As summer workouts begin, it’s time to start speculating on who may be the REAL National Championship Contenders. This list is subject to change in August when fall camp comes to an end…but for now, with all due respect to the reigning champs and the Hurricanes, these five teams with elite talent and loads of returning production look to be the favorites to win it all next January.
The 5 teams with the best chance to win the National Championship
#1 Oregon Ducks
Dan Lanning has done just about everything in his four years in Eugene, except win it all. He’s 48-8 overall with a conference title and back to back playoff appearances, both ending with losses to the eventual national champion. This Oregon team appears to have all the material necessary to put the program over the top.
A superstar quarterback in Dante Moore, who may be the #1 overall pick in the 2027 NFL draft, is joined by five other returning starters on offense. Dakorien Moore and Jeremiah McClellan combined for 1054 yards in 2025 and will be primary targets for the strong-armed Moore. The offensive line returns two starters, and will need some fresh faces to step up.
Eight starters return for the Ducks on defense, including five of last year’s front seven that will look to improve on a unit that was already third in the Big 10. They’ll be fast, physical and disruptive defensively, with monster DT A’Mauri Washington and do-everything safety Koi Perich…a Minnesota transfer with elite level athleticism.
The biggest question marks for Oregon could be on the coaching staff, where they are replacing BOTH coordinators with in-house promotions. In-house coordinator hires can be tricky. Both Chris Hampton (DC) and Drew Mehringer (OC) have been with Lanning for at least three of his four seasons and were “co-coordinators” last season. Lanning is betting on familiarity and stability to pay off.
#2 Ohio State Buckeyes
Ryan Day is just two years removed from his first National Title and will look to add another to the trophy case in 2026. The ingredients are certainly there for OSU to find their way back to the top. With an overall talent level that’s second to none, NFL Coordinators, and one of the most efficient quarterbacks in football, Day’s program is a machine in the NIL era…and it’s not slowing down anytime soon.
On offense, OC Artur Smith enjoys the return of QB Julian Sayin, along with RB Bo Jackson and Heisman contender Jeremiah Smith at WR. Most importantly, OSU returns FOUR starters on the offensive line. The inconsistency that plagued the offense at times last year could be solved simply by the experience of EIGHT returning offensive starters.
Defensively, Matt Patricia has conducted a master class since joining the Buckeyes’ program. With only three returnees, Patricia will have his work cut out for him to put a unit on the field that’s anywhere near the elite squad he produced in 2025. Keep an eye for two names, DL Tim Smith and EDGE Qua Russaw both transferred from Alabama this off-season and both bring 5 star potential with them to Columbus.
If Patricia’s defense can perform at a high level…and there’s not reason not to expect that…then the Buckeyes are setup for another run to a title.
#3 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Marcus Freeman feels like an elite coach in college football, and he has a National Championship Game appearance on his resume to back up that feeling. Now would be the time for Freeman to break through and put the Irish on top of the college football world. The Irish return the second most starters in the FBS with 14, a first-round caliber quarterback, and a physical nature that has become prerequisite to winning big in this era of the game.
Offensively, ND will go as far as C.J. Carr’s development takes them. Many scouts consider Carr the breakthrough candidate of 2026 at the position. With Carr, Jordan Faison back at WR and FOUR offensive linemen returning, the offense could be even better than the unit led by Jeremiyah Love…and that should scare Notre Dame’s opponents.
Defensively, last year’s 10th ranked scoring defense returns eight starters and the entire secondary. The 2027 NFL Draft could very well be littered with Golden Domers. CB Leonard Moore may be the best in the nation at his position and Boubacor Traore could develop into an absolute terror at EDGE.
Much was made of Notre Dame’s exclusion from last year’s playoff, but the fact was that they lost the two biggest games on their schedule. With USC now off the schedule in 2026, the Irish do not face a daunting schedule. An October road trip to BYU, and November home games with Miami and SMU loom large. The Irish MUST win two of those three, and clean up on the rest of the schedule. Losing two of those three might leave them outside looking in again.
#4 Georgia Bulldogs
You’ll find a consistent theme among these five teams…elite talent, returning production, and experience at QB. Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs check ALL those boxes for 2026. The Bulldogs tie Oregon and Notre Dame with 14 returning starters on a team that’s won 23 of its last 28 games and the last TWO SEC Championships. The Dawgs have bowed out in their first game of the last two college football playoffs, and they’ll look for their returning production and a handful of meaningful additions to push them over the top.
Gunner Stockton is not the same elite QB talent as Dante Moore or C.J. Carr, but he’s a very effective QB in OC Mike Bobo’s run-centric, play-action system. With three offensive linemen, a potentially elite TE in Lawson Luckie, and powerful RB in Nate Frazier, the UGA offense could become one of the nation’s most explosive IF Stockton takes the next step in his development and begins to produce in the downfield passing game. Georgia Tech transfer WR Isiah Canion, at 6’4 215, is expected to provide the vertical threat to the UGA offense.
Death, taxes, and good Georgia defense…you can count on those three things as long as Kirby Smart is the HC and DC Glenn Schumann is dialing it up. EDGE Gabe Harris will be the most important element for Georgia’s defensive unit. The Dawgs needed to improve their pass rush, and Harris will be the focal point after the season ending injury to potentially elite Auburn transfer Amaris Williams. Safety K.J. Bolden will be an All American and one of the biggest playmakers in the SEC.
This 2026 Georgia team could look more like the 2022 team than the 2024 team, and that means they are more than capable of running the table this season. The development of Gunner Stockton is the missing piece. There is some debate whether Stockton can make the jump from a tough competitor and gamer to an elite playmaking QB. While the Bulldogs won back to back titles with a similar player in Stetson Bennett, those 2021 and 2022 teams had the kind of elite 5 star across-the-board talent and depth that doesn’t really exist anymore. We will find out if that formula can still produce a ring in 2026.
#5 Texas Longhorns
If you play poker, then you understand the concept of “all-in”. The Texas administration and power-brokers feel like Texas Hold’em player who has drawn pocket queens. You know there’s a chance that someone has A-K or pockets…but the hand you’re holding is so strong, and you sense an opportunity for a massive win, so you push all the chips to the middle. Steve Sarkisian has had a nice run in Austin and the program is on strong footing, but UT was thinking National Championship from the time Arch Manning committed to the program. This is likely Manning’s last year, so the Longhorn’s went all-in this offseason to try and push over the top.
Offensively, Arch Manning made some serious strides down the stretch in 2025 and began to look something like the QB we all thought he might be. A dismal running game and inconsistency cost the Longhorns a playoff spot, particularly with a horrible loss to 4-8 Florida. Texas went big in the portal with TWO high value targets at RB in Hollywood Smothers and Raleek Brown plus, adding the freakishly athletic WR Cam Coleman from Auburn and Wake Forest OT Melvin Siani to add to six returning offensive starters, including three returning OL with Trevor Goosby as the highlight. No excuses for Sark’s offensive unit this year…they should be as explosive as any offense in the country.
On defense the Longhorns also return six starters including EDGE Colin Simmons, a potential Top 10 draft pick. They also reached into the transfer portal for the #1 ranked transfer LB Rasheem Biles from Pitt. Most importantly, and somewhat surprisingly, Texas lured DC Will Muschamp away from his native Georgia to add some aggression and punch to a defense that too often sat back and waited for the plays to come to them. Muschamp’s high pressure, blitzing style should produce turnovers and negative plays at a high rate with elite talent in the front seven.
If Manning takes a step forward in his development, and Muschamp can get the defense on the same page early, then Texas is every bit of a serious National Title threat. Sarkisian’s impressive 48-20 run at Texas includes a national title game appearance, but the big ring has escaped the program so far. With the amount of money invested in this year’s roster, it’s pretty obvious that those in the Texas power structure feel THIS is the year. The September 12th matchup with Ohio State in Austin could set up Texas as a Top 3 team with title aspirations….but a home loss could turn up the heat on Sark to get things where they should go. It’s an all-in year for the Horns.
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