16 college football greats who’d lead their former team to the 2017 title

Imagine each College Football Playoff contender could choose one past great to fix a roster deficiency. Who would lead their former team to a title?

Looking at a composite of the major preseason polls, 16 teams a realistic chance of winning the 2017 College Football Playoff. None of these schools are perfect, though. The nature of college football means that each roster will always find itself lacking depth at one or another position. Even well-stocked contenders are forced to rely on a combination of health, depth, and good luck to win a title.

For some teams, a lack of depth on the offensive line could spell doom. Perhaps there aren’t enough productive playmakers, or the right quarterback to get them the ball. For other teams, it is a defensive deficiency that plagues the front seven or the secondary.

Every school could stand to draw on one of their past greats to plug a hole in the roster. If your favorite school could choose just one player from the past to come in and fill a gap, who would you pick in order to seal up a title?

Imagine you could bring in one NFL star that would lock down a championship. That’s what we have done today. Click ahead to see which player would seal the College Football Playoff for each contender.