TCU’s run to the College Football Playoff National Championship shouldn’t have happened. Whether intentional or not, college football has always been a great sport for separating wheat and chaff when it comes to determining a national champion. No sports.
Despite exceeding expectations in reaching the game, TCU’s 65-7 loss to Georgia was a reminder of the division that remains in the sport between the elite and the upstarts. It’s unlikely that the TCU’s sprint ahead will ever happen again, but looking back at the history of Horned Frogs and instead focusing on how they made the impossible possible, we know there is a way. increase.
It’s impossible to summarize everything TCU has done in one paragraph, but let’s try! I brought the dykes. Next, the Frogs had quarterback Max Duggan, who wasn’t a Week 1 starter… Finally, some luck was involved. There will always be, even in elite teams. Going 6-1 in a one-score game with an overall point margin of +29 (4.14 per game) meant that some coin-flip situations went the TCU’s way much more often. . . When you combine good things with being lucky, great things happen.
So can it happen again? This is not a recommended method for success, but we know it is possible. With that in mind, I’m going through all the Power Five teams to see if I can find any that might miss the 2022 bowl game and play on New Year’s Eve from home for the holidays. Checked… TCU’s don’t have many varieties (use them as bulletin board material, Vanderbilt), but there are five Power Five programs that can do it. These are the leading contenders (although none of them are being mentored by Prime).
OK, let’s check a few boxes here. This is a team that finished the 5-7 season with the head coach of the 1th year. Granted, it’s Auburn, which won a national title this century, so it’s not a true “TCU” program, but it meets the criteria well enough to make the list. Time and time again it has been proven that great things can be achieved when people go in the same direction.
The problem is that The Plains rarely pulls in the same direction. Often Auburn will figure out how to pull his one rope in four different directions. It’s an amazing feat of engineering, but it doesn’t correlate strongly with winning football games. Anyway, it’s a talented team with a coach (Hugh Freeze) who has had success in the league. It’s not that crazy if you’re lucky.
I already regret writing this story. Well, we’re in too deep right now, and no one is to blame for me, but myself. I didn’t consider how much roster rebuilding coach Mario Cristobal had in mind. That said, it was too bridged to think Miami could have won the ACC, but that would have been a more likely outcome than he was 5-7.
With the Hurricanes going 5-7, there’s no excuse for losing to a team like this. middle tennessee, duke and pits (all with at least two scores, mind you).Still, if enough things go well, there’s reason to believe that next offseason jobs and more players who fit what Miami wants to be could allow the Hurricanes to make a big leap in their second year under Cristobal. While we have high hopes for Floridaand I don’t think Clemson’s Ready to fall off the face of the earth, but clearly lacking an elite team entering 2023, the ACC still has plenty of wiggle room.
In some ways, Michigan was the first TCU. The Spartans were his 2-5 in Mel Tucker’s first season at East Lansing. This was a step back from his 7-6 in 2019, but it wasn’t all that unexpected. Tucker was hired late in the offseason after Mark D’Antonio’s unexpected retirement. Shortly after Tucker moves into a new office, a once-in-a-century global pandemic strikes. All of that was slightly less predictable than Michigan State blowing up with his 11-2 record and entering the Peach Bowl in 2021.
Tucker and the Spartans hit plenty of home runs on the transfer portal that season, but none beat Heisman finalist Kenneth Walker. The Spartans have had less luck this year, falling back and dropping to 5-7.Yes, it’s much harder for Spartans to break through in the Big Ten East Michigan won two conference titles, Ohio is in Ohio, Pennsylvania I’ll revert that act, but I’ve seen Sparty do it before.
Like Auburn, Nebraska has a first-year coach and Matt Rule is back in the college game. Unlike Auburn and his TCU, Nebraska went 5-7 this season. That made him 4-8, so there’s more room to make up the standings. Like Miami, the road to Nebraska may not be as difficult as others.The Big 12 had one of the best conferences in college football this season, but neither texas or Oklahoma Responding to their potential helped TCU.
The Big Ten includes Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania, all of which play in the East. Take a look at the rest of Big Ten West and let us know who’s your definite favorite. Wisconsin We have a new coach and a new offense. Iowa This is good for Iowa, but not terrible. Purdue won the division and the coach left Louisvilleand now has its own first-year coach. Illinois 2021 was a surprise, finishing 8-5 but losing 4 of their last 5 games. Northwest Not in the best condition at the moment. Again, I’m not saying any of these teams are likely to make the leap, but Nebraska can at least audition for the role.
what did i do First Miami, then Nebraska, and now Texas A&M. If only Texas had him go 5-7, including that he could have completed the Hypebeast Superfecta. Listen, it’s hard to trust Aggie. I’m not, but I can’t deny that this is his 2022 underperforming talent roster. It would have been impossible with the talent I had.
Most of that talent remains, and coach Jimbo Fischer may have finally admitted he needed a little help, bringing in Bobby Petrino as offensive coordinator. Yes, there’s a risk this could explode spectacularly, but it’s also possible that everything clicks and Aggie finally breaks through.
