Saturday Football news staff predicts 2023 CFP, National Championship Game
The time has come! Though Week 0 action started the 2023 college football season last weekend, the first full slate of games kicks off Thursday night!
As fans rejoice as college football returns to dominate our weekends, the Saturday Football news staff has weighed in with projections for the College Football Playoff and National Championship Game. Georgia enters Week 1 as the 2-time defending national champion in search of an ultra-rare 3-peat, but a number of teams stand poised to challenge for the title.
Without further ado, here are the staff picks for the Playoff, and be sure to scroll down for title game predictions and rationale:
Spenser Davis
CFP: Alabama vs. Ohio State, Georgia vs. USC
NC: Georgia over Alabama
Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State have all proven themselves on this level before. I think this is the year USC gets over the hump and I doubt Michigan can sustain its recent level of success after such a chaotic offseason. Florida State and Clemson were also considered.
Keith Farner
CFP: Georgia vs. Clemson, Michigan vs. Washington
NC: Michigan over Georgia
Jim Harbaugh puts a finger in the eye of the NCAA as he climbs to the podium — with still-pressed khakis — amid confetti falling from the sky in Houston. The Wolverines live up to the preseason hype with a roster brimming with NFL talent, and will set an NFL Draft record later in the spring. JJ McCarthy makes enough clutch plays in the second half and outduels Carson Beck as Georgia fans quickly wonder why they didn’t appreciate Stetson Bennett more as the Minnesota teams from the 1930s retain their place in 3-peat championship history. The weight of history is too much for Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs.
Paul Harvey
CFP: Ohio State vs. USC, Alabama vs. Clemson
NC: Ohio State over Alabama
How quickly we can forget that OSU, Alabama and Clemson were annual mainstays in the Playoff. Dabo Swinney making the swift move to nab Garrett Riley gets the Tigers back on the right path this fall, while a pair of non-sexy coordinator additions help Nick Saban’s program return to its previous toughness. Somehow, Caleb Williams defies the odds of playing alongside the Trojan defense to get into the Playoff. As for the Buckeyes, Ryan Day has enough veteran pieces and will channel the aggressiveness he found in the Peach Bowl to regain the B1G — and secure his first title in the process.
Andrew Olson
CFP: Georgia vs. Michigan, Ohio State vs. Clemson
NC: Georgia over Ohio State
Party like it’s 2021 in the Peach State: Atlanta wins the World Series and Georgia takes the College Football Playoff. Dabo Swinney’s squad feeds off the Florida State hype and returns to the CFP as ACC champion, but the Tigers don’t quite have the Jimmy and Joeys to keep up with B1G champion Ohio State. The Game is Michigan’s only regular-season loss, which allows the Wolverines to make the Playoff as No. 4. The B1G’s top teams don’t have an SEC problem, they have a Georgia problem. UGA’s talent + coaching = 3-peat.
Derek Peterson
CFP: Georgia vs. Clemson, Michigan vs. LSU
NC: Michigan over Clemson
It’s been said that Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan teams have been built to beat Ohio State of late and not to win a national title. I’ve long been in Harbaugh’s corner, and I think this is the year he kicks that narrative. There’s a reason the last three-peat happened 90 years ago. It’s hard to do, even in this modern game. Clemson’s “bad” year still featured a seventh ACC title in eight years and an 11-win season, and now the Tigers have a top-flight OC and a dynamic backfield.
Adam Spencer
CFP: Georgia vs. Florida State, Ohio State vs. LSU
NC: Georgia over LSU
That’s right, we’re going to get an all-SEC national title game. And it’s going to be a rematch of an exciting SEC Championship Game! For the second year in a row, I believe Georgia will top LSU in Atlanta. This time, though, the Tigers will avoid an early season loss to Florida State and can sneak into the CFP field even with a loss to Georgia. Florida State will rebound after a Week 1 loss to run the table in the ACC. Ohio State’s NFL-ready talent finally gets the Buckeyes back on track against Michigan, sending them to the Playoff, where they’ll once again fall in the semifinals. It’s Georgia’s world. We’re all just living in it.
Ethan Stone
CFP: Georgia vs. Michigan, Ohio State vs. USC
NC: Georgia over Ohio State
My picks are chalk, I know, but it’s chalk for a reason. Georgia should have a cakewalk to the CFP, and Ohio State has too much talent across the board to lose twice during the regular season. However, I do have the Buckeyes dropping to Michigan in The Game for the 3rd straight year thanks to a Michigan offense running behind a downright brutal O-line. And that’s not even mentioning the Wolverines’ top 3 defense in the country. As for USC, I’m not sure you can deny the reigning Heisman a trip to the playoff 2 years in a row, even despite Alex Grinch’s best attempts to the contrary.
