There are a number of college football teams under a lot of pressure going into the 2023 season and here are the five facing the most.
Pressure is always present in college football. It’s just the nature of the sport. Unlike in the NFL, one regular-season loss can cost you everything.
There is zero margin for error at times and for some teams, it’s winning a national championship or bust. That’s similar to other sports, but college football is a pressure cooker, and here are five teams that are facing the most pressure heading into the 2023 season.
5. USC football
There’s definitely pressure on USC football to make the College Football Playoff, as well as winning the Pac-12 championship.
Caleb Williams won the Heisman Trophy award last season and USC football went on an incredible run during the 2022 college football season.
But the Trojans were beaten by Utah for the Pac-12 title and blew a lead late to Tulane in the Cotton Bowl to cement the bad taste in their mouths going into the offseason.
USC has made some major additions in the transfer portal such as landing Bear Alexander from Georgia. The Trojans have upgraded their defense, which was average at best last season and terrible during some of the biggest moments, as well as their offensive line.
Williams will be dynamic and the Trojans are going to win double-digit games next season. I’m confident in that, but if USC football doesn’t win a championship or make the College Football Playoff, it will feel like a big disappointment.
4. Texas
The Texas Longhorns are another team facing an abundance of pressure going into the 2023 college football season.
Steve Sarkisian had a solid second season in Austin, but Longhorn fans want to win championships and there’s no reason Texas shouldn’t at least make the Big 12 championship game this season.
Quinn Ewers is going to be the starting quarterback. There doesn’t seem to be much competition between Ewers and Arch Manning.
But it’s also probably Ewers’ final season. The Horns were stellar when he was healthy last season and probably would have achieved more if he didn’t get hurt against Alabama.
Texas will get another shot against the Crimson Tide but winning that would be gravy. The Longhorns need to beat Oklahoma again and more importantly, they need to win the Big 12 championship this season or they might be No. 1 on this list heading into 2024 with the next big thing starting at quarterback in Arch Manning.
The Big 12 has expanded. Oklahoma is tough and so is Kansas State. Yet, the league is there for the taking and Horns’ fans will get frustrated if they fail to win it once again.
3. Michigan Wolverines
There isn’t as much pressure on the Michigan Wolverines as there is on the Ohio State Buckeyes and Ryan Day in particular, but there is still a lot of pressure facing Michigan football in the 2023 college football season.
Michigan is the two-time defending Big Ten champions. However, they have yet to win a playoff game, and the mantra this offseason has been “national title or bust.”
That’s a lot of pressure to live up to. Jim Harbaugh has talked openly about how badly he wants to win a national championship or a Super Bowl.
This might be his best chance with Michigan football. Blake Corum returned for his senior season and J.J. McCarthy is back as the starting quarterback. Michigan returns most of its defense and most of the starting offense despite a bunch of players getting drafted.
Michigan also gets Ohio State at home. A bunch of players returned to try and right the wrong that was the loss to TCU last season, but I don’t know if Michigan can beat Georgia.
We’ll see, but if the Wolverines don’t win the Big Ten again and don’t at least win a playoff game, it will be hard to view the season as a success, in part because it feels like a national title or bust.
2. Texas A&M
One college football program that’s under a ton of pressure to win during the 2023 season is Texas A&M football.
Jimbo Fisher is one of the highest-paid head coaches in college football. Texas A&M also signed the best college football recruiting class ever in 2022 according to the 247 Sports composite rankings.
Many Aggies fans expected that to lead to big things in 2022, especially with all of the high-ranking recruiting classes that had come before.
Conner Weigman was a five-star QB in the 2022 class, but he struggled last season as did most of the incoming freshman. However, he should be in line for a big season along with a number of others.
Texas A&M still has one of the most talented rosters in all of college football. Bobby Petrino was hired as the offensive coordinator to get that part back on track.
My sense is that Texas A&M needs a double-digit win season to quiet some of the critics. Many won’t be satisfied then — but the SEC West is still brutal. Anything less than a New Year’s Six Bowl will have Jimbo’s seat really hot heading into 2024.
It probably won’t be hot enough to fire him with all the buyout money owed. Miss the postseason altogether, though, and not even the buyout will save Jimbo.
1. Ohio State
The Buckeyes have won 11 games in each of the past two seasons and both are regarded as failures, even though Ohio State was maybe a field goal away from winning the national championship.
If Ohio State loses to Michigan, that season is generally considered a failure. If the Buckeyes had rallied and won the national title, it would have been a success, but there still would have been an asterisk.
That’s why this season is so important. Ohio State doesn’t necessarily have to win the national championship but tell me any college football team facing more pressure than the Buckeyes will be to beat Michigan this season?
Ryan Day might get run out of Columbus if he loses to Jim Harbaugh again. It’s crazy but that’s Ohio State football. John Cooper fell victim to the same forces. He had a great record. He even won Big Ten championships, but couldn’t beat Michigan enough.
And that means Ohio State football can’t have another empty 11-win season by its standards. It has to beat Michigan and after two straight losses, the pressure is more intense than with any other college football team.