Devil Stadium when the Sun Devils were in the Western Athletic Conference.
Todd Graham has had this program trending upward since he took the job in 2012, and ASU won the Pac-12 South in 2013. This season it has nine starters back on defense and features a potent pass-catching combo in quarterback Mike Bercovici and converted running back D.J. Foster.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Arkansas
4 of 65
Trending: Up
There were fewer power-conference programs in as much disarray as Arkansas when Bret Bielema came in before the 2013 season, but just two years later the Bobby Petrino/John L. Smith era seems like a distant memory. The Razorbacks have quickly gone from a team that should be better than it is to one that is extremely dangerous.
It starts with Arkansas' massive offensive line, which averaged nearly 330 pounds last year and helped produce a pair of 1,000-yard rushers. There's also a solid defense that was among the best in the country at the end of 2014.
And lastly there's the culture that Bielema has instilled at Arkansas, where his old-school approach is getting revered like it's the hot new trend.
Auburn
5 of 65
Trending: Up
After reaching the BCS title game in Gus Malzahn's first season, Auburn slid in 2014 with a five-loss performance that threatened to make the previous year's work seem like a fluke. But Malzahn's recruiting and his commitment to make improvements on defense say otherwise, and the Tigers are again projected to be among the top teams in the nation.
The hiring of former Florida coach Will Muschamp as defensive coordinator was a huge step toward fixing Auburn's biggest flaw. As Bleacher Report's Barrett Sallee notes, Muschamp doesn't have to "be a miracle worker" because of the Tigers' proven offensive system.
"With an offense like Auburn boasts, 375 yards and 22 points per game is more than adequate," Sallee wrote.
That offense is going through its own rebranding, switching from a run-first attack led by Nick Marshall to the more potent passing threat that Jeremy Johnson presents.
Baylor
6 of 65
Trending: Up
With two straight Big 12 titles, two major bowl appearances, a new stadium and a Heisman winner in the recent past, Baylor has had almost everything go their way of late. Well, except for losing both of those bowls and getting snubbed from the playoffs in 2014 because of a weak nonconference schedule.
The Bears are again expected to contend for the Big 12 but again face the possibility of getting shut out of the semifinals without a perfect record because of a non-league slate that doesn't scare anyone.
What does strike fear is Baylor's unstoppable offense, which averaged 581.5 yards and 48.2 points per game last year and should be as dominant again this fall.
Boston College
7 of 65
Trending: Down
Boston College has won seven games apiece the past two years, but both of those seasons ended with a bowl loss and massive losses to graduation. The Eagles overcame that turnover after 2013, but they'll be hard-pressed to repeat that success with only nine returning starters.
Coach Steve Addazio prides himself on having the ability to turn his players into "dudes," but that means also having to find a whole new offensive line while also starting an inexperienced quarterback—likely sophomore Darius Wade—this season.
BC hasn't won at least eight games since 2009.
California
8 of 65
Trending: Up
Sonny Dykes quintupled his win total from the first year to the second, though California still has work to do after going 5-7 last season and having one of the worst defenses in the country.
The Golden Bears ranked 124th in yards allowed and last against the pass, giving up 367.2 yards per game through the air. That performance kept their outstanding Air Raid passing attack—led by quarterback Jared Goff—from having its full impact in games.
But Cal is on the the way up, especially compared to where it was when Dykes took over. Jeff Tedford had the Bears on a downward trend over his final few seasons, though now that's turning around.
Clemson
9 of 65
Trending: Up
Clemson is riding a four-year streak of at least 10 wins, matching a similar run from 1987-90, and as a result the Tigers have made themselves major players in the recruiting game.
Coach Dabo Swinney brought in the No. 8 class in 2015, according to 247Sports, after being 18th-best in 2014. He's already received 12 commitments for 2016, and those future standouts will go great with the current lineup that is teeming with young talent.
Quarterback Deshaun Watson, if he can stay healthy, has the potential to be better than record-setter Tajh Boyd. And as long as Brent Venables is manning the defense, the Tigers will consistently be one of the toughest teams to move the ball against.
Colorado
10 of 65
Trending: Down
It's been eight years since Colorado was bowl-eligible, a far cry from the program that claimed a share of the 1990 national title and was a regular contender in the Big 8/Big 12 throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. But now the Buffaloes have won 10 games in the past four seasons, and thinks aren't looking much brighter for the future.
According to SB Nation, Colorado is the only program from one of the five power conferences yet to receive a commitment for its 2016 recruiting class.
Duke
11 of 65
Trending: Down
Considering Duke is in the midst of its best run in school history, to say the Blue Devils are on the downswing seems contradictory. They've made a bowl in three straight seasons, after never having had consecutive bowl years before in school history, and they've won 19 games the past two seasons.
But look closer and you'll see Duke appears to have peaked with its breakout 2013 campaign, which included a trip to the ACC title game and the Chick-fil-A Bowl. It lost both of those games, as well as last year's Sun Bowl to Arizona State, and many of its best players from that run have moved on.
Florida
12 of 65
Trending: Down
A coaching change that was precipitated by the school is a common sign of a program that's moving downward, and despite the excitement that new hire Jim McElwain brings to Gainesville that hasn't outweighed the concern over whether Florida can get back into the hunt in the SEC East after the two-year dip it experienced at the end of the Will Muschamp era.
"Anything but tangible progress in 2015 will be a disappointment to Gator Nation, so the pressure will be on for McElwain," Drew Laing of Saturday Down South wrote shortly after McElwain was hired in December.
The Gators just had a monster draft, with eight players selected, despite winning only 11 games the past two years. That means the talent is still interested in Florida, but if McElwain can't right the ship quickly that will change.
Florida State
13 of 65
Trending: Down
Florida State had 11 players taken in the NFL draft, giving it a record 29 selected over the past three years from teams that won 39 games, won a national title and had two unbeaten regular seasons. The Seminoles also continue to tear it up on the recruiting circuit, with a third-ranked class in 2015 and what 247Sports currently considers the No. 1 class for 2016.
Yet there's a strong likelihood of a slide this season because of the loss of so much talent, and there are warning signs that not everything is perfect in Tallahassee.
FSU is among the favorites to land Notre Dame graduate transfer quarterback Everett Golson, which could be a sign that none of the Seminoles' promising quarterbacks is ready to replace Jameis Winston. That move has the chance to also impact future recruiting, if prospects get a sense that coach Jimbo Fisher is willing to let a veteran come in and move to the front of the line.
Georgia
14 of 65
Trending: Up
If you poll Georgia fans, they might say otherwise since there hasn't been an SEC title game appearance since 2012 and far too many costly losses of late to be able to stomach. But as long as the Bulldogs keep bringing in superstars like Todd Gurley and Nick Chubb, players who can single-handedly dominate a game, it isn't all bad in Athens.
Even though Gurley never fully met expectations because of injuries and an NCAA suspension, he still helped pave the way for Chubb to come to the program. And after that running back broke through in the second half of last season, his return helps alleviate any concerns about Georgia's first true quarterback competition in years.
The Bulldogs will again be one of the favorites for the SEC East, and they have a schedule that also sets up well for a playoff run. A change at offensive coordinator, from Mike Bobo to NFL veteran Brian Schottenheimer, could be the move that tips the scales in their favor.
Georgia Tech
15 of 65
Trending: Up
Paul Johnson is a coach who has no interest in conforming to the trends of today's college football, which is why he continues to use the option for his offense and staunchly defends this at every possible opportunity. And when it pays off, like this past season, he's quick to point it out.
"For at least a week or two, we don't have to hear about the SEC," Johnson said (h/t Sporting News) after Georgia Tech ran over Mississippi State in the Orange Bowl, its biggest bowl victory since beating Nebraska in the 1991 Citrus Bowl to claim a share of the national title.
Because he runs a system that's mostly used by service academies and lower-division programs that lack the talent to do otherwise, Johnson has managed to develop an edge that most opponents cannot stop. That's why the Yellow Jackets ranked second nationally in rushing offense in 2014, averaging 342.1 yards per game.
Illinois
16 of 65
Trending: Down
Illinois reached a bowl game in Tim Beckman's third season in 2014, and though it lost to Louisiana Tech to finish with a losing record it was a sign the program was headed in the right direction. Then came the offseason, when Beckman has both said things that damaged his reputation and has had others do the same.
Following a solid recruiting haul, Beckman told reporters in February it was in their best interest to stick to positive stories about the Fighting Illini for the sake of the program. And in the past week he's come under fire from a former offensive lineman, Simon Cvijanovic, who accused Beckman on Twitter of mishandling his injuries and requiring him to play through pain.
Indiana
17 of 65
Trending: Down
Indiana had a 2,000-yard rusher this past season in Tevin Coleman, a player who we came to find did much of that damage on a broken foot. He also did it for a team that went 4-8 despite his efforts, and now that Coleman is in the NFL it's unlikely the Hoosiers will be able to do much better.
Coach Kevin Wilson is 14-34 in his four seasons, and this is likely to be his last unless he can make major progress. Indiana last had a winning season in 2007 and hasn't reached eight victories since 1993, so the odds aren't in Wilson's favor.
Iowa
18 of 65
Trending: Down
Kirk Ferentz enters his 17th season at Iowa tied with Georgia's Mark Richt for the second-longest active tenure in FBS. He's made 12 bowl games and shared two Big Ten titles, but the vast majority of the Hawkeyes' on-field success came in the first half of Ferentz's career, while over the past five seasons they've averaged fewer than seven wins.
The 2014 season was another middle-of-the-road performance for Iowa, going 7-6 with a 5-1 start (but a loss to woeful Iowa State) and a 2-5 finish. It lost three times at home, and was one of the least-exciting teams to watch in the country.
Ferentz moved starting quarterback Jake Rudock down the depth chart during the offseason, and as a result Rudock transferred to Michigan and could end up starting there. That leaves C.J. Beathard, who made one start last season, to run an offense that ranked 71st in scoring.
Iowa State
19 of 65
Trending: Down
When a coach's best season (out of six) is at the very beginning, and only results in a 7-6 record, it's not hard to determine which direction his team is headed. Iowa State has been going south for a while, bottoming out the past two years with records of 3-9 and 2-10.
Bad luck in the form of injuries and unfortunate calls on the field have had their contributions, but they cannot be handed the bulk of the blame. That falls on Paul Rhoads, who in six years is 29-45 and despite a fiery persona that oozes with passion for his team he's failed to turn that into results.
Iowa State went winless in the Big 12 last year, the first time that's happened since the season before Rhoads took over.
Kansas
20 of 65
Trending: Down
The firing of Charlie Weis last fall was in no way surprising, as the celebrity coach couldn't make any progress in his two-plus seasons. Going with a new face in former Texas A&M assistant David Beaty felt like the right move, as it would allow Kansas to try to start fresh and work its way slowly from the bottom.
But that climb looks like it's going to take a lot longer, especially after the Jayhawks went through one of the least productive springs ever. This was capped by an injury to projected starting quarterback Michael Cummings in the spring game, despite Cummings wearing a no-contact jersey.
Cummings ended up needing surgery and is done for the year, putting 2015 on pace to be no better than last season's 3-9 mark.
Kansas State
21 of 65
Trending: Down
Bill Snyder is still coaching as well as he did in the 1990s when he built up Kansas State from a doormat into a perennial contender, and as recently as 2012 he had the Wildcats in the national title picture. But after losing one of the most talented groups of players he's had in years to graduation, Snyder might be in line for the kind of rebuilding project that is better suited for someone far younger than his 75 years.
K-State will have new faces at quarterback, both starting receiver spots and all over the defense. Snyder has been in this position before and managed to bounce back, but the Jake Waters/Tyler Lockett/Curry Sexton/Ryan Mueller group that just departed could be his last real hurrah.
Kentucky
22 of 65
Trending: Up
Even though Kentucky hasn't made a bowl game since 2010, the path the Wildcats are on under Mark Stoops appears brighter than it has in a long time. Whether Stoops can continue that momentum and get above .500 remains to be seen, but for now the progress is good.
"I feel very good about this team," Stoops told Josh Huff of Kentucky Kernel during spring practice.
Kentucky began 5-1 last year before dropping its last six, hitting a major wall when it came to SEC competition. That may again be the case this season, but getting to six victories is a definite possibility and would be looked at as the next step forward.
Louisville
23 of 65
Trending: Up
Bobby Petrino's second stint with Louisville has gone as well as it possibly could, winning nine games in the school's first season in the ACC and seeing 10 players get drafted. But much of that was the result of the previous regime under Charlie Strong, so now the real work begins for Petrino and the Cardinals.
Less than half of the starting lineup returns, and the defense was decimated by graduation and early departures. Petrino has reinforcements lined up, though, bringing in players with checkered pasts who are looking for fresh starts. That includes former Big 12 freshman of the year Devonte Fields—who was dismissed from TCU last summer—and ex-Georgia safety Josh Harvey-Clemons, who was booted from that program after the 2013 season.
LSU
24 of 65
Trending: Down
Les Miles has led LSU to a national championship and put them in a second title game, but since losing to Alabama in the 2012 BCS final the Tigers have been on a downward track. Last year's 8-5 record was the worst since 2008, and since then things haven't gotten much better.
Defensive coordinator John Chavis left in a messy breakup for the same role at Texas A&M, and Miles' staff has been hit with minor recruiting violations that will prevent them from signing players to early financial aid agreements for the next two years. Then came spring ball, when a competition between Brandon Harris and Anthony Jennings for the starting quarterback job carried on from the previous season and produced little resolution.
Miles is facing a make-or-break season, writes Bleacher Report's Ben Kercheval, noting that it "could be the year when the countdown clock officially starts ticking—and when it becomes abundantly clear that the good just isn't good enough anymore."
Maryland
25 of 65
Trending: Up
Randy Edsall took some time to get things in order at Maryland, but two straight bowl appearances and a relatively successful transition from the ACC to the Big Ten have him pointed in the right direction. Furthering that notion is his recent major recruiting success, with last week's commitment from 4-star quarterback Dwayne Haskins.
Rated as the fifth-best pro-style passer in the 2016 class, Haskins is one of three players that 247Sports lists as being 4-star prospects headed to the Terrapins.
Miami (Florida)
26 of 65
Trending: Up
Al Golden is at or near the top of many experts' lists of coaches on the hot seat for 2015, but while how he fares this season could go a long way toward determining whether he remains at Miami there's something even more influential to his future: the upcoming recruiting classes he's putting together for the Hurricanes.
According to Bleacher Report's Tyler Donohue, Golden has "claimed 22 total commitments from Class of 2016, 2017 and 2018 recruits" since last season ended with a loss to South Carolina in the Duck Commander Bowl. That gave the Hurricanes a 6-7 record and a 28-22 mark under Golden, the same record previous coach Randy Shannon had before getting fired.
The current Miami roster has talent in the form of sophomore quarterback Brad Kaaya and junior receiver Stacy Coley, but the real hope lies in what's coming along over the next few seasons.
Michigan
27 of 65
Trending: Up
Jim Harbaugh has done more for Michigan's program than his two predecessors, and he's yet to coach a game. Through his use of social media and public appearances, Harbaugh has managed to make the Wolverines relevant and interesting despite a recent run of teams coached by Rich Rodriguez and Brady Hoke that mostly fell far below expectations.
Though he might be ruffling the feathers of other coaches with his Twitter trolling and his push for satellite camps in enemy territory, Harbaugh is bringing mostly positive attention to his program and helping bring back excitement to a team that might not be very good in his first year. And by going this route, he's setting things up for beyond 2015 so as to temper those initial expectations.
"Right now, Michigan's players don't really know what to expect from Harbaugh, and they're probably not entirely sure what's going on," Nick Baumgardner of MLive.com wrote during spring practice.
But considering Harbaugh's success at previous stops, both collegiate and professional, and how that's happened quickly, the Wolverines should continue to move upward.
Michigan State
28 of 65
Trending: Up
Before Mark Dantonio came along, Michigan State was a program that had more of a reputation of being a steppingstone for coaches than a destination. Nick Saban and John L. Smith were among the coaches who had success there and moved on, but Dantonio hasn't followed suit. And because of this, he's transformed the Spartans into one of the most consistent programs in the country.
And if not for Ohio State, they would be the class of the Big Ten.
Four of the past five seasons have resulted in at least 11 wins, with a Rose Bowl victory and conference title in 2013 and a Cotton Bowl win last season. This success enabled defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi to land a plum head coaching job at Pittsburgh and has even contributed to some of the best current players (quarterback Connor Cook and defensive end Shilique Calhoun) foregoing an early start to their NFL careers for one more chance to play in East Lansing.
Minnesota
29 of 65
Trending: Up
The last time Minnesota was this relevant in college football was the early 1960s, when Murray Warmath coached the Golden Gophers to consecutive Rose Bowl appearances. Jerry Kill hasn't done that well, yet, but after a 3-9 record his first year it's been steady improvement every season since.
Last year's 8-5 record included a 5-3 mark in Big Ten play, its best since 2003, and the Gophers were in contention for the West Division title heading into the final weekend.
"Winning a bowl game is clearly part of the next step for the Gophers," wrote ESPN's Brian Bennett, referring to Minnesota's seven-game bowl losing streak that dates back to 2004.
Mississippi State
30 of 65
Trending: Down
Mississippi State started 9-0 and spent several weeks at No. 1 in the country, combining with Ole Miss to make Mississippi the center of the college football universe during the middle of the 2014 season. Then reality set in, with three losses over the final four games (including to Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl) and then the departure of more than half of the starting lineup.
If not for quarterback Dak Prescott's decision to come back for his senior year, the Bulldogs could be headed for a major rebuilding year. Either way, they'll be hard-pressed to come close to matching last year's success and the momentum that coach Dan Mullen had built—and which helped him land a contract extension and a raise to join the elite $4 million club.
MSU had the No. 18 recruiting class in 2015, per 247Sports, but that still only ranked eighth-best in the SEC.
Missouri
31 of 65
Trending: Up
Considered somewhat as the tagalong with Texas A&M when the pair left the Big 12 to join the SEC, it's been Missouri that's managed to have more success to this point in the new conference with a pair of East Division championships and two New Year's Day bowl victories. The Tigers have become reinvigorated under longtime coach Gary Pinkel, and they continue to develop their reputation for producing NFL-level defensive linemen.
Shane Ray and Markus Golden went in the first and second rounds, respectively, of this year's draft, following Michael Sam and Kony Ealy as D-line draftees the year before.
Missouri might be oddly placed in the East when it's much closer to the SEC's West Division teams, but so far it's been a perfect fit for the program.
Nebraska
32 of 65
Trending: Down
No offense to Mike Riley, but when you are called on to replace a coach who only won nine games in each of his seven seasons, you're walking into a situation that's ripe for disappointment.
Bo Pelini's 67 wins wasn't enough to keep his job since few of those victories were of the "big game" variety, and his personality rubbed many the wrong way. Riley won't have any problems with that area, as the former Oregon State leader is regarded as one of the nicest guys in the college game, but that doesn't mean he'll be able to do any better than Pelini.
The coaching change feels similar to when Nebraska let Frank Solich go in 2003 despite 58 wins in six years and then saw Bill Callahan get losing records in two of his four seasons.
North Carolina
33 of 65
Trending: Down
If the past is any indication, Larry Fedora is headed for a five-win season in 2015 with North Carolina. He won eight games his first year, seven the next season and was 6-7 in 2014 after losing to Rutgers in the Quick Lane Bowl.
That's not the arc that fosters much optimism for the future, though 17 returning starters could help reverse that trend. So, too, could the hiring for former Auburn coach Gene Chizik—who won a national title in 2010—as defensive coordinator to shore up a unit that was 120th in yards allowed last season and gave up 40 or more points in six games.
Fedora and the Tar Heels also have the operate under the looming cloud of an NCAA investigation into academic fraud at the school.
North Carolina State
34 of 65
Trending: Up
Dave Doeren's second season in Raleigh produced a big bump in performance from the first year, with North Carolina State winning eight games (up from three) and claiming a bowl victory. Further improvement is projected for 2015, as the Wolfpack bring back much of their offense and a handful of key defensive stars.
"Don't be surprised if you look up soon and N.C. State is a playoff contender," Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports wrote.
NC State nearly knocked off defending champion Florida State last October, and with another year of exciting quarterback Jacoby Brissett to watch this could be a team that makes a legitimate push to challenge FSU and Clemson for the ACC's Atlantic Division crown. It is one of three pre-expansion ACC teams never to make the conference title game.
Northwestern
35 of 65
Trending: Down
In October 2013, Northwestern had everything going its way. The Wildcats were 4-0 and set to host Ohio State in a game so big it drew ESPN's College GameDay show.
It's been all downhill since then, with that loss to OSU the start of a seven-game losing streak followed in 2014 by a second straight 5-7 record and the end of any momentum built during a 10-win campaign in 2012.
Northwestern has been one of the unluckiest teams around when it comes to injuries and bad bounces, but it has also failed to execute in key situations over its past 20 games.
Notre Dame
36 of 65
Trending: Up
Brian Kelly didn't have recent history on his side after leading Notre Dame to the BCS title game after the 2012 championship game, as other coaches before him who had major early success—such as Bob Davie, Tyrone Willingham and Charlie Weis—couldn't come close to replicating that performance and were ultimately fired.
The fallback for the Fighting Irish hasn't been as pronounced under Kelly, who after going 12-1 that year has had nine- and eight-win seasons. Kelly also has working in his favor a heck of a corps of returning stars, with more starters back than any other power program in FBS.
Even with center Matt Hegarty and quarterback Everett Golson both opting to transfer for their final seasons, there's plenty for Kelly to work with in 2015 to get Notre Dame back in the national title conversation. But as SB Nation's Bill Connelly notes, there won't be any excuses to fall back on if it doesn't happen.
"Either the Irish rebound this fall (and I think the odds are in their favor), or we have to start wondering if a rebound is in the cards," Connelly wrote.
Ohio State
37 of 65
Trending: Up
Ohio State's magical run to the national championship last season is only part of the reason this program is soaring. Many other schools have won a title but found themselves on a downswing not long after, either because of departures or inflated expectations, but the Buckeyes won't have that to deal with.
They'll be expected to win another national title, that's no surprise, but with the vast majority of the previous championship team returning and the guidance of arguably the best coach in the game—three-time champion Urban Meyer—nothing seems out of reach for Ohio State.
There are so many different areas that we could point to that would show the direction this program is headed, but the one that stands out more than any is the attendance for OSU's spring game. A record 99,391 fans paid $5 apiece to watch a glorified scrimmage last month, an outing that didn't include many key players.
Oklahoma
38 of 65
Trending: Down
Has the Bob Stoops era run its course, or was last year's 8-5 record just the product of several negative factors all coming together at one time? The 2015 season will give us a strong indication of where Oklahoma's program is headed, but even with the changes made of late there's plenty to be concerned about.
Stoops has been at Oklahoma since 1999, with only Virginia Tech's Frank Beamer holding a longer active tenure at an FBS school. He won a national title in his second season, and that might have done more harm than good because it led to the expectation that similar success was possible every year.
Not being in contention for a championship is looked at as a major disappointment to many, writes ESPN's Travis Haney.
"It's a frustrated fanbase that was spoiled by Stoops' second-season national title," Haney wrote.
The move to revamp his coaching staff and bring in an offensive coordinator—East Carolina's Lincoln Riley—who will return the Sooners to the Air Raid is a step in the right direction. But until it produces tangible results, Oklahoma is moving down.
Oklahoma State
39 of 65
Trending: Up
Oklahoma State turned things around at the right time last season, winning its finale against rival Oklahoma to become bowl-eligible and then taking out Washington in the Cactus Bowl. That late push somehow erased much of disappointment that came with a five-game losing streak after a 5-1 start.
Mike Gundy had one of his most inexperienced teams in 2014, and that showed during the rough times. But the rebound points toward better things this season and beyond, and the emergence of quarterback Mason Rudolph after years of shuffling through players at the position is a huge positive for the Cowboys.
The Big 12 is wide open after Baylor and TCU at the top, and OK State has momentum from last December and January that it can carry over to this fall.
Ole Miss
40 of 65
Trending: Up
Year-over-year improvement is as sure a sign of progress as anything, and Ole Miss has done this during Hugh Freeze's three seasons in charge. From 7-6 to 8-5 to 9-4 (including a 7-0 start), the Rebels are moving in the direction of a program that expects to be a real contender and not just one that has some good seasons.
Getting over the hump and being a player in the SEC still has to happen, but knocking off Alabama last season was the start of that journey. So was cultivating one of the best defenses in the country, one that led FBS in scoring at 16 points per game.
Ole Miss has been in this boat before, though, and previous coaches haven't been able to keep improving or even maintain success. Freeze could end up with the same results as them, though at this point he's not in jeopardy of doing so.
Oregon
41 of 65
Trending: Up
For the second time in five years, Oregon got to the national title game but ultimately came up one win short of its goal. In between the Ducks didn't play for a championship but were consistently in the discussion, and with a run of seven consecutive seasons (under two coaches) with at least 10 wins the chance of this continuing is very good.
Even with Oregon losing Heisman-winning quarterback Marcus Mariota, a departure that could cripple many programs, the Ducks shouldn't see much dropoff in 2015. This program has developed into a perennial power, one that has shown it can reload instead of rebuild.
"The Ducks are loaded with young talent and are returning a core group of players who have won a ton of games," Braden Gall of Athlon Sports wrote.
How Mariota's successor—either backup Jeff Lockie or Eastern Washington transfer Vernon Adams—performs will have a big impact on this season, but it won't be the determining factor. That's the mark of a strong program, one that can overcome a loss that significant without much regression, if any.
Oregon State
42 of 65
Trending: Up
As much as Mike Riley was beloved at Oregon State, and what he'd done for the program, it was beginning to feel like he'd achieved as much as he could there and was on the downswing. Riley's choice to leave for Nebraska was a surprising one, but in the long run it might help the Beavers as much as anyone because it allows for a change before things got bad.
Gary Andersen turned around Utah State and did well at Wisconsin, and his arrival in Corvallis has injected some new life into the Beavers. Even with the graduation of Pac-12 passing leader Sean Mannion and the loss of nine defensive starters, OSU has the air of a program moving forward rather than one in transition.
Penn State
43 of 65
Trending: Up
Penn State got an early release from its NCAA-issued postseason ban midway through 2014, and things have continued to go in the Nittany Lions' favor since then.
A bowl victory over Boston College capped James Franklin's first season, and he carried over the momentum from that win onto the recruiting trail by landing a top-15 class and has already secured some solid commitments for the 2016 group. He's also got one of the most-coveted pro prospects around in quarterback Christian Hackenberg, who despite a rough sophomore year will draw plenty of interest this season and in turn will keep Penn State in the news.
Pittsburgh
44 of 65
Trending: Up
From the ashes of near-constant coaching turnover might come one of this season's biggest breakout teams, assuming Pat Narduzzi is able to be as successful in charge of an entire program as he was running Michigan State's defense.
Pittsburgh's hiring of Narduzzi was one of the best of this winter's coaching carousel, and he's expected to bring about a level of stability to a program that had seven full-time or interim coaches between 2010 and 2014. It helps that he inherits a team with solid contributors on defense and a trio of juniors on offense—quarterback Chad Voytik, running back James Conner and receiver Tyler Boyd—that match up with those from any other FBS team.
Purdue
45 of 65
Trending: Down
Purdue had its reasons for letting Danny Hope go after a 6-7 season in 2012, but so far that decision hasn't turned out to be very wise. Darrell Hazell has won only four games in his two years running the Boilermakers, and they very well could be the worst team in the Big Ten again this fall.
Dead last in the league in recruiting, Purdue hasn't had a 4-star prospect since 2013...and that was quarterback Danny Etling, who lost his starting job midway through last season.
Rutgers
46 of 65
Trending: Down
As long as Rutgers continues to keep things fluffy in the nonconference scheduling department, as is the case again this year, it will have a shot to make a bowl game most seasons. But if the Scarlet Knights hope to be able to get back to the level they were during Greg Schiano's heyday it will take much more than six or seven wins.
Rutgers' first Big Ten season didn't go as badly as it could have, with the Knights winning three games, but they had no significant victories. Coach Kyle Flood has been trying desperately to hold on to top recruits in the state and who have ties to the program, but he struck out on some big targets for 2016 including quarterbacks Jarrett Guarantano and Dwayne Hawkins.
South Carolina
47 of 65
Trending: Down
The Head Ball Coach has had a great run, including a really good stretch turning South Carolina into a national power, but last season's disappointing performance might be the beginning of the end for Steve Spurrier and the Gamecocks.
Three straight 11-win seasons were followed up with a 7-6 record and a slew of rough results, losing to teams like Kentucky and Tennessee it had previously owned. This was despite having a senior quarterback and a talented multiuse weapon in Pharoh Cooper.
Spurrier hinted at hanging up the headset this offseason before declaring he had renewed vigor for the job. But with a lot of questions still left unanswered for his 2015 team, the outlook isn't great for a rebound.
Stanford
48 of 65
Trending: Down
Stanford achieved unprecedented success from 2010-13, playing in four consecutive BCS bowls (including two straight Rose Bowls) and showing no hiccups when going from Jim Harbaugh to David Shaw at head coach or from Andrew Luck to Kevin Hogan at quarterback.
That is, until last season, when the Cardinal dipped to 8-5 and struggled mightily on offense. Now it faces another year with major holes to fill in its strong defensive unit, and what might have looked like a one-year blip instead could be the beginning of a slide down the college football mountain.
Syracuse
49 of 65
Trending: Down
Syracuse reached the Orange Bowl in the first year of the BCS, following the 1998 season, and won 10 games in 2001. Beyond that, there hasn't been much to rave about from this program that usually finds itself muddled in the middle or bottoming out.
The latter was the case last year, as a broken leg suffered by quarterback Terrel Hunt midway through completely derailed the Orange as they fell to 3-9 after winning seven games in 2013. Hunt returns for his senior year, but the inability to develop anyone else to complement his dual-threat skills puts Syracuse in a precarious position of being very reliant on a player who might not be able to rediscover his old form after injury.
TCU
50 of 65
Trending: Up
What a difference a year makes.
At this time in 2014, the biggest question surrounding TCU was whether it could really cut it at the power-conference level after struggling in its first few years since moving to the Big 12. Longtime coach Gary Patterson brought in new blood to revamp a sluggish offense, and while there was hope there was also uncertainty.
Now, after the Horned Frogs won 12 games, tied for the conference title and just missed out on making the playoffs, this program has its stock valued higher than ever before.
This won't change Patterson's approach, though, according to Carlos Mendez of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
"Either you're trying to prove them wrong, that you're a better team than you were when they picked you low, or you're trying to prove them right if they pick you high," Patterson said. "So either way, you've got to get a chip on your shoulder."
Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/sports/college/big-12/texas-christian-university/article6309441.html#storylink=cpy
Tennessee
51 of 65
Trending: Up
Even if Tennessee hadn't broken through and got into a bowl game—which it won, handily—this past season, the outlook would be great for 2015 because of the progress Butch Jones has made on the recruiting trail.
The Volunteers had the seventh-rated class in 2014, with many of those freshmen seeing action last year, then followed that up with the No. 4 class for 2015. The 2016 class is already shaping up to be a strong one, and with this constant influx of promising talent the Vols should keep getting better on the field.
Last year's late-season surge showed what the youth were capable of, as Tennessee won four of five after a 3-5 start, and now it's considered a contender for the SEC East title and possibly a dark-horse playoff contender.
Texas
52 of 65
Trending: Up
Texas' record last year in Charlie Strong's first season was worse than any of Mack Brown's final three years, but that isn't what the Longhorns' status should be based on. Instead, it should be determined by the culture change Strong has instilled in the program, as well as the inroads he's making to return Texas to the top of the food chain in its own state.
That first season was highlighted by player dismissals, inconsistent production and inexperience, yet Texas still reached a bowl game. It starts almost completely over this year, with the starting lineup expected to include more Strong products than holdovers from the Brown era.
"With 29 highly touted newcomers competing for playing time this fall, the Longhorns won't have to worry too much about their lack of experience," wrote Nicholas Ian Allen of FanSided.com.
Texas A&M
53 of 65
Trending: Down
Kevin Sumlin might be continuing to clean up on the recruiting trail, but converting that success into wins hasn't happened as much as expected. Texas A&M has seen its win total go down each year, from 11-2 in 2012 (with mostly previous coach Mike Sherman's players) to 8-5 last year.
The Aggies landed the No. 11 recruiting class for 2015, per 247Sports, after being fifth the year before. A handful of the top players from the 2014 class were instrumental in last year's performance, such as quarterback Kyle Allen and defensive end Myles Garrett, but there were still too many deficiencies on defense to enable the team to improve.
The acquisition of LSU's John Chavis to run the defense is expected to reap benefits, but as of now A&M isn't making the progress that was expected after Sumlin's first season in College Station.
Texas Tech
54 of 65
Trending: Down
Based on how Kliff Kingsbury started his first season as coach in 2013, it's hard to believe that less than two years later the Red Raiders are near the bottom of the Big 12 and in desperate need of a spark to get back on track.
Kingsbury began 7-0 and then lost five straight games, salvaging that first year with a solid bowl win over Arizona State. But then last year was a disaster, a 4-8 record that was the program's worst since the 1980s and was the result of a turnover-prone offense and a defense that couldn't make any stops.
As long as Tech sticks with its uptempo passing attack there's always the ability to compete, but until the Red Raiders shore up their deficiencies they will struggle to win consistently.
UCLA
55 of 65
Trending: Up
Los Angeles may soon get an NFL franchise once again, but for the time being it's a football town and one that UCLA has done its best to grab a healthy share of the last few years. Jim Mora has taken control of the series with crosstown rival USC, and the Bruins are also holding their own when it comes to recruiting.
There's a very good chance UCLA will be starting a true freshman (Josh Rosen) at quarterback this season, but if that happens it will be by choice rather than default. And it won't be a sign that things aren't continuing to look up for the Bruins, not when they also have standouts like running back Paul Perkins and linebacker Myles Jack to turn to.
USC
56 of 65
Trending: Up
USC weathered the storm that came with recruiting restrictions left over from Pete Carroll's tenure, as well as the disastrous way Lane Kiffin's stint ended midway through the 2013 season. Steve Sarkisian has connections to those previous coaches, but he's also taken what he learned at Washington, where he helped build up a struggling program.
Now all he and the Trojans have to do is live up to raised expectations, which figure to be as high as at any point in the past five years thanks to a solid group of returning stars and group of 2015 prospects that nearly knocked Alabama off its long-held perch atop the rankings.
USC went 9-4 last year, but other than the blowout loss to rival UCLA the other setbacks were very winnable and came down to mistakes in key moments.
"The outsized expectations for the 2015 USC Trojans seem eminently reasonable, even if the current version of the squad hasn't earned them yet," wrote Matt Brown of Sports on Earth.
Utah
57 of 65
Trending: Up
Utah played in one of the toughest divisions in the country in 2014, the Pac-12 South, yet still managed to win nine games for its best record since joining the conference. Now it's hoping to take the next step and compete for the division title and potentially a playoff spot, while riding the running of senior Devontae Booker.
Booker ran for more than 1,500 yards last year, and Utes coach Kyle Whittingham is thinking 2,000 or more is a possibility this year, as is a Heisman Trophy, though it will require Booker to start getting more attention than he has.
"From a national perspective, I don't think there's a lot of people that know about him," Whittingham told Fox Sports' Stewart Mandel.
Utah will need more than just one player to be able to get it done this year, but the fact they have someone who's worthy of such consideration is a sign this program is moving up.
Vanderbilt
58 of 65
Trending: Down
What James Franklin was able to accomplish from 2011-13 at Vanderbilt was nothing short of amazing, but it also wasn't sustainable. Derek Mason discovered that this past season, falling to the bottom of the SEC and erasing any momentum that Franklin had created before him.
The Commodores are basically starting over yet again, as Mason overhauled his coaching staff after finishing last in the league in offense and toward the bottom defensively. There are a handful of promising players on defense, particularly in the linebacker corps, but beyond that it's not pretty.
Virginia
59 of 65
Trending: Down
Mike London has been given one more year to get things back on track at Virginia, something he received before last season's rivalry game against Virginia Tech that could have propelled the Cavaliers into a bowl. Instead, it was another frustrating loss to go with plenty during London's past three years.
Virginia signed two big-name in-state recruits before 2014 in safety Quin Blanding and defensive tackle Andrew Brown, and Blanding was stellar as a true freshman. It wasn't able to match that recruiting success this cycle, and its depth at quarterback just took a hit when Greyson Lambert (who started nine games last season) asked for his release and will transfer.
The Cavs face a very difficult road this fall, not just in the ACC but also with a nonconference slate that features games against Boise State, Notre Dame and UCLA.
Virginia Tech
60 of 65
Trending: Up
From 2004-11, Virginia Tech had at least 10 wins every season, but over the past three years the high-win mark was eight. This downward trend opened the door for speculation that Frank Beamer might be wise to finally hang it up, and his absence from much of the preparation for last year's Military Bowl because of throat surgery furthered this notion.
But Beamer was back to his old heavily involved self during spring practice, and he'll head into his 29th season with the Hokies with a renewed drive.
"When you get out there and you're not a part of it, you start thinking how much you want to be a part of it and looking forward to...getting back out there with the football team," Beamer told the Associated Press (h/t USA Today).
Beamer's health doesn't ensure Virginia Tech will be able to perform better on the field, but it's a start.
Wake Forest
61 of 65
Trending: Up
Even though his first season was tied for the worst by any Wake Forest team since 2000, Dave Clawson was expecting a rough debut after coming over from Bowling Green. He also figured things would turn around quickly after that, and heading into the 2015 campaign the Demon Deacons can only go up.
"We're light-years ahead of where we were a year ago," Clawson told Dan Collins of the Winston-Salem Journal at the start of spring practice.
That doesn't mean Wake is going to reach a bowl game this season, but it should be better than the 3-9 team that was last in FBS in total offense and managed a scant 1.25 yards per carry when running the ball.
Washington
62 of 65
Trending: Down
Chris Petersen waited a long time before finally jumping from Boise State for a bigger job, and Washington seemed like a great fit. Yet despite having three first-round draft picks on defense (plus national sack leader Hau'oli Kikaha, who went in the second round) the Huskies lost six games last season and were very sluggish on offense.
Now Petersen has to show he can do something with his own players, especially with starting quarterback Cyler Miles taking a leave of absence from the program and three-way star John Ross going down with a season-ending knee injury in spring ball.
Washington State
63 of 65
Trending: Down
As fun as Mike Leach's teams are to watch on offense, and as great a quote he is on all manner of subjects, he's only going to go as far with Washington State as his quarterback does. But even before Connor Halliday broke his leg midway through what could have been a record-setting season in 2014, the Cougars were already on track to fall far below what they accomplished the year before.
WSU also suffered notable losses on the recruiting trail, having a handful of top commitments back out of their pledges just before signing day.
The Cougars should again have a strong passing offense, with Luke Falk taking over on a full-time basis after being thrown into the fire as a redshirt freshman. But unless new coordinator Alex Grinch can fix the defense it will be another year of hoping to outscore opponents.
West Virginia
64 of 65
Trending: Up
Since losing to Texas A&M in the Liberty Bowl in December, not much has happened with West Virginia that should have an effect on the 2015 season. That's both good and bad, as it means there were no unexpected surprises but also nothing to create added excitement for the upcoming year.
Instead, the Mountaineers head into the summer as one of the bigger question marks among the power-conference teams, as they still have to decide on a quarterback and figure out how to replace Kevin White's production at receiver.
Going 7-6 in 2014 was still an improvement, though, and the Mountaineers should be able to do at least that well next time around.
Wisconsin
65 of 65
Trending: Down
It doesn't matter how promising Corey Clement might be, he's not Melvin Gordon. This isn't a knock against Clement, who has looked great the past two years as a backup, but to expect anyone to step in and replace a running back who ran for more than 2,500 yards in a season is unrealistic.
Wisconsin won't be able to rely on just one person to be successful this year, as was the case in 2014. Instead, it will have to be a committee-like effort, while also dealing with another change in leadership.
Wisconsin has a new coach for the second time in three years, and like with Bret Bielema going to Arkansas it was quite a shock to see Gary Andersen leave for Oregon State. Paul Chryst's return from Pittsburgh is expected to provide some stability in that area, though he has to figure out his quarterback situation and replace three starters on the offensive line in addition to dealing with the loss of Gordon.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
