College Football Preview: Contenders and Sleepers

College Football is back! On Saturday there were a couple of appetizer games, but all of us want the full-course meal. To get you excited, we're going to be looking at each conference (FBS) and talking about a few of the teams that you should look out for this season.

AAC

Major Contenders:

UCF is coming off a perfect 13-0 record in 2017. Scott Frost is off to Nebraska now, but they bring back McKenzie Milton, their star QB. USF and Memphis are not far behind UCF as they both suffered close losses to them. Look for one of these teams to make the New Year's Six this year as this is easily the strongest non Power 5 conference. (Maybe Mountain West but...)
Sleepers: 
Look out for the Temple Owls to compete with UCF and USF for the AAC east title. While it may be a long shot, Temple has a very deep linebacker corps, which might be the best in the entire conference. Temple’s offensive weapons are also among the best in the conference, with flashy WR Isaiah Wright leading the charge. It probably won’t be this season, but Temple could contend for a conference title in a few years if they stay on their current path. Also watch out for Houston, with potential #1 overall pick Ed Oliver, to challenge Memphis for the AAC West.

East:

1. UCF
2. USF
3. Temple
4. Cincinnati
5. Connecticut
6. East Carolina

West:

1. Memphis
2. Navy
3. Houston
4. Tulane
5. SMU
6. Tulsa

ACC
Major Contenders:
The obvious contender is Clemson, who likely has the best front 4 in the nation. Freshman QB Trevor Lawrence might compete for the starting job with senior Kelly Bryant. Whoever ends up starting will have a very solid supporting cast. Who is after them though? Well, Miami, who returns many defensive starters from last season should be in the mix. Also look out for a new and resurgent Florida St. squad to bounce back this season.
Sleepers: 
Boston College is a team that could get 9 wins this year, and that is no joke. RB AJ Dillon and QB Anthony Brown make up one of the more exciting offenses in the conference. Boston College’s offense hasn’t looked better since the Matt Ryan days of 2007. Their defense should be stellar like it is most years, so don’t be surprised if this team finished second behind Clemson. A New Year’s Six game is within reach if everything goes to plan.

Atlantic:

1. Clemson
2. Florida St.
3. Boston College
4. NC State
5. Wake Forest
6. Louisville
7. Syracuse

Coastal:

1. Miami
2. Virginia Tech
3. Georgia Tech
4. Pitt
5. Duke
6. Virginia
7. North Carolina

Big 10
Major Contenders:
Ohio State will be missing Urban Meyer for 3 games, but with the amount of talent on their roster, they are a force to be reckoned with. Penn State also brings back a future NFL player in Trace Mcsorley but lost Saquon Barkley and Mike Gesicki. Wisconsin, the team with the stacked O-line, is lead by Alex Hornibrook and Johnathan Taylor. They should win the West again. Except all of these teams to be in the playoff conversation late into the season.
Sleepers:
Purdue hasn’t had much success over the past few years, as last season was their first bowl win season since 2011. However, Purdue has a good chance of turning into a 9 win team this season, if everything goes right. First, they have a great defense which only allowed 20.5 ppg last season. They did lose some pieces on that defensive line, but they can help the defense with solid play from a good running back corps and QBs David Blough and Elijah Sindelar. Purdue isn’t quite there to compete with Wisconsin, but they could be dangerous over the next few years.

East:

1. Ohio State
2. Penn State
3. Michigan
4. Michigan State
5. Maryland
6. Indiana
7. Rutgers

West: 

1. Wisconsin
2. Iowa
3. Purdue
4. Northwestern
5. Nebraska
6. Minnesota
7. Illinois

Big 12
Major Contenders:
Oklahoma just ended a College Football Playoff trip, but they lost Baker Mayfield among other stars on the team. Texas is going into Year 2 with Tom Herman and they are looking to take back control of the conference. Also, TCU brings back another strong group of talented players but will be tested early in Week 3 against Ohio State. West Virginia has maybe the best QB in Will Grier and should be in the playoff mix late in the season. Other notable teams are Oklahoma State and Iowa State.
Sleepers: 
West Virginia? Yup, they have the best chance of any Big 12 team to upend Oklahoma and take the Big 12 title from them. West Virginia’s passing offense might be the best in the nation, with QB Will Grier leading the charge with a stacked WR corps. The X-factor is the defense, and whether if they can perform up to the offense’s standard. West Virginia’s front 7 should be great, but the question lies in the secondary, where they replaced 3 of the 4 players there. If they perform, it is very possible that West Virginia ends up as Big 12 champs. Maybe a playoff berth.

Full Standings:

1. Oklahoma
2. West Virginia
3. TCU
4. Texas
5. Oklahoma State
6. Iowa State
7. Kansas State
8. Texas Tech
9. Baylor 
10. Kansas

Conference USA
Major Contenders:
Florida Atlantic is back with Lane Kiffin at the helm. They went 9-3 last year losing to only Navy, Wisconsin, and Buffalo. They should be a playoff contender this year. Also, North Texas is back again after suffering a loss to Florida Atlantic in the 2017 conference championship. Other contenders are UAB and Southen Miss. Southern Miss played their bowl game close last year against Florida State but ended up losing in the end. Expect for them to be back this year too.
Sleepers: Marshall and UAB could be dark horse candidates to win their respective conferences. Marshall nearly defeated FAU last season, losing by a score of 30-25. Defense is definitely the strong point, and it will need to carry the team for it to do well. UAB was a great story last year coming back as a program and going 8-5 right out of the gate. UAB is very deep at RB, and with senior QB AJ Erdely returning this year, their offense might be second best in the conference.

East:

1. Florida Atlantic
2. Marshall
3. FIU
4. Middle Tennessee 
5. Western Kentucky
6. Old Dominion
7. Charlotte

West:

1. North Texas
2. UAB
3. Louisiana Tech
4. Southern Miss
5. UTSA
6. UTEP
7. Rice

Independents (FBS)

Major Contenders:
As you may already know, Independents don't reside in any conference. But, they are still worth talking about and making a list for them. Liberty and New Mexico State are the 2 new additions this year. Liberty is transitioning from the FCS and New Mexico State was previously in Sun Belt. Army is back after having a stellar year going 10-3 and beating Navy, San Diego State to close out the year. Notre Dame continues to have to manage the toughest schedule in college football as they are looking to make the playoffs in 2018. 

Full Standings:

1. Notre Dame
2. Army
3. BYU
4. UMass
5. New Mexico State
6. Liberty 

MAC

Major Contenders:

MACtion every Tuesday! Let's go!! With Western Michigan making the New Years Six 2 years ago gives this conference credit as the 2nd best non Power 5 conference. Toledo is also looking very good even though they lost QB Logan Woodside to the Cincinnati Bengals. The Ohio Bobcats also look like a major contender as they went 5-3 in the conference last year with a win versus Toledo.
Sleepers: Buffalo has a lot of players returning from injuries last year, and if they stay healthy they could be dangerous in the MAC East. Buffalo’s defense is very solid, including star LB Khalil Hodge, who is probably the best LB in the entire conference. Buffalo also returns Tyree Jackson and Anthony Johnson, who should both be a deadly QB-WR combination this season.

East:

1. Ohio
2. Miami (OH)
3. Buffalo
4. Akron
5. Kent State
6. Bowling Green

West:

1. Toledo
2. Northern Illinois
3. Western Michigan
4. Central Michigan
5. Eastern Michigan
6. Ball State

Mountain West
Major Contenders:
Boise State is back with another talented roster and they might be the best Group of 5 team in the nation. Fresno State also brings back Keyshawn Johnson, a senior WR who has put up close to 2,000 yards on the season. Other teams to know are Wyoming, who lost their star QB in Josh Rosen, and San Diego State who lost Rashad Penny also. We will see if these teams and continue to produce at a high level.
Sleepers: Boise State is the clear favorite to win the Mountain division, but Utah State might put up a good fight for the title. Utah State has Jordan Love, who is honestly the best QB in the entire conference, and with him, they should be able to win any conference game. They also are good in the trenches, with solid offensive and defensive lines which can allow them to run the ball/rush the passer effectively. Boise St. might be a bit too good, but you never know.

Mountain:

1. Boise State
2. Utah State
3. Wyoming
4. Air Force
5. Colorado State
6. New Mexico

West:

1. Fresno State
2. San Diego State
3. Nevada
4. UNLV
5. Hawaii
6. San Jose State

PAC-12
Major Contenders:
Washington is definitely the strongest team in the conference. But, this is a conference that went 1-8 in bowl games and their continues to be no depth. USC, who lost Sam Darnold, lost to Ohio State 24-7 last year in the Cotton Bowl. They should be able to win the South anyway. My dark horse in this conference would probably have to be Arizona and Kahil Tate who is one of the most exciting players to watch. Also, watch out for Stanford as they have stints against USC, Oregon and Notre Dame in the first half of the season that will determine how far they can go.
Sleepers: Arizona is a very intriguing team this year, as they bring back much of the components from their 2017 campaign. This includes dynamic QB Khalil Tate, who honestly could be in contention for the PAC-12 offensive player of the year award. Their defense also returns 9 starters, which is huge as they will develop more chemistry during the season. They also have an easier schedule than USC and Utah, as they do not have to play either Washington or Stanford. Arizona this year could win their first PAC-12 South title since 2014.

South:

1. USC
2. Arizona
3. Utah
4. UCLA
5. Arizona State
6. Colorado

North: 

1. Washington
2. Stanford
3. Oregon
4. California
5. Washington State
6. Oregon State

SEC
Major Contenders:
For starters, Alabama is and will always be a major contender as long as Nick Saban continues to be the head coach there. Georgia is close behind, as they barely lost to them in the National Championship Game. Auburn, the only team to beat Alabama and Georgia, faced Georgia again in the SEC Championship Game and ended up losing. Auburn had possibly one of the toughest schedules last year but sadly couldn't win the game that counted the most.
Sleepers: Mississippi State has been overlooked by Alabama, Auburn, and even LSU in their conference. But, believe it or not, MSU can contend for an SEC West title if EVERYTHING goes to plan. Nick Fitzgerald has a case for being the best QB in the SEC, and their RBs and OL should put up a ton of points against weaker SEC teams. However, for games against Alabama and Auburn, they will need to rely on Jeffery Simmons and Montez Sweat, who are 2 of the best D-lineman in the country.

East:

1. Georgia
2. South Carolina
3. Missouri
4. Florida
5. Kentucky
6. Tennessee
7. Vanderbilt

West: 

1. Alabama
2. Auburn
3. Mississippi State
4. LSU
5. Texas A&M
6. Ole Miss
7. Arkansas

Sun Belt
Major Contenders:
Ahhh...Troy! The team that beat LSU 24-21 in 2017 at the beginning of the year. They will be a contender along with teams like Arkansas State and Georgia State. Arkansas State is coming off a close loss to Troy in the Sun Belt championship game. An early nonconference game against Alabama will give a good understanding of how far Arkansas State can go this year.
Sleepers: Georgia State was one of college football’s biggest surprises last season, as they finished 7-5 and went to their first bowl game in program history. Georgia State’s best player returns this season, and that is Penny Hart, who is a blue chip WR, who can make so many plays when he gets the ball in his hands. Georgia State’s defense should be among the best in the conference, so if they can get their run game going in 2018, look for them to contend in the Sun Belt East.

East:

1. Troy
2. Appalachian State
3. Georgia State
4. Coastal Carolina 
5. Georgia Southern

West:

1. Arkansas State
2. Louisana Monroe
3. South Alabama
4. Louisiana
5. Texas State