The football portion of college football is finally coming into focus as a recruiting dead period arrives while Summer camps are about to begin. All of the focus on recruiting and offseason changes will quiet down, and now teams will take their final steps in preparing for the actual season, which is a refreshing moment.
Heading into the season, the usual suspects are expected to go on a major run to the College Football Playoff with Texas, Oregon, Ohio State, and Miami drawing a ton of hype. Where college football is the most fun is when an unexpected program crashes the party.
This past season, few saw Indiana as a College Football Playoff team before the season, and they went on to one of the most dominant seasons of all time. Heading into the 2026 season, several teams fit the same boom or bust caliber.
The 5 biggest boom or bust candidates for the 2026 season
Oklahoma State Cowboys
The energy is high around the new look Oklahoma State Cowboys as Mike Gundy is out, and in steps Eric Morris. It was clear Mike Gundy was no longer a fit in this modern era of college football, and the results of the new regime bring a ton of promise back to this program.
The star studded trio of Drew Mestemaker, Caleb Hawkins, and Wyatt Young all followed Morris to Oklahoma State along with several other key pieces from North Texas. The offense alone could win this team the Big 12, but the biggest question heading into the season will be if they can overcome the step up in talent joining a Power 4 conference.
Houston Cougars
Willie Fritz has won everywhere he's been, and heading into the 2026 season, it could be Houston's time to win the Big 12. Considering the fact that Texas Tech was knocked down a level with losing Brendan Sorsby, the league appears to be wide open, and it could end up being Houston's for the taking.
Connor Weigman is back for another season, and Houston seemingly finally has its big rushing threat in Fritz's former Tulane star Makhi Hughes. The big question will be over whether or not Houston can navigate the schedule or not as Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, and Utah will all be massive challenges to overcome.
Washington Huskies
The Washington Huskies are coming off an impressive 9-4 season in Jedd Fisch's second season at the helm, but they're an odd team coming into this year. The Huskies went just 5-4 in the Big Ten season, which will need to improve, and there are also some strange factors surrounding the team that could cause an implosion.
Demond Williams' entire brief transfer saga was bizarre, and it wouldn't be a shock to anyone if the team quickly turned on him. Add in that Jedd Fisch is seemingly always a candidate to join another program, and the year could just have too much outside noise to overcome if things don't instantly go their way.
Kentucky Wildcats
The Kentucky Wildcats have a ton of buzz heading into the season as the excitement around Will Stein is still incredibly high. Will Stein went out and attacked the Transfer Portal in a way that we never saw under Mark Stoops, which makes this an exciting team. The issue Kentucky may run into is the fact that this team is so new, and the SEC always has experience and depth.
Kenny Minchey steps in at quarterback with a ton of hype from his time as the Notre Dame backup, but he lacks experience. The rest of the pieces all bring a ton of upside, but as we've seen time and time again, it's hard to overhaul an entire roster in a single offseason, and it'll be even harder with a new coaching staff.
Virginia Tech Hokies
James Franklin quickly found a new gig, joining the ACC as he tries to revive the Virginia Tech football program. The early results off the field have been incredible as Franklin has secured massive donations to fund the roster while recruiting at a high level. The big question for Franklin will be whether his roster is good enough to make a run in the ACC in his first season.
While Franklin brought in some new pieces, he kept a ton of pieces from the Hokies team that was a mess last season. Ethan Grunkemeyer showed some flashes for Penn State last season, but he'll need to improve a ton as a starting quarterback. If the Hokies can get a solid season out of their new quarterback, they could go on a run, but this team also may not have nearly enough talent.
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