College Football: Three Teams Who Should Make Big Leaps

The 2016 college football season is drawing nearer, as this Saturday marked 7 weeks until the opening weekend of the season. As we continue to prepare ourselves for the upcoming excitement and the inevitable disappointment (Go Dawgs!) that this new season has to offer, let’s take a look at the three teams who are best-poised to improve on their 2015 campaigns.

Washington State Cougars

2015 record: 9–4 (6–3)

2016 projection: 11–1 (8–1)

Not since the days of Ryan Leaf have Wazzu fans been so exited about their football team, and for good reason. Last season, Mike Leach’s Cougs saw one of the best turnarounds in the entire country, improving on a 3-9 record in 2014 to reach their highest win total since 2003, and this year, they’ll continue on their upward trend to make their first-ever appearance in the Pac-12 Championship Game.

The Cougars have a formidable QB-WR duo in Luke Falk and Gabe Marks, which is reminiscent of the Graham Harrell-Michael Crabtree duo Mike Leach had at Texas Tech, as well as a favorable schedule, getting Oregon, UCLA, and Washington at home and missing USC altogether. A week two match-up at Boise State will prove challenging, but when all’s said and done, the only game I predict Wazzu to lose will be their trip to Stanford. That game will be winnable for the Cougars, as last year’s game was very close and the Cardinal have lost much of their production from last season, but in the end, Christian McCaffrey and the Palo Alto crowd should be able to outlast WSU.

The Apple Cup match-up against Washington will likely be one with division title implications, as UDub should will be improved from last season, and with a favorable schedule, they should be in the mix for the North division crown. The Cougars will win it though for the following reasons: the game is in Pullman, Wazzu will be looking for revenge from last year, the Cougs will be riding a hot streak of six straight wins, and they’ll be motivated by a possible Pac-12 Championship appearance. 2016 will forever be in the annals of Washington State football history, as the Cougars’ 11 wins will set a new school record in that category.

Miami Hurricanes

2015 record: 8–5 (5–3)

2016 projection: 10–2 (7–1)

The Mark Richt era in Miami will start off with a bang as the U will appear in its first ever ACC Championship Game. Brad Kaaya returns as one of the best and most accurate quarterbacks in the country, and the Canes have a favorable conference schedule that includes Florida State, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, and Duke at home, but most importantly, the Canes don’t have to play Clemson (until the ACC Championship Game, that is). Miami’s out-of-conference schedule is a little rough, as the Canes have to travel to South Bend to play Notre Dame, and a trip to Appalachian State will be far from a cakewalk.

If the Hurricanes are able to produce these results and if Mark Richt continues to recruit at a high level (the Canes’ 2017 recruiting class is currently ranked #12 by 247sports), then the U could very well continue to improve in the future.

Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders

2015 record: 7–6 (6–2)

2016 projection: 11–1 (8–0)

According to advanced metrics compiled by SB Nation’s Bill Connelly, the Blue Raiders return 68% of their overall production from last season, which is a higher mark than the ones posted by their main competitors in the C-USA’s East division, Marshall and Western Kentucky.

Middle Tennessee has a conference schedule that is overall favorable as they get Louisiana Tech and Western Kentucky at home and don’t have to play Southern Mississippi from the West division, however, a road game at Marshall could spell trouble. Out of conference, the Blue Raiders play three games on the road against teams that are of higher profile than they are, but those games are nonetheless very winnable. MTSU travels to play SEC bottom feeder Vanderbilt, a Bowling Green team that won the MAC last season but lost many of its key players, and a Missouri team who, like last year’s team, should have a fairly strong defense and a terrible offense. I think MTSU will beat Vandy out of revenge from last year’s game that went to OT, will barely lose to Bowling Green, and will pull out the upset against a Missouri team that will have its school longing for the days of Chase Daniel and Big 12 defenses. The Raiders will be playing in, and possibly hosting, their first ever Conference USA Championship Game.