Way-Too-Early NCAAF Predictions & Future Bets to Make:

Football is right around the corner and it's never too early to start thinking about the upcoming campaign. After consecutive winning NCAAF seasons, I'm expecting even more greatness to take place this year  Here are my "Way-Too-Early NCAAF Predictions & Future Bets to Make:" for the 2026-27 season. 

Alabama Crimson Tide (11-4 in 2025-26) After falling short of the playoff in 2024-25, Alabama responded by not only making it, but beating Oklahoma on the road in 2025-26 in it's first 12-team playoff game. This season, the Crimson Tide look to make even more headways with an elite secondary and an underrated offense. Keelon Russell, is likely to be the QB this season. He's a former 5-star recruit out of High School & considering what Ty Simpson was able to accomplish a year ago, I think that he could turn some heads this season. While I do believe that the Tide are slightly overlooked this season, don't be shocked if they have a similar record to last year here in '26/'27

Texas Longhorns (10-3 in 2025-26) The Longhorns didn't begin last season as they hoped for with a 3-2 record over there opening five games, one of those losses being against a 4-8 Florida team. Texas barely missed out on a playoff spot because of that, but finished the season with a 7-1 record over its final eight games for lots of confidence. This season, I do expect the Longhorns to get into the 12-team playoff. Playing in the SEC, it's obviously going to be a difficult path to get there. But, avoiding both Alabama & Georgia while getting Oklahoma/Ole Miss at home should most definitely help. 

North Texas (12-2 in 2025-26) Last season, North Texas was among the top group-of-5 teams in College Football. With a 12-2 record on the season, the Mean Green were very close at reaching the CFP for the first time. That being said, they should see a drop off this season given that a lot of the top players from last year's team have either moved on or transferred to Oklahoma State with head coach Eric Morris (who made the move in the offseason.) I don't expect the Mean Green to reach rock bottom or anything. But, I do expect a rather average season from them this campaign. 

South Carolina Gamecocks (4-8 in 2025-26) Last season, South Carolina had a heartbreak when LaNorris Sellers went down against Vanderbilt. Not having him for the end of that game didn't help SC whatsoever for the remainder of the year. While Sellers did play, he wasn't the same. He returns for another season in 2026-27 & I expect much better from the Gamecocks. However, like I said with the Texas Longhorns, playing an SEC schedule is never going to be easy. So, expect them to finish around the 5-to-7 win mark here this time around. 

Virginia Tech Hokies (3-9 in 2025-26) With James Franklin taking over at Head Coach for this upcoming season, Virginia Tech should feel much more comfortable. I don't think it was fair for him to be let go by the Nittany Lions at all, considering his record for the program. But, with a fresh start here in the ACC that's much weaker than it has been, expect Virginia Tech to make some noise. It was a busy offseason for the Hokies who added Ethan Grunkemeyer/Luke Reynolds, both transfers from Penn State's team last year. Que'Sean Brown gives Grunkmeyer a big-time receiving threat as well. Considering the opening seven games for VT, expect at least a bowl game for the Hokies in Franklin's first year coaching, with a definite chance of making even more noise. 

Dante Moore (+1000)
CJ Carr (+700)
Arch Manning (+750)
Gunnar Stockton (+1900)
Julian Sayin (+1200)
Marcell Reed (+2500)
Jeremiah Smith (+1400)
John Mateer (+2500)
Sam Leavitt (+2000)
Keelon Russell (+2800)

Even though last season was a bit of a disappointment for Arch Manning, who was the pre-season favorite to win this award, he did finish the year very strong giving him a strong case to be in the conversation again. ND's CJ Carr is this year's favorite at the moment. While that could be a bit of a surprise to some, he's going to have elite players at every position around him making him as comfortable as any QB will be in the country this season. But, I'm going to go a different route. Dante Moore had a great year in 2025-26 & expects even better numbers this season. Oregon's got the 3rd best odds to win the National Championship at the moment & with Moore at the helm, there's no question that it could be a possibility. If you're looking for a guy with plenty of value down the line a bit, Marcell Reed/John Mateer both showed flashes of greatness, if you will, last season and should be poised for even bigger campaigns this time around. 

1. ) Oregon Ducks (+750 // To Win The National Championship)
2. ) Dante Moore (+1000 // To Win The Heisman Trophy) 

While I have some explaining to do here, picking two Oregon Futures. Firstly I picked Moore to win the Heisman in the previous section of this article & I believe that there's an amazing amount of value here with this one. He is one of the favorites to win this trophy this season and for good reasoning. Moore was expected to be a first round selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, but decided to come back to school for another year. Coming off a season with 3,565 passing yards + 30 TD's through the air, he's only going to get better this season. With an elite receiving core, Oregon should be among the best teams in College Football this season. The Ducks also have one of the best DLine's & Secondary's in the country coming into the year. Each of those things should help solidify Moore as one of the best players, making him a perfect candidate for the Heisman Trophy in 2026 (as long as he doesn't get hurt.) 

After going 0-8 inside the conference last season, I'm not expecting much once again from the Arkansas Razorbacks in 2026-27. Here's Arkansas' SEC schedule: UGA, @TAMU, TEN, @VAN, MIS, @AUB, SC, @TEX & LSU. Considering that schedule, I'd be shocked if the Razorbacks win more than two conference games this season. Missouri/South Carolina at home are the two most likely sources of wins. But, I don't expect both of those to happen, if any. 

4.) Georgia Bulldogs (-180 // OVER 9.5 REGULAR SEASON WINS)

Last season, Georgia finished with 11 regular season wins, losing just once to Alabama. With the difficult SEC schedule, it's always going to be tough to go undefeated. However, Kirby Smart has proven time and time again that his Bulldogs are always going to be among the best teams in College Football. Last year was the 5th consecutive year with 10+ regular season wins with the 2020 season being cut short due to Covid-19. I expect another season of greatness from Georgia, in the regular season & in the CFP. 

5.) Notre Dame (+160 // OVER 11.5 REGULAR SEASON WINS)

As my only wins o/u (totals) at plus money, I believe that this is one that YOU MUST BET before the odds move. Winning more than 11.5 games during the regular season means that a team must finish a perfect 12-0 in the regular season. Considering the roster, I believe that the Fighting Irish should be among the very best in the entire country. The schedule isn't exactly challenging either with it's toughest games against Wisconsin (4-8 in '25-'26,) @BYU (12-2 in '25-'26,) Miami (13-3 in '25-'26) & SMU (9-4 in '25-'26.) Those final two should be the hardest. But, at home in those games, give me Notre Dame to finish the regular season undefeated at this price. 

Oregon vs. Ohio State.
30-23 Oregon.