The Ohio State football team is heading into the 2022 season with sky high expectations. Can the Buckeyes return to the CFP?

It is now the time of year where the part of you that loves summer weather, the beach, and cookouts collides with the side that constantly wonders if it’s fall yet. Football season is less than 100 days away, and the chatter and the anticipation heading into this season are reaching new heights. 

Ohio State vs. Notre Dame and Georgia vs. Oregon both headline the Week 1 slate on September 3rd that possess massive CFP implications. The following week, Alabama travels to Austin to take on the Texas Longhorns in a game that will also hold weight toward the end of the season. 

All three of these matchups tie into my early preseason predictions, and we’ll begin with the Crimson Tide and the Longhorns. 

3. Alabama defeats Texas by 20+ in Austin

Nick Saban has been in the news a lot so far this offseason, but not for his elite coaching. Saban slighted former assistant and current Texas A&M HC Jimbo Fisher for NIL allegations insinuating Fisher and the A&M staff bought their entire top-ranked recruiting class. However, the noise will not distract Saban and the Tide, likely entering the season as the No. 1 ranked team. 

Bryce Young and Will Anderson Jr are both back, and the Tide have added Jahmyr Gibbs and Elias Ricks from the transfer portal to polish up the depth chart. Alabama is gearing up for a return to the National Championship (we’ll get to that later), and the country is still wondering when Texas will be back. 

There is a lot of preseason hype surrounding the Longhorns, including 11-1 projections. But either way, an unproven over-hyped team taking on an angry juggernaut…I’ve seen this movie before. The Tide will roll into Austin with an 11 am kickoff and delay the return of Texas to the national stage a few more weeks by beating Quinn Ewers and the Longhorns by 20. 

2. Georgia and Michigan will be the same team in 2022 

The Bulldogs and Wolverines finally got over the hump last year, ending droughts against Alabama and Ohio State, and clinched berths in the College Football Playoff. Georgia went a game further and won the National Championship behind an elite defensive season led by Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean. 

Both offenses lacked flash and style, but they were efficient and executed at the right time to win games. Georgia and Michigan have easier schedules than most this season and can return to the playoff, even with losses. Despite losing the bulk of their defenses, the Bulldogs can easily get to Atlanta at 11-1 or 12-0, and Michigan can pull up to Columbus at 10-1 or 11-0. 

As it stands, I see Alabama and Ohio State being head and shoulders above the rest of the field this season as the two best teams in the nation. However, from 3-8, the teams are interchangeable, and for that reason, will make the CFP discussion very interesting in late November and early December. Keep an eye on these teams to be in the discussion again, even by default. 

1. Alabama and Ohio State begin the year at No. 1 and 2 and stay there all year to meet in the CFP National Championship

Anytime the Buckeyes and Tide have the opportunity to share the field, the entire world tunes in to watch, and this potential matchup would be no different. In fact, if Alabama and Ohio State meet in this year’s CFP, it will potentially feature the top four NFL Draft picks in the 2023 class. 

CJ Stroud, TreVeyon Henderson, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba came up short of their goals of beating TTUN and getting to Indy (twice), so the Buckeyes have unfinished business on the field. But the problem was not so much the offense’s fault, as the defense was lackluster in the big games. 

Moreover, Ryan Day did not mess around and overhauled the coaching staff led by Jim Knowles as Defensive Coordinator. Safety Tanner McAlister also followed Knowles to Columbus, which will be a significant addition to the secondary with Denzel Burke, Ronnie Hickman, and Josh Proctor. 

Ohio State will continue its historic offensive run and have a B+ defense to get to the National Championship against Bryce Young and Alabama in the 2020-21 title game rematch. Only this time, The Ohio State Buckeyes will get the job done to win its ninth National Championship.