It’s that time of year again, folks.
With the Associated Press dropping its preseason top 25 poll for the upcoming college football season, we finally know who the top dogs are expected to be.
The top 10, in order:
- Georgia Bulldogs (SEC)
- Ohio State Buckeyes (Big Ten)
- Oregon Ducks (Big Ten)
- Texas Longhorns (SEC)
- Alabama Crimson Tide (SEC)
- Ole Miss Rebels (SEC)
- Notre Dame Fighting Irish (Independent)
- Penn State Nittany Lions (Big Ten)
- Michigan Wolverines (Big Ten)
- Florida State Seminoles (ACC)
Many of these teams play each other, as well as other ranked opponents, throughout the season in either non-conference or conference bouts. Everyone will highlight those games on their calendar as must-watch and the games that can determine a team’s season.
However, there are also trap games on a team’s schedule that can just as equally impact a team’s postseason chances, if not more so. For any rookies out there reading this, a trap game is when a highly ranked team overlooks a weaker opponent they are expected to beat, and the weaker opponent pulls out the win.
Let’s dive into each preseason top-10 team’s biggest trap game on their schedule.
#1 Georgia Bulldogs: Trap Game (9/14 @ Kentucky)
The Georgia Bulldogs have a gauntlet of a schedule to get through en route to another SEC Championship game. The Bulldogs open the season vs. #15 Clemson and then travel to Tuscaloosa to face #5 Alabama, with first-year HC Kalen Deboer, in Week 5. The Bulldogs also make trips to Austin to face #4 Texas and Oxford to face #6 Ole Miss as well as host #15 Tennessee.
The Alabama game is certainly marked on the Bulldogs schedule considering what happened last year. The Crimson Tide cost Georgia the chance at a 3rd straight Natty and College Football immortality.
Therefore, the Bulldogs will want to absolutely crush Alabama, especially in Tuscaloosa. This paves the way for their Week 3 matchup against the Kentucky Wildcats, in Lexington, to be quite interesting. Kentucky, which made it to as high as #20 in last year’s rankings, will start Georgia-transfer QB Brock Vandagriff, which is another tasty storyline to follow.
While Georgia is slated to face far better competition, the Wildcats in Week 3 are an interesting matchup for a Bulldog team that might already be looking ahead to Week 5 in Tuscaloosa.
#2 Ohio State Buckeyes: Trap Game (10/26 vs. Nebraska)
The cornhuskers baby!!! That is right, the Nebraska Cornhuskers, under 2nd year HC Matt Rhule, very well could shock the world in Columbus in October. Led by true freshman QB Dylan Raiola (#11 in ESPN Recruiting Class of 2024), Nebraska received 16 votes in the current AP Top 25 and have a great chance of going into Columbus and shaking things up.
Ohio State will travel to Eugene and face the #3 Oregon Ducks on 10/12 and then travel to face the #8 Penn State Nittany Lions on 11/2. Penn State and James Franklin never fail to disappoint come November but the Ducks are a different breed. Led by Oklahoma-transfer QB and Vegas’s favorite to win the Heisman in Dillon Gabriel, the Ducks are going to be on Ohio State’s mind all September.
Depending on what happens in Eugene, Ohio State will either be riding a surreal high with a win or looking to re-group and secure a resume-building win, which Penn State would be.
They’ll overlook Nebraska due to where they fall in their schedule. The perfect opportunity for the Cornhuskers.
#3 Oregon Ducks: Trap Game (9/7 vs. Boise State)
The Ducks will Duck. Every year they drop a game that they shouldn’t and end up missing the CFP because of it. With the expansion to the 12-team playoff format this year, that is less likely to happen. But it still could. And if the Ducks were to miss the playoffs again, it will not be because of a loss to Ohio State or Michigan. It will be because of an early-September loss to the Boise State Broncos from the MWC.
Oregon will head to Corvallis to face their in-state rival Oregon State the week after (9/14) and although they’re no longer in the same conference, in-state rivalry games just mean more.
Boise State, who received 47 votes in the AP Top 25 poll, has a chance to put a win on their resume that will be very difficult to ignore come resume time for the non Power Four Conference Champions. Teams like Boise State, coming from non-power conferences, need to take advantage of opportunities like this and with the Beavers on deck for the Ducks the next week, who knows what could happen.
#4 Texas Longhorns: Trap Game (11/16 @ Arkansas)
Texas is… BACK!? The Longhorns return to the preseason top 5 for the first time since 2010 (#5), which is also the last time they went to a National Championship game. Texas, in their 1st season as a member of the SEC, has a more favorable schedule than most of their fellow SEC members. They travel to Ann Arbor to face the defending champs in Week 2 and then host the #1 ranked Georgia Bulldogs a week after they play #16 Oklahoma in the Red River Showdown.
Outside of those 3 games, Texas has a real good chance to run the table, even without their projected RB1 CJ Baxter.
The Longhorns will renew their rivalry with hated in-state rival Texas A&M on 11/30 at College Station. This will be the first time Texas has played the Aggies since 2011, where Texas won 27-25 on a last second FG.
There are very few teams Longhorn fans want Texas to beat more than the Aggies. And the Longhorns themselves surely feel the same way. Therefore, they could very well overlook the renewal of another long-standing rivalry they had with the Arkansas Razorbacks.
The Longhorns will travel to Fayetteville on 11/16 to face an Arkansas team that will definitely be overlooked in the SEC. Coming in at #29 in RJ Young’s Ultimate 134 CFB Rankings, there is no reason to assume that Texas will win this game.
#5 Alabama Crimson Tide: Trap Game (9/14 @ Wisconsin)
In their first season without Nick Saban, Alabama should still be very, very good. The Tide return starting QB and heisman-hopeful Jalen Milroe and pair him with Kalen Deboer. After seeing what Deboer did with Michael Penix Jr. at Washington, it should be exciting to see what kind of player Milroe can be under Deboer.
Alabama, similar to Georgia, has a gauntlet of a schedule. They face trips to #15 Tennessee, #13 LSU and #16 Oklahoma while also hosting #11 Missouri and #1 Georgia.
The Tide will face Georgia on 9/28, but 2 weeks before they have to travel to Madison to take on the Wisconsin Badgers. Wisconsin, who received 15 votes in the current AP poll, will look to add a key non-conference win to their resume before conference play starts. Facing a top-5 Alabama team at home, with a new HC, is the perfect chance for Luke Fickell’s squad.
Wisconsin, with Senior transfer QB Tyler Van Dyke (via Miami Hurricanes), will be no scrub match for Alabama.
#6 Ole Miss Rebels: Trap Game (11/23 @ Florida)
Will this finally be the year Lane Kiffin’s Rebels Squad make it to the CFP? With the expansion, it’s certainly possible. Ole Miss, with their highest preseason ranking since 1970 (#5), will entrust star QB Jaxson Dart to replicate and exceed his 2023 stats as Ole Miss dukes it out with the best of the best in the SEC.
Ole Miss, similar to Texas, has a pretty favorable conference schedule. Their toughest game will be either 10/12 @ LSU or 11/9 vs Georgia. They also have a pitiful non-conference schedule (Furman, MTSU & GA Southern) and will need to boost their resume with every game they can.
With the Georgia matchup coming on 11/9, the Rebels could very well be coming off an impressive win, and a bye week, as they travel down to Gainesville to take on the Florida Gators. Florida, ranked #43 on RJ Young’s 134, will rely on 5-star Freshman QB DJ Lagway to lead them into battle. With this game coming toward the tail-end of the season, Lagway could have enough experience under his belt to make the game interesting and even give the Gators a chance.
#7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Trap Game (9/14 @ Purdue)
Notre Dame is always interesting. With the expansion of the playoffs, it will be easier for the committee to include a team like Notre Dame that does not belong to a conference and therefore cannot be a conference champion.
Notre Dame’s schedule includes 3 key matchups: @ Texas A&M (8/31), vs. Florida State (11/9) & @ USC (11/30). Notre Dame does not play Ohio State or Clemson this year and therefore can pretty easily run the table with little resistance.
Their matchup at Purdue on 9/14 could prove interesting because Purdue loves beating good teams. Purdue has more wins against top-2 teams as an unranked opponent (which they currently are) than any another FBS team. They love madness and can pull off these upsets at home as well as on the road.
Notre Dame will be led by Duke-transfer QB Riley Leonard who, with some transfer-growing pains, could lead to an interesting matchup in September.
#8 Penn State Nittany Lions: Trap Game (10/12 @ USC)
The time is now or never for James Franklin at Penn State. It’s time to win the big games. With Jim Harbaugh out at Michigan, Penn State has the perfect opportunity to overtake the Wolverines and fight for Big Ten, and National, Championships.
Penn State will avoid facing the Oregon Ducks until, at the earliest, their conference championship game. And they will also avoid playing Michigan during the regular season. Outside of hosting Ohio State on 11/2, Penn State has a very favorable schedule.
They will host Big-Ten newcomers UCLA and Washington while taking a trip out west to face off against the USC Trojans. In their first season without QB Caleb Williams, Lincoln Riley and the Trojans will turn to QB Miller Moss to lead them back to the playoffs. Moss turned in an impressive performance in USC’s bowl game last year and could continue the trend after a full offseason of practicing as USC’s QB1.
Two of the most storied and iconic college football programs of all time, from different coasts, facing off in October in a conference game? Sign me up and let’s see what happens.
#9 Michigan Wolverines: Trap Game (10/5 @ Washington)
If there is any team that wants to beat Michigan, besides Ohio State, it is probably Washington. The defending champion Michigan Wolverines absolutely embarrassed Washington in last year’s National Championship game.
However, both teams will look a lot different this year. New HC’s (Michigan – Sherrone Moore, Washington – Jedd Fisch) and starting QBs (Michigan – Alex Orji, Washington – Will Rogers) are just the tip of the iceberg for the two programs.
While Michigan hosts #4 Texas and #3 Oregon, and travels to face #2 Ohio State, they don’t have to win all those games to make a case for a playoff spot. However, they will have to beat everyone else, including Washington.
#10 Florida State Seminoles: Trap Game (9/28 @ SMU)
Arguably the most controversial exclusion from the 4-team CFP in the 4-team format’s history, the Florida State Seminoles will look for redemption in 2024. They’ll be led by new QB and Oregon State transfer DJ Uiagalelei, in to replace Jordan Travis.
Florida State, with trips planned to visit #19 Miami & #7 Notre Dame while hosting #14 Clemson, will have their hands full again this year.
One team they play this year that they did not play last year are the SMU Mustangs, who will be entering their first year as members of the ACC. Therefore, not a lot of familiarity between the two teams that could work in SMU’s favor.
Florida State is the only ranked team currently on SMU’s schedule and is therefore the perfect opportunity for the Mustangs to boost their resume.
With Clemson coming into town the following week, I would not find it surprising if Florida State finds themselves in a dog-fight with SMU come September 28th.
