Top CFB Storylines to Watch During Spring Practices

The transfer portal and NIL have completely changed college football, but the sport got yet another (unexpected) facelift this offseason thanks to coaching upheaval around the nation.

Now you need an address book just to know where everybody is. It's like Major League Baseball free agency, except on a (not so) amateur level.

As we prepare to start spring practice all over the nation—some teams already have hit the field—it's worth knowing what to circle on your reading list. Everybody knows about Lincoln Riley heading to Hollywood, but will the lights be too bright? Oklahoma got a little worse in each of his last three seasons there.

Plenty of top-tier schools are ushering in new eras, and plenty other programs are looking for the next big thing at quarterback. As new contenders search for the missing pieces of the puzzle, everybody is chasing the national champion Georgia Bulldogs.

Can they repeat? Will it be Alabama yet again? Will Clemson or Oklahoma return to the national picture?

We won't know the answers this spring, but we will know more than we do now as every coach tries to start building the winning formula. Here are the on-field storylines you need to know.

Dawgs' Defense Starts With...Defense

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Georgia's dominant defense carried the team last season and was at its best in a 33-18 national title win over Alabama.

But transition is going to be a challenge for coach Kirby Smart in 2022. Not only has there been a huge roster turnover, but change has also hit UGA's coaching staff, as the Dawgs must replace nearly half of their coaches. Factor in 14 players off to the NFL and another eight in the transfer portal, and that's huge.

According to DawgNation's Mike Griffith, Georgia is 13th in the SEC in returning production.

Just look at all the starters Georgia must replace on defense: DTs Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt, DE Travon Walker, LBs Nakobe Dean, Channing Tindall and Quay Walker and DBs Derion Kendrick and Lewis Cine.

Few in the nation have recruited top talent as consistently as Smart, though, and guys like edge Nolan Smith and oft-injured West Virginia transfer Tykee Smith could be exceptional players. Kelee Ringo, Jalen Carter, Smael Mondon Jr., Christopher Smith and others have elite potential.

Add in a top-five recruiting class with megastar defender prospects like 5-star DL Mykel Williams and DBs Malaki Starks and Daylen Everette already on campus and more studs like Marvin Jones Jr. and Jaheim Singletary coming later, and there is tons to love about Georgia's reload.

But the offense needs to find its rhythm, because UGA will have some growing pains replacing all that talent and coordinator Dan Lanning, too.

New Faces Attempt to Mute the Utes in the Pac-12

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As Kyle Whittingham's Utah Utes begin their conference title defense and look to repeat, a couple of energetic, young coaches are headed West to try to make things a little tougher on them. 

Everybody knows the biggest-name move this offseason was Lincoln Riley leaving Oklahoma for USC. He made waves by bringing QB Caleb Williams and WR Mario Williams with him from the Sooners, as well as landing RBs Travis Dye (Oregon) and Austin Jones (Stanford).

It's going to be exciting to see just how big of a leap the Trojans can take with all that talent, but they're far from the only program doing something new.

Oregon didn't want to go on a coaching search, but Mario Cristobal went home to Miami, leaving a vacancy with the Ducks. They didn't go the conventional route, instead electing to hire 35-year-old Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning to be their head coach.

Running his own program will be new, but Lanning is a relentless recruiter. At Oregon, he'll be overseeing a quarterback battle between returners Ty Thompson and Jay Butterfield and Auburn transfer Bo Nix. It's his first major decision, but there will be more.

Cristobal left a full cupboard in Eugene, especially on defense where guys like Noah Sewell and Justin Flowe are elite building blocks, so they could compete right away.

USC and Oregon are certainly two teams worth paying attention to this spring.

Other Exciting Eras Begin at Blue-Blood Programs

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Technically, Marcus Freeman's era at Notre Dame began in the Fiesta Bowl, but if you're an Irish fan, it's probably best to forget about that monumental collapse, right?

Despite that inauspicious start, there's a lot to like about Freeman. The 36-year-old coach will have some "say what?" moments, but he provides enough upside that you deal with it. He's also got a ton of talent on a Fighting Irish team that needs a quarterback to compete for a title, but not much else.

The man Freeman replaced in South Bend (Brian Kelly) begins his first year at LSU after patchworking together a squad that looks stout after barely being able to field a team during bowl season. The Bayou Bengals, too, need to find a quarterback, but they could be a rebound candidate.

It's hard not to root for the Oklahoma Sooners, not just because Lincoln Riley left them in a lurch, but because they gave longtime assistant Brent Venables a chance to run his own program. He did an exceptional job stopping the one-way exit out of Norman, and his first team will feature UCF transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel.

Meanwhile, Mario Cristobal is back home in Coral Gables, where he is already putting his stamp on recruiting and has hired a dynamite staff that includes defensive coordinator Kevin Steele and offensive coordinator Josh Gattis. 

Billy Napier is picking up the pieces from the Dan Mullen era in Florida, but the Gators are just a year removed from the SEC Championship Game. Brent Pry will try to return Virginia Tech to glory, and the same can be said for Kalen DeBoer at Washington.

Big-Time Battles at Big-Name Programs

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Everywhere you look in college football this spring, there's a quarterback battle.

But two in particular should have your attention.

National semifinalist Michigan returns both signal-callers who shared the load a season ago, but there's a unique situation in Ann Arbor. Cade McNamara is the veteran starter who did a stellar job a season ago, but he lacks the elite skill set of J.J. McCarthy.

With the Wolverines having to replace a lot of weapons, it's going to be interesting to see if coach Jim Harbaugh makes the decision to go with the more talented, more athletic McCarthy. If that happens, what will McNamara do? Stick around, or head elsewhere? As always, it's delicate. 

An even more intriguing showdown with major ramifications will happen at Clemson where D.J. Uiagalelei needs to demonstrate major improvement if he's going to hold off incoming former 5-star Cade Klubnik. Still, Tigers coach Dabo Swinney is displaying all the confidence in the world in his incumbent.

"He'd be the first one to tell you he has a lot he needs to improve on, but he never made excuses, never pointed fingers," Swinney told ESPN.com's David M. Hale. "What he went through last year accelerated all the other stuff he needed to learn—mental toughness, grit, thick skin, the will to win. I think he's going to have a great year."

Uiagalelei is 15 pounds lighter than last year's 240 pounds, and Klubnik is ready to try to win the job. Clemson has to be much better at the position if it is going to return to championship form. Those seeds will be sown this spring.

Alabama and Ohio State Reload for Next Title Shot

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While the transfer portal was supposed to promote more parity in college football, the rich have been getting much richer during the first couple seasons of mass exoduses.

That's the case for the national runner-up Alabama Crimson Tide, who are outfitting their roster around Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Bryce Young. Not only did UA go out and get Georgia transfer receiver Jermaine Burton, but it also grabbed do-it-all running back Jahmyr Gibbs, formerly of Georgia Tech.

Gibbs is a dynamo who can do a lot of the things in space, and he is a special-teams weapon, too. Coach Nick Saban will find a way to get Gibbs the ball in a lot of different ways.

Throw in elite defensive back transfer Eli Ricks, and Alabama looks like the favorite to win the 2022 national title. Saban gets his first look at his new team this spring.

Up North, the Ohio State Buckeyes had slip-ups against Oregon and Michigan, but put together the kind of offensively explosive season you'd expect from a Ryan Day-coached team. They've got an infusion of talent coming in, and they'll try to improve the defense to get to the College Football Playoff.

Youngsters like LB C.J. Hicks and DB Sonny Styles will help right away, as will Oklahoma State DB transfer Tanner McCalister. It's also going to be fun to see DeaMonte Trayanum work out at linebacker after playing running back at Arizona State.

Talent isn't an issue at either place, and there's every reason to believe the Tide and Buckeyes will be back in contention.

Who Can Fill Cincy's Cinderella Slippers?

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If you're looking for this year's Cincinnati Bearcats, perhaps the Houston Cougars can give everybody another Group of Five argument.

Quarterback Clayton Tune, running back Alton McCaskill and a loaded defense should make last year's AAC runner-up a contender to battle the Bearcats in the division. If they run the table, the Cougars could warrant consideration, but is an out-of-conference schedule of Texas Tech, Kansas and UTSA strong enough?

BYU must replace star running back Tyler Allgeier, but those other Cougars have a lot of talent and experience, and coach Kalani Sitake has that program heading on an upward trajectory. They play Baylor, Oregon, Notre Dame and Arkansas, among others, so they'll get a chance to show what they've got.

Then there's the Bearcats, who are the darlings until they aren't. Yes, they have to replace a ton of talent, but coach Luke Fickell will have a plan.

Wake Forest, Miami, Oklahoma State, Baylor, North Carolina State and Ole Miss are among the Power Five long shots that would be great stories. Each of those teams have quality playmakers despite loads of question marks.

The great thing about college football is you never know when a team is going to come out of nowhere to make noise, and there are several candidates in '22. 

None of those questions will be answered this spring, but if enough buzz surrounds a program, you can start getting answers and know what it takes. With the transfer portal, there's still time for solutions, too.

Hot-Seat Programs Seek Calmer Waters

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An extremely public look into what should have been private conversations among powers-that-be took place at Auburn this offseason when a week-long "will-they, won't they" firing situation took place involving coach Bryan Harsin.

Auburn essentially cut the legs out from under its second-year coach, which was made even more stunning when the Tigers elected to retain him. Now, he starts the 2022 season very much on the hot seat with an unproven roster and a ton of questions.

How will Harsin handle the scrutiny in the wild, wild SEC? Can the Tigers respond with a rebound season that would shock many? They've got to start filling some personnel holes this spring, beginning with quarterback.

Out in Lincoln, Nebraska, it's clear that favorite son Scott Frost needs something positive to happen. The Adrian Martinez era is over, as the quarterback is off to finish his career at Kansas State, and transfers Casey Thompson (Texas) and Chubba Purdy (Florida State) will try to be program saviors.

But Frost was at least able to lean on recruiting successes when the on-field product was failing. He can't do that anymore, so he'd better get things moving now, or he'll be moving out.

Texas' Steve Sarkisian has the roster to turn things around right away in Austin, so the pressure is on him to make it happen. Arizona State coach Herm Edwards has to steer the Sun Devils through an NCAA recruiting investigation and the recent news that starting quarterback Jayden Daniels is in the transfer portal.

Plenty of coaches need positive vibes, and they need to start right now. They can't save their jobs this spring, but they need to start making inroads.

Youth Is on the Loose

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Arizona Tetairoa McMillan is going to be a star in the desert.

There's no way to talk about every single freshman mid-term enrollee who is coming to be the next star at a college near you. 

We've already talked about Cade Klubnik, who could become an instant-impact star if he unseats D.J. Uiagalelei at Clemson, but there are other intriguing quarterbacks to watch, too. Myles Burkett could be a sleeper to beat out Graham Mertz at Wisconsin.

Guys like Drew Allar (Penn State), Conner Weigman (Texas A&M) and Nicco Marchiol (West Virginia) could vie for starting gigs, too. Allar's classmate, running back Nicholas Singleton, looks like a star-in-the-making, too.

Waves of talented, new SEC pass-catchers like Aaron Anderson (Alabama), Luther Burden (Missouri) and Kaleb Webb (Tennessee) are already on campus and have the ability to get major snaps right away.

At Michigan, Derrick Moore will try to step into the huge shoes of Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo off the edge, and shutdown cornerback Will Johnson could crack the starting lineup as well.

So many players who could be stars right away are sprinkled throughout the country like Georgia CB Daylen Everette, Ohio State LB C.J. Hicks, USC DB Domani Jackson, North Carolina OT Zach Rice and DT Travis Shaw, North Carolina State RB Michael Allen and electrifying Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillan.

It's also worth watching Miami edge rusher Cyrus Moss, and there are too many at Texas A&M alongside Weigman to mention, as the nation's No. 1 class has studs like WR Evan Stewart and DT Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy ready to go through spring drills.

That's just a smattering of guys to watch. Freshmen are everywhere on every campus already, and these guys aren't standing around waiting to sit the bench.

Ewers and Dart About to Start

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Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers' immaculate blond mullet is a jewel straight out of the Lone Star State circa 1980. But despite the nod to the past, the Longhorns' signal-caller is the star of the future.

Not to mention the present.

Yes, the hype machine surrounding the Ohio State transfer is very real, but Ewers has generational arm talent and the ability to help turn around a woebegone program. That word "generational" actually was used recently by Ewers' former high school coach, Riley Dodge.

Quite frankly, Ewers may be the player with the most hype around him in the entire sport this spring, so he's a storyline you need to know all by himself.

But just a little bit east of Texas in Oxford, Mississippi, there is another budding star worth watching. Everybody was focused on Caleb Williams' decision this offseason, but the guy who he replaced may wind up being the bigger story.

Jaxson Dart bolted USC and wound up with Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin, where he will have three remaining seasons of eligibility and is surrounded by a rebuilt roster that includes guys like TCU transfer Zach Evans and tight ends Michael Trigg and J.J. Pegues.

Kiffin's pass-happy, wide-open offense should suit a gunslinger like Dart, and the coach has a long history of developing quarterbacks, meaning the Rebels have a shot to pick right back up and from where they were a season ago when Matt Corral led them to the Sugar Bowl.

Williams' story with the Trojans is one to follow, of course, but don't forget about Ewers and Dart. They are two stars of tomorrow whose names you need to know today.

Wave 2 of Transfers

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So much transfer movement occurred this offseason, but there are still some potentially huge pulls for teams in the portal.

Quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (Arizona State) and JT Daniels (Georgia) are still without a home, as are offensive tackle Tyler Steen (Vanderbilt), running back Camar Wheaton (Alabama), defensive end Ochaun Mathis (TCU) and plenty others.

But they won't be the last.

With positional battles crystalizing more and more this spring, you know there is going to be another wave of guys who decide the grass is greener elsewhere. As always, there could be guys from lower-tier schools who want to try move their services a step up.

Look for numerous quarterbacks to be on the move after spring practice as the pecking order in battles across the country gets clearer, and this will happen at other skill positions, too. It seems there are always a few homesick early enrollee freshmen who could leave, too.

These days, nobody is safe from the shadow of the portal, and commitments and scholarship papers are no longer sacred. 

It's even common for guys who are starting at Power Five programs to bolt for other places. Anything can happen, and a lot of it will this spring. Coaches haven't stopped scouring the portal for talent yet, and more movement is on the way.

              

All stats courtesy of CFBStats and Sports Reference. Player and recruiting class rankings courtesy of 247Sports.

Follow Brad Shepard on Twitter, @Brad_Shepard.