The college football offseason is finally over, and not a moment too soon. After what felt like an endless offseason of lawsuits, judges and courtrooms, we finally get to put it all aside and focus on football. To celebrate, we're releasing our full slate of national picks from our group of experts.
Following Indiana's magical run to the national championship, the sport feels more wide open than ever. Six different teams field +900 odds or better to win the title, and our experts selected five different teams to hoist the trophy. Keep an eye on teams that have gotten close -- like Oregon, Notre Dame, and Texas -- to break through finally.
The same is true in the Heisman Trophy race, where Fernando Mendoza's surprise win gives hope across the board. Notre Dame's CJ Carr is the favorite, but even he's only sitting at +700. There's plenty of space for an unexpected contender to rise on the board.
Our nine college football experts made their picks for most underrated and underrated teams, playoff participants, Heisman winner and national champion. Picks for every category can be found below as we head into a highly anticipated Week 1.
Most overrated team
Texas A&M: The Aggies had a dream 10-0 start to the 2025 season before it came crashing down in home losses to in-state rival Texas and first-round playoff opponent Miami. Texas A&M coach Mike Elko had to replace his offensive and defensive coordinators (Collin Klein, Jay Bateman) and a program-best 10 NFL Draft picks from last year's team. The No. 8 Aggies get No. 5 Texas at home this year, but its other three highest-ranked opponents -- No. 10 Oklahoma, No. 11 LSU and No. 13 Alabama -- all come on the road. Texas A&M could still be quite good in 2026, but feels like the most likely top-10 team to drop out of that rarefied air. -- John Talty (also Tom Fornelli, Richard Johnson, Brad Crawford, Chris Hummer)
LSU: The assumption is that LSU's No. 1 ranked transfer class and the magic touch of Lane Kiffin will be enough to get the Tigers into the College Football Playoff immediately. But the Tigers also entered last season with the nation's No. 1 ranked transfer class under Brian Kelly and flamed out at 7-6. A quick infusion of talent alone isn't going to immediately elevate the Tigers to the top of an ever-competitive SEC. The assumptions of greatness also hinge greatly on quarterback Sam Leavitt living up to his billing as the No. 1 ranked transfer of the class. That's anything but a foregone conclusion after he missed spring practice while rehabilitating a foot injury that ended his 2025 season at Arizona State in late October. In three career games against SEC opposition, Leavitt is 44 of 88 with one touchdown and three interceptions. He is talented, but he's coming off an injury and making a significant step up in competition. A lot will have to break right -- namely new personnel gelling on the fly in the nation's toughest league -- for the Tigers to finish the season in the same region of the rankings where they are beginning it. -- David Cobb
Indiana: Let's be clear -- Indiana is still going to be a top 15 team in the country. Curt Cignetti has taken his rightful place as a top-two coach in the sport. That said, college football is built around roster development timelines, and the Hoosiers have some major turnover with the heart of their national title team now in the NFL. Fernando Mendoza, D'Angelo Ponds and Aiden Fisher were All-American level players, and it's a lot to ask for Josh Hoover and A.J. Harris to immediately replicate a magical group. Expect a playoff push, but Indiana won't be serious Big Ten contenders. -- Shehan Jeyarajah
Texas Tech: I'm not sold on Texas Tech. Sorry. The Red Raiders return 13 starters, which is fantastic, and despite outside concerns about Brenden Sorsby leaving because of gambling allegations, the quarterback spot should be fine with Will Hammond. My issue is Tech playing with its food against a weak schedule. They can't afford a regular-season loss, and I suspect they'll fall once this season: at Oklahoma State. BYU is my favorite to win the Big 12. The weak schedule will kill Tech when it comes time to seed the CFP field. -- Brandon Marcello
Utah: Utah is getting the respect for its recent success with a top-25 preseason ranking, but there are reasons to be concerned about the Utes meeting their standard during Year 1 of the Morgan Scalley era. There might be more concern at the lines of scrimmage than on the sideline, with some significant turnover on both sides of the ball and a lot of confidence in the player development for the next guys to step up. But what if there is even a slight step back in quality? Utah could find itself in the thick of the Big 12's middle pack, fighting for coin-flip wins in one of college football's most chaotic conferences. That, to me, is more of a top-35 or top-40 evaluation, and certainly not the No. 21 they currently hold in the AP Top 25 poll. -- Chip Patterson
Most underrated team
Houston: There's a lot to love about this Houston team. Makhi Hughes should be a productive rusher after transferring in from Oregon, and it should help Conner Weigman prove reliable. If Patrick Overmyer can come in and be a difference-maker at tight end, the Cougs can really have something on offense to help a defense with a whole lot of portaled pieces. -- Johnson (also Jeyarajah)
Louisville: The Cardinals may not win in Week 1 against Louisville, but the duo of Isaac Brown and Keyjuan Brown in the backfield will prove to be the most formidable in the ACC this season. Getting QB Lincoln Kienholz up to speed (he's thrown only 17 passes in three years at Ohio State) is paramount to Louisville's success. But I trust coach Jeff Brohm, a quarterback whisperer who had one hiccup with Tyler Shough last season, to get him up to speed. Louisville or SMU will face Miami in the ACC Championship Game. -- Marcello (also Patterson)
Washington: Jedd Fisch has overachieved at every stop as a head coach. He did it at Arizona. He's won at Washington despite inheriting almost nothing from Kalen DeBoer. Now, he enters 2026 with arguably his most talented roster in Seattle and one of the true game changers in the sport at quarterback in Demond Williams. The Huskies do have to reload on defense, but sources indicated they expect an excellent front seven, perhaps even better than last year -- and that unit was a top-25 run defense. A difficult November stretch (Penn State, Indiana, Oregon) will determine just how far the Huskies can go, but I expect them to be in the Big Ten mix when that slog begins. -- Hummer (also Talty)
Texas A&M: Texas A&M is more substantive than splashy under Mike Elko, which is a welcome change in College Station that makes the Aggies a sleeper contender in 2026. Entering his third season on the heels of an 11-2 campaign and CFP appearance, Elko has one of the most experienced rosters in college football. It is spearheaded by a potential all-SEC quarterback, Marcel Reed, who has some of the SEC's best skill talent at his disposal. They will provide the Aggies with an explosive gear that will be critical as A&M replaces some studs from its defensive front. Thankfully, the secondary looks stout, and Elko backfilled both lines of scrimmage with strategic portal additions to ensure the Aggies remain fierce. A&M's first three SEC games are against teams with new coaches, which helps make 7-0 a distinct possibility heading into an Oct. 24 showdown at Alabama. In a league filled with new coaches and new quarterbacks, A&M has neither. The Aggies are keeping a low profile and are ready to make another CFP appearance after breaking through for their first last season. -- Cobb
SMU: SMU is my pick to give the ACC a second CFP representative after finishing runner-up to Miami in Charlotte. The Mustangs have the schedule and quarterback play to make it happen. Beat Louisville in Week 3, and their only regular-season loss may come at Notre Dame in November. SMU avoids Miami, Clemson and NC State during league play, a massive break within a crowded race. With Kevin Jennings ranking as the ACC's second-best quarterback, the Mustangs have enough firepower to stay in contention throughout. -- Crawford
Kansas State: The Big 12 is far more open at the top of the league than the Big Ten and SEC. While we all expect Texas Tech and BYU to be good, after that, nobody knows anything for sure. Well, the Wildcats are in a good position to move up after a disappointing season because neither Texas Tech nor BYU is on their schedule! Utah isn't, either! They also have a new coach in Collin Klein, who has had some success of his own in Manhattan. He was able to develop Marcel Reed at Texas A&M last season, and now he hopes to do the same with Avery Johnson. And what if he does? What if Avery Johnson lives up to his potential while the Wildcats play one of the easier schedules in the Big 12? If it happens, you've suddenly got a CFP contender on your hands. -- Fornelli
Ohio State: Julian Sayin and Jeremiah Smith won national championship rings at the end of 2024 and spent most of the 2025 season ranked as the No. 1 team in the country, so when the Buckeyes' national title hopes came crashing down with back-to-back losses to Indiana and Miami (the two teams that would eventually play for the title)m, the ending felt too sudden for a team so talented. Well, now there's a leadership core that's back with a chip on its shoulder, staring down one of the toughest schedules in the country. I'm projecting the Buckeyes take a couple lumps in the regular season but arrive in the postseason as a dangerous mid-bracket title threat. From there, the X-factor becomes Sayin and Smith, two capable Heisman Trophy candidates who individually could finish the season as the best at their respective positions. Once the playoff gets going, I'll take the battle-tested Buckeyes to put together another run for Ryan Day's second title in three years. -- Patterson (also Talty)
Oregon: Oregon is the deepest and best team in college football because of Dan Lanning's recruiting, bolstered by the transfer portal and his talent retention. Convincing a first-round quarterback like Dante Moore to return was the biggest retention win in the entire country. The only thing holding most folks back from declaring Oregon the favorite to win the title is the departure of both coordinators, including wunderkind offensive play-caller Will Stein, now the head coach at Kentucky. Continuity is everything in college football, so promoting Drew Mehringer to OC and Chris Hampton to DC should alleviate most of those concerns. The defense returns eight starters, and the aforementioned offense is stacked with Moore, a pair of young running backs and the return of Evan Stewart, who missed last season with injury. This is Lanning's best team yet in Eugene. -- Marcello (also Jeyarajah)
Notre Dame: Notre Dame is built to win the national championship because Marcus Freeman's roster checks every box that matters in January. The schedule gives the Irish room to develop without enduring a weekly meat grinder, allowing CJ Carr to take another step before the postseason during what could be a potential Heisman-caliber campaign. He'll operate behind an elite offensive line capable of maximum protection. Pair that foundation with one of the nation's nastiest, most disruptive defenses and Notre Dame has a championship-ready formula built to sustain against the elites in the CFP. -- Crawford (also Cobb)
Texas: This is the most talented Texas team since the mid-2000s when the Longhorns annually competed for championships. Depending on how the season goes, those in Austin believe they can have as many as six first-round selections. The Longhorns, through the transfer portal, went all-in this season to surround Arch Manning with the best possible pieces. Talent alone is not enough to win a title. But the Longhorns have been close in recent years, including taking 2024 national champion Ohio State down to the final moments in the semifinals. This is the best roster of Steve Sarkisian's tenure. There are no obvious holes. There are game-changers everywhere on offense and defense. Texas will have to survive a brutal regular season schedule. But if it gets through to the playoff, this is a team built to win in January. -- Hummer (also Johnson)
Indiana: Why not? Let's be real, there are at least seven different teams you can pick to win the national title that wouldn't cause anybody to raise an eyebrow. It's an incredible time for parity at the top of the sport, and nobody reflects the reality better than our defending national champion Indiana Hoosiers. However, because of the changes to the team -- primarily the loss of Fernando Mendoza -- the Hoosiers aren't getting nearly as much love as the other contenders this offseason. What that ignores, though, is that this is still a very good team, and one that will certainly be tested during the regular season (unlike some other contenders). They also have a coaching staff that knows what it takes to win in the postseason. Repeating as national champion is incredibly hard in this sport, but guess what? It's not as hard as going from one of the worst historical programs in the sport to winning the national title. If you can do that, what can't you do? -- Fornelli
Coach of the Year
Marcus Freeman: After just missing the playoff cut a year ago, Notre Dame is set up well to make the playoff and possibly even earn a first-round bye this season. With a very manageable regular season -- a November home game against Miami could be the Fighting Irish's only ranked opponent all year -- the stage is set for a 12-0 Notre Dame team to land a top four seed and earn head coach Marcus Freeman major honors. If Freeman runs the table, he'll have a good shot at winning Coach of the Year. -- Talty (also Patterson, Cobb, Hummer)
Dan Lanning: Oregon has been knocking on the doorstep for each of the past few seasons. This is the year they break down the door. With Ohio State and Michigan in back-to-back weeks in November, the Ducks will have a shot to emerge as the story in college football as the season comes to a close. Oregon has its best roster in program history, led by stacked wide receiver and defensive tackle rooms. This is the year Lanning helps turn them into national title favorites. -- Jeyarajah (also Marcello)
Curt Cignetti: If I'm picking Indiana to repeat as national champions, how can I pick any other coach to win this award? It means every other likely candidate would've fallen short of their preseason goal. If Cignetti wins consecutive national titles at Indiana, not only will he be the coach of the year, but people will openly wonder if he's one of the greatest coaches of all time alongside names like Saban and Bryant. -- Fornelli
Mario Cristobal: Mario Cristobal will win ACC Coach of the Year after Miami enters the CFP as the No. 1 seed and college football's lone unbeaten following championship weekend. Darian Mensah gives the Hurricanes an elite offense capable of overwhelming the league, while concerns over losing Reuben Bain and Akeem Mesidor feel overstated. Miami has recruited too well for the defensive front to collapse, especially with proven portal additions joining a deep collection of young talent ready to emerge quickly this fall. -- Crawford
Jedd Fisch: Remember back to January, when it seemed rumored that Fisch was looking for an exit as well as Demond Williams? It seems like bygones are bygones and the Huskies have a roster that is high on potential in the Big Ten. If Washington can take care of business on its schedule and navigate a brutal late November, the Huskies have a dark horse CFP case, and it would easily vault Fisch to COTY status. -- Johnson
Heisman Trophy winner
Darian Mensah: Three main factors go into winning a Heisman Trophy in 2026: 1. Wins. 2. Production. 3. Performances on a big stage. Mensah is all but assured of checking the first two boxes. The Hurricanes are unquestionably the most talented team in the ACC. And Mensah finished second nationally last season in passing yards with a worse offensive context around him. His production should improve -- or at least his efficiency should -- in Coral Gables compared to a 2025 campaign that saw him throw for 3,973 yards and 34 touchdowns against just six interceptions with Duke. As for the third category, Miami's schedule doesn't feature the kind of landmines those like Dante Moore and Arch Manning will face. But Mensah does get a huge opportunity in November against Notre Dame, and will get to follow that up with a reunion with Duke the next week. Miami stacks wins, Mensah throws for a lot of yards and he edges out some other quarterbacks with tougher schedules late in the year. -- Hummer (also Crawford, Jeyarajah)
CJ Carr: The first two starts of CJ Carr's career came against two College Football Playoff defenses, and that 0-2 start for the redshirt freshman probably pushed his profile too far below the fold. A full evaluation of Carr's 10-2 season with the Fighting Irish showcases a quarterback who is in full control of his pro-ready talent and the Fighting Irish offense as they want to run it with him at the helm. Carr is ready to be the most outstanding player in college football, and I'm predicting Notre Dame is going to be 12-0 when Heisman Trophy votes are due. That combination seems ripe for Carr to become the first Notre Dame Heisman winner since Tim Brown in 1987. -- Patterson (also Fornelli)
Arch Manning: No Manning has ever won the Heisman, but Arch will finally break the curse as he leads the family's third generation of quarterbacks. He closed the 2025 season — his first as Texas' starter — trending in the right direction and is now poised for the ultimate breakthrough. Auburn transfer Cam Coleman highlights the most talented receiving corps in the SEC, and the Longhorns' schedule is loaded with opportunity for Heisman moments. A year ago, Manning flopped horribly in a Week 1 showdown at Ohio State. Some simply wrote him off after that. This year, the Longhorns get a retooled Buckeyes defense at home in Week 2, and Manning will show the country a much better version of himself. With a win over Ohio State, Manning will take an early lead in the Heisman race before proving himself a worthy recipient while guiding the Longhorns through the nation's toughest schedule to a spot in the playoff. -- Cobb (also Johnson)
Julian Sayin: The Ohio State quarterback was historically efficient a season ago and yet gets dinged because of the Buckeyes' quarterfinal loss to Miami and his strong surrounding cast. Sayin isn't just a system quarterback, though, and is a good bet to improve upon the 2025 numbers (3,610 passing yards, 32 TDs) that made him a Heisman Trophy finalist. Ohio State has a very challenging schedule, which will give Sayin the needed big game opportunities to win the trophy. If Sayin and Ohio State are as good as they are capable of being, he has as good a shot as anyone at winning the Heisman. -- Talty
Dante Moore: Say whatever you want about Oregon's quarterbacks in big games over the last five years, but they're pretty efficient. I expect Moore to continue that trend and also add some explosiveness to his game with a veteran crew around him on the field. After turning down a first-round selection in the NFL Draft, I expect Moore, whose throwing motion looks so effortless, to show out against a schedule peppered with opportunities for Heisman moments. He was fourth nationally with a completion percentage of 71.8 last year, which is only fourth in Oregon history (again, no matter the Ducks' QB, they're efficient) and if his per-game average jumps from 237.8 to around 260 while maintaining that efficiency, Moore wins the Heisman with the No. 1 team in the country. -- Marcello
