CBS Sports releases Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2024 following College Football Playoff National Championship
The 2023 college football season officially ended on Monday night when Michigan knocked off Washington to claim the national championship. And while there’s a long way to go until the 2024 season begins, it’s never too early to start looking ahead, in the form of a top 25.
CBS Sports has gone ahead and put together a “way-too-early” top 25 based on what we know about teams right now. Obviously things can change, with personnel still fluid with the transfer portal humming and spring football likely to introduce even more change.
Still, let’s break down the list from CBS Sports, which includes a familiar program back at the top. Here we go.
1. Georgia Bulldogs
The challenge for a team like Georgia is always being able to replace the insane amount of departing talent with players on par. The Bulldogs did that this year when Carson Beck took over for Stetson Bennett IV and made the transition look rather seamless.
Now there’s far less a question mark at quarterback as Beck returns, potentially for a Heisman-level campaign. The defense should also return the bulk of its talent, which makes Georgia once again an instant contender in 2024.
2. Alabama Crimson Tide
Like Georgia, Alabama has the luxury of a returning starting quarterback in Jalen Milroe, though it wouldn’t be the most surprising thing in the world to see Nick Saban open up the competition a touch. Milroe was elite when he was on, but he’s got a long way to go to establish better consistency.
Perhaps the biggest question for Alabama will be replacing some key defensive talent, including a good bit from the pass rush and the secondary. That said, Alabama recruits really, really well, so that’s rarely an issue.
3. Michigan Wolverines
Michigan is another team loaded with talent, but the obvious question mark about their placement this high is whether Jim Harbaugh will still be around next fall. For CBS Sports’ purposes in making this way-too-early top 25, Harbaugh staying is the current outlook.
That said, even quarterback JJ McCarthy will have a decision to make when it comes to the NFL Draft. He had a strong season, though it remains to be seen if NFL teams would prefer him to open it up a bit more. That could happen next fall if the ground game loses some key parts.
4. Oregon Ducks
The Ducks were a hair away from the College Football Playoffs in 2023, really only failing to get there because they couldn’t figure out Washington. But it’s clear coach Dan Lanning has an excellent system in place and his program is going to be competitive for a long time.
Quarterback Bo Nix and top running back Bucky Irving are gone, and the offense will have have a few other players to replace. Still, Dillon Gabriel and Dante Moore are coming in via the transfer portal and Lanning has recruited well. Oregon should be strong yet again.
5. Ole Miss Rebels
The Rebels lost one of their key playmakers when running back Quinshon Judkins hit the NCAA transfer portal, but the program still returns plenty of firepower. Quarterback Jaxson Dart and receiver Tre Harris are two of the best at their respective positions in the SEC.
Couple that with all the defensive talent that Ole Miss has added in the NCAA transfer portal — Florida‘s Princely Umanmielen, Tennessee‘s Tyler Baron and Texas A&M‘s Walter Nolen, to name a few — and the Rebels should be poised to make a run at a it all in 2024. It’s a loaded squad.
6. Ohio State Buckeyes
The Buckeyes will be starting over offensively in a lot of ways, with a handful of key contributors departing the program this offseason, including quarterback Kyle McCord. Incoming Kansas State transfer Will Howard is supposed to steady the ship somewhat.
The rest is going to be up to Ohio State’s recruiting, which has been excellent for the past several years under Ryan Day. Talent won’t be the issue for the Buckeyes; chemistry might be.
7. Texas Longhorns
Texas will have to retool its receiver room after being carried by the likes of Xavier Worthy and company the past few seasons. Still, the fact that quarterback Quinn Ewers opted to return for the 2024 campaign is a huge lift to Texas’ early top 25 placement.
It will be interesting to see how Texas manages things at quarterback next fall, as the Longhorns may feel compelled to get Arch Manning some more playing time in 2024. That could add some new wrinkles to the offense. As a whole, though, Texas has a well-rounded roster with a lot of talent.
8. Missouri Tigers
Missouri will have its hands full replacing the nation’s leading rusher in tailback Cody Schrader. But quarterback Brady Cook and electric receiver Luther Burden being back should definitely help.
If the Tigers are going to prove they’re for real, they’ll have to replicate last year’s success. It’s certainly doable, as coach Eli Drinkwitz has raised the bar for Missouri recruiting while also doing quite well in the transfer portal. Still, it’ll be a tall task in the expanded SEC.
9. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
For the second straight year Notre Dame has dipped into the ACC quarterback pipeline and this time plucked out Duke‘s Riley Leonard to lead the team next fall. When healthy he’s an elite dual-threat option that should give the Fighting Irish a bit more versatility offensively.
As CBS Sports notes in its top 25 ranking, the schedule is also a major factor in picking Notre Dame as a top 10 team. It’s really, really weak. That actually could be a bad thing in the 12-team playoff, as the Fighting Irish may not be able to survive multiple slip-ups.
10. Arizona Wildcats
The biggest upstart on this list — over even Missouri — Arizona has suddenly lurched into the public consciousness after a 10-win season in 2023. Coach Jedd Fisch has the program on an almost vertical trajectory since taking over.
Perhaps more impressive, Arizona now has a quarterback it can really rely on in Noah Fifita. Good enough to make a run at the College Football Playoff in 2024? Possibly. He’s on early Heisman Trophy watch lists.
Way-Too-Early Top 25, 11-25
11. Oklahoma Sooners
12. LSU Tigers
13. Utah Utes
14. Tennessee Volunteers
15. Washington Huskies
16. Penn State Nittany Lions
17. Kansas State Wildcats
18. SMU Mustangs
19. Florida State Seminoles
20. Kansas Jayhawks
21. Clemson Tigers
22. NC State Wolfpack
23. Oklahoma State Cowboys
24. Texas A&M Aggies
25. Louisville Cardinals
The rest of the top 25 is littered with potential contenders, with some familiar faces from the past few years hovering just outside the top 10. Oklahoma and LSU, the first two teams on the list, will have to break in a new starting quarterback after watching a superstar depart following the 2023 season.
For others, replacing various playmakers will be key. A few of the teams with returning quarterbacks include Penn State, Kansas State and Kansas. Others, like Tennessee, will be breaking in new five-star starters who are being counted on to do quite a lot next fall. In any case, it’s a solid group for an early top 25, though one that will likely shift as rosters continue to take shape over the coming months.
There you have it, your early look at the top 25, courtesy of CBS Sports. Before long football will be back and we’ll be having all new debates, as a new 12-team playoff format begins in the fall.