College football rankings: Michigan, Georgia, Texas headline top 10 offensive lines entering 2023 season
Few units are as integral to the success of a college football team as its offensive line, and we have enlisted the help of Pro Football Focus to help determine the top 10 units in college football next season. It comes as no surprise that Georgia and Michigan, which both made the College Football Playoff a season ago, make this list. Others like Alabama, LSU, Penn State and Utah finished at or near the top of their respective conference a season ago.
Hammering home the importance of depth and talent in the offensive trenches is the fact that eight of the top 10 teams with the fewest sacks allowed last season made bowl games, while six finished with 10+ wins. On the flip side, only one of the bottom 10 teams in pass protection reached the postseason, Syracuse with a 7-6 record.
Here's an explanation of how PFF's grading works: On every play, a PFF analyst grades each player on a scale of -2 to +2. Each game is graded by two different analysts, and any discrepancies are settled by a senior analyst. Grades are then normalized to account for game situations and converted to a 0-100 scale.
Here's a look at the top 10 offensive lines in college football next season using PFF's grading system:
10. Utah Utes
Utah returns three starters from last season’s offensive line, including its starting tandem of guards in Keaton Bills and Michael Mokofisi, who combined to allow just one sack across 1,691 total snaps.
Right tackle Sataoa Laumea is also back but isn’t guaranteed a starting spot after allowing a whopping 11 pressures against Penn State in the bowl game.
What makes Utah’s offensive line special is its depth. The Utes return five linemen who played over 50 snaps a season ago and added 4-star offensive tackles Spencer Fano and Caleb Lou, their highest-rated recruits in the 2023 cycle.
9. Kansas State Wildcats
The Big 12’s Lineman of the Year, left guard Cooper Beebe, is back to pave the way for an offensive line that finished second in the conference in rushing yards per game last season.
Three other redshirt seniors join him in right tackle KT Leveston, center Hayden Gillum and right tackle Christian Duffie, giving the Wildcats one of the most experienced offensive lines in the country.
Backups Andrew Leingang (LT) and Carver Willis (RT) were studs in limited action. Leingang allowed just one pressure across 70 total snaps, while Willis allowed zero in 36.
8. Penn State Nittany Lions
The Nittany Lions’ offensive line allowed just 12.0 sacks a season ago. The group was headlined by elite left tackle Olu Fashanu, who allowed seven pressures and 0 sacks across 542 total snaps. Caedan Wallace is the clubhouse leader on the right side after a solid-but-unspectacular redshirt junior season, when he gave up 12 pressures and a sack while posting a 55.6 run-blocking grade.
Left guard Landon Tengwall and center Hunter Nourzad gave up 12 pressures each while playing 278 and 574 snaps, respectively.
Right guard Sal Wormley struggled the most out of the group, ceding team-highs in pressures (25) and sacks (4.0). However, he posted Penn State’s best run-blocking grade among returnees at 62.5.
Redshirt freshman guard Vega Ioane should see the field more often in 2023. In 40 snaps played last season, he posted Penn State’s second-highest pass-blocking grade (83.2).
7. LSU Tigers
The future of LSU’s offensive line lies with upcoming sophomore tackles Will Campbell and Emery Jones. Campbell played 882 snaps at left tackle and allowed 14 pressures and 2.0 sacks. Jones wasn’t as stable on the right side, ceding 39 pressures and 5.0 sacks, but progressed as the season. After allowing a sack in five-straight games from Weeks 5-10, Jones kept the quarterback clean over LSU’s final five outings, posting three of his five highest-graded games from a pass-blocking standpoint.
Outside of the two freshmen, the Tigers returned its starting trio in the middle. Miles Frazier is a safe bet to retain that left guard spot after posting a strong 73.0 pass-blocking grade. The same goes for center Charles Turner and right guard Garrett Dellinger. Turner ceded 16 pressures and 3.0 sacks, while Dellinger finished asLSU’s highest-graded pass-blocker along the offensive line (83.6).
FIve-star Zalance Heard and Maryland transfer Mason Lunsford add quality depth and spot-starting capability at tackle.
6. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Notre Dame consistently rolls out some of the nation’s top offensive lines, and 2023 is no different. Left tackle Joe Alt graded out as the best bookend in the country last season (91.4 overall) and returns to solidify himself as a top 10 NFL Draft pick next spring.
Former 4-star prospect Billy Schrauth is slotted to take over at left guard, while Andrew Kristofic looks to anchor right guard. Kristofic only played 63 snaps last year and allowed one pressure.
Center Zeke Correll was reliable and should develop a quick rapport with new quarterback Sam Hartman. He played every snap last season (887) and allowed 13 pressures and one sack.
Right tackle Blake Fisher finished as the highest-graded run-blocker on the team at 71.8 and allowed 13 pressures and one sack across 887 snaps.
5. Oregon State Beavers
Josh Gray is back for another season at left tackle, where he made significant strides as a redshirt sophomore last season. Gray allowed multiple pressures in four of his first five games but tightened it up down the stretch, ceding more than one in just two of the Beavers’ final eight games (Arizona State, Florida). He was an elite run-blocker, grading out at 85.1.
Slotting in next to Gray is Heneli Bloomfield at left guard. Bloomfield allowed 12 pressures and a sack across 505 pass-blocking snaps last season. He will be pushed, however, by Nevada transfer Grant Starck, who posted an 80.3 pass-blocking grade (20 pressures, 3.0 sacks, 859 snaps) playing primarily left tackle last season.
Starck is also in contention at right guard behind incumbent Marco Brewer, who graded out as the Beavers’ worst pass-blocker last season (54.7).
Center Jake Levengood (80.1 RBLK, 77.6 PBLK) should contend for all-conference honors entering his last season in Corvallis.
Tali Fuaga, a second-team Pac-12 selection, was the best of the bunch last season. Fauga finished with the highest overall grade of any Oregon State lineman (80.4), allowing 11 pressures and 0 sacks across 810 snaps. He enters his junior season on NFL Draft radars.
4. Alabama Crimson Tide
Alabama’s offensive line is back to being a strength of the team. JC Latham established himself as one of the best right tackles in the nation last season and graded out as an elite pass-blocker (84.6). He allowed 12 pressures and 0 sacks across 875 total snaps.
On the interior, The Crimson Tide returns right guard Tyler Booker, who graded out as one of the nation’s best pass-blockers (89.1), allowing five pressures and 0 sacks across 429 snaps. Center Seth McLaughlin is also back after an equally impressive finish in the run (77.5) and pass (75.0) game. Darrian Dalcourt is back for a fifth season and is the favorite to start at left guard. He makes the move from center, where he ceded six pressures and 0 sacks across 299 snaps.
Elijah Pritchett allowed a couple of sacks during the spring game and finds himself in a battle with 5-star Kadyn Proctor at left tackle.
3. Texas Longhorns
Texas returns all five starters along the offensive line, including former 5-star Kelvin Banks, who allowed 12 pressures and 4.0 sacks across 858 snaps as a freshman last season. He’s poised to develop into a top NFL Draft prospect over the next two seasons.
Right Tackle Christian Jones finished as the team’s best run-blocker at 70.7 and allowed 12 pressures and 3.0 sacks across 877 total snaps.
Left guard Hayden Conner (53.4) and right guard Cole Hutson (49.3) registered the lowest overall grades among Texas’ offensive line. Upcoming sophomore DJ Campbell could push Hutson. Campbell graded out as the Longhorns' top pass-blocker (83.1) after allowing 0 pressures and sacks across 129 total snaps.
Center Jake Majors posted a phenomenal 81.9 pass-blocking grade, ceding 10 pressures and one sack across 860 snaps.
2. Georgia Bulldogs
Georgia lost its two starting tackles from a season ago and is still near the top of these rankings, speaking to the Bulldogs’ depth of talent and developmental staff. Former 4-star, top-60 recruit Earnest Greene appears to be the clubhouse leader on the left side after spring ball while Amarius Mims is holding court on the right. Mims started the two Playoff games, allowing just two pressures and 0 sacks in 97 total snaps.
The Bulldogs return all three starting interior linemen. Center Sedrick Van Pan was elite last season, allowing 12 pressures and 0 sacks in 972 overall snaps while grading out strong in the run game. Right guard Tate Ratledge was the team’s highest-graded pass-blocker at 87.1 and allowed just six pressures across 844 snaps. Left guard Xavier Truss was the “weak link” in pass protection, allowing 14 pressures. However, he had the second-highest run-blocking grade of any starting offensive lineman (68.9) behind Mims.
1. Michigan Wolverines
Michigan solidified left tackle with Arizona State transfer LaDarius Henderson, who allowed three pressures and one sack across 361 snaps with the Sun Devils last season. He’s battling Jeff Persi for the starting nod, and we expect him to win it. Persi allowed four pressures in 146 snaps last year and was the Wolverines’ lowest-graded run blocker (37.2).
Trevor Keegan and Zak Zinter are back at left and right guard, respectively. Zinter was elite last season, allowing nine pressures across 918 snaps and grading out as the Wolverines’ best-returning run-blocker (74.9).
Michigan lost one of the nation’s best centers in Olusegun Oluwatimi but added Stanford transfer Drake Nugent to battle Raheem Anderson and Greg Crippen. Nugent allowed 10 pressures and 4.0 sacks across 822 snaps for the Cardinal last season while securing an elite 84.1 run-blocking grade.
The reigning back-to-back Joe Moore Award winners should contend for a three-peat this upcoming season.
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