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It’s hard to believe, but there are only three active college football coaches that have won a national championship. With the retirement of Nick Saban from Alabama, only Clemson’s Dabo Swinney, Georgia’s Kirby Smart and now Ohio State’s Ryan Day have raised the big trophy at the end of the season.
The odds are that group will grow in 2025. So which coach will be first to make it a foursome? Blake Toppmeyer of USA TODAY Sports has a list of who he thinks are the six most likely candidates. He has ranked Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian No. 1.
James Franklin of Penn State, Marcus Freeman of Notre Dame, Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer, LSU’s Brian Kelly and Dan Lanning of Oregon also made the list. But Toppmeyer says Sark is the best bet.
Nobody better positioned himself to join the list of national champions than Sarkisian. Texas is back, folks. No more sarcasm in that statement after the Longhorns reached the College Football Playoff semifinals in consecutive seasons.
Like Day, Sarkisian magnetizes talent. Coaches who consistently build elite rosters – see Nick Saban, Kirby Smart – give themselves the most opportunities for a national championship. That brings us to Sarkisian. A recruiting maestro, he signed the nation’s No. 1-ranked class to pair with an enviable roster led by quarterback Arch Manning.
Sarkisian proved himself an excellent quarterback developer. Add in Texas’ NIL war chest, and Sarkisian positioned the Longhorns to be an annual contender. The possibility of an NFL return rests in the backdrop of Sarkisian’s tenure, but, even if that happens, Sarkisian might deliver a national championship before he departs. Ohio State, Texas, Oregon and Georgia rank among the favorites to win this next national championship.
So, who will turn three into four? Sarkisian, Lanning, or … maybe no one, for a…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/usa-today-sports-names-texas-233804498.html
Author : Longhorns Wire
Publish date : 2025-02-17 23:38:00
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