There are a few storylines that seem to matter a little more than others. The college football season is now just four months away. Fans are beginning to get excited.
1. Alabama Goes Back To The Ground Game
The Alabama Crimson Tide no longer have A.J. McCarron throwing passes from the pocket. A new quarterback will lead the Tide this season, and the nature of Alabama’s offense is therefore likely to go from being a pass-first attack to a run-first force. Derrick Henry, a terrifically fast and muscular running back, is going to be a Heisman Trophy contender coming out of spring practice. He is all set to make a big mark on the college football season. If Alabama can establish its running game against stacked defensive fronts, it will be able to do what it wants in the passing game and contend for a national title.
2. Florida State Tries To Deal With The Pressure To Repeat
This is a challenge the Alabama Crimson Tide faced the past few seasons. Now, someone outside the Southeastern Conference has to live up to the pressure of trying for back-to-back national college football championships. Florida State has Jameis Winston at quarterback, it has tremendous depth along its defensive line. It has the fast skill people on the perimeter. However, in the wake of a New York Times investigation into the rape case that involved Winston, there are worries that this team will lose focus and be distracted.
3. Clemson Tries To Find New Pieces
The Clemson Tigers have spent the past several seasons with their quarterback and their primary receivers in place. Tajh Boyd and Sammy Watkins have been at the heart of the school’s rise in college football, culminating in the Orange Bowl victory over Ohio State last season. Now, though, Boyd and Watkins are both off to the NFL. The Tigers still have offensive coordinator Chad Morris on their staff, and we will see in the fall if spring practices adequately prepared the new skill position leaders for the season to come.
4. Michigan State Aims To Reload
The coach of the Spartans, Mark Dantonio, has gone through the month of April talking like a man whose team expects to make Rose Bowls as a matter of course and compete for national championships. Is the culture really different at Michigan State, or was last season a one-off occurrence in which everything broke just right for the Spartans? Michigan State’s offense had its moments, but can the Spartans be even more consistent this season? It’s a story that bears watching.
5. USC Tries To Find Its Way On Offense
The USC Trojans need to become a much better offensive team this season under new coach Steve Sarkisian. Cody Kessler was named the starting quarterback for the team in 2014, an expected move but nevertheless a big one for Sarkisian. It has been said a lot that Sarkisian did not impress a lot at the University of Washington. He long wanted to be USC’s coach, though, and through savvy politicking, he gained the job. There will be no honeymoon for Sark at USC. How he leads Kessler and the offense this fall will set the tone for the rest of his stay in Los Angeles.
