Ten storylines I'm excited for in the 2026 season

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As much as I love solely making throwback content on the site during the offseason, we're at the point where it's time to start diving into what awaits us four months from now. With most teams either in the middle of –or wrapping up– Spring ball, I thought now would be a good time to give you ten storylines I'm looking forward to following during the 2026 season. Enjoy!

1. Can USC back up their big offseason talk?

It's been a loud offseason in Los Angeles. Moments after bungling the Alamo Bowl against TCU, Lincoln Riley made sure to let us all know that the last four seasons of not winning a conference title, not making the playoff, blowing up the Pac-12, ducking out of one of the sport's greatest rivalries, and compiling 15 losses since 2023 were all just a precursor to the championship glory awaiting the Trojans:

To his credit, USC is finally moving how a program with championship aspirations should. They've improved the staff around Riley, their NIL approach, and their support system overall. They just brought in a stacked recruiting class and are as talented and physical (on paper) as they've been in the Riley era. If there's any time for them to win, it's now. The interesting part is they're already talking like they've achieved the on-field results for their offseason efforts, especially on social media.

The main recipient of SC's jabs has been Oregon. First, there was the video of a USC staffer spray-painting a patch of grass cardinal after winning a recruiting battle against the Ducks. The "Guess the grass wasn't always greener," text at the end alludes to a, "The grass is damn green in Eugene" quote from Lanning a few years back:

They followed that up with this post a few days later, after flipping a 2027 Oregon commit:

Even a seemingly innocuous video touting the benefits of attending USC was randomly filled with shots at both Oregon and Notre Dame - programs the Trojans are 1-6 against in Riley's tenure:

I love some good social media shit-talking, so I'm not here to admonish USC for popping off if that's what they want to do. Just know that it's put a bullseye on the back of a team –and head coach– who haven't accomplished much since Riley's arrival. The pieces are in place for USC to finally make a run, as is a schedule that only features Oregon, Ohio State, and Indiana:

If the Trojans ultimately fail to pay off their big talk, I have a strong feeling that Riley won't be in LA to bear the brunt of the receipt.

2. The Lane Kiffin Hate Tour

I tip my cap to the SEC for making LSU's schedule as dramatic as they possibly could in Lane Kiffin's debut season. Showdowns with Alabama, Texas, and Texas A&M in Baton Rouge are all high-profile matchups that everyone in the country will pay attention to. Somehow, they aren't even the ones I'm most excited for! The Tigers travel to both Ole Miss and Tennessee - places that have a particular disdain for LSU's head coach for some reason.

You think it's coincidence that LSU's SEC opener (September 19) is in Oxford, against the program Kiffin so publicly left four months ago? Or that their visit to Knoxville (November 21) is randomly their first since 2017? Remember this from Kiffin's last appearance in Neyland Stadium?

I'm not advocating for any Ole Miss or Tennessee fans to throw things on the field or put anyone in danger, but I will say that I love a hostile environment in sports. Those two games will be as charged as any in 2026, and I can't wait to see Kiffin walk out the tunnel for both of them wearing purple and gold.

3. How Indiana defends their national title

When Indiana takes the field against North Texas on September 5, the Hoosiers do so as defending national champions. That's a reality that seemed impossible until about seven months ago, but here we are! I'd be interested in how the Hoosiers' season goes anyway, because one of my favorite things to watch in all of sports is how a reigning champion defends their title. Their storybook rise to the top of the sport, and the new realities of this era of college football put a completely new spin on the idea, though.

The days of a multi-year build back to the top after a mass exodus from an experienced title-winning team are over. In its place is the era of completely mutating your roster in one swoop - which has dramatically shifted what it means for a defending champion to make another run at it. Ten years ago, Indiana would've had a hell of a time replacing a Heisman-winning, potential-number-one draft pick QB, plus other key members of last year's roster in just one offseason. In the era of the portal, though, they simply plucked a QB who's thrown for 71 touchdowns over the past three seasons in TCU's Josh Hoover, plus other talent from across the country. Those pieces still have to gel cohesively to form a great roster, but are you willing to doubt Curt Cignetti's talent evaluation and coaching at this point?

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With due respect to North Texas, Howard, Western Kentucky, Northwestern, Rutgers, and Nebraska - there's no reason Indiana shouldn't be 6-0 by the time they host Ohio State on October 17. I feel confident they'll be a playoff team again at the very least, and won't suffer any kind of title hangover - simply because of how Cignetti runs his program. That said, when he or any of his players tell the media that defending their title isn't something they think about or doesn't put any extra pressure on them, I won't buy it. It's there, whether anyone in the media or any fan in the larger college football universe asks about it, or places high expectations on them. Indiana made arguably the wildest climb up the hill in American sports history. Now we get to see how they fight off everyone trying to take their spot at the top.

4. Kyle Whittingham: Michigan Head Coach

Kyle Whittingham no longer being Utah's head coach isn't a surprise. A succession plan for his (seemingly) looming retirement was already in motion, and it looked pretty clear that he was done after the Utes' final home game of 2025:

I was among the majority of people who believed Whittingham wouldn't be at Utah in 2026. I just thought his new gig would be enjoying the golf course three days a week - not coaching Michigan. It's a fit that makes sense, though, and an upgrade for both parties.

Whittingham and his staff ideally get more out of quarterback Bryce Underwood, add more explosive elements to the offense, and continue a string of strong defensive play. Michigan gets one of the best head coaches of the past generation in terms of on-field results, who can also tidy up the clown show behind-the-scenes reputation the program's built for itself over the past five years. Whether that all translates to wins right away is probably on the shoulders (and arm) of Underwood. If he ascends, Michigan makes the playoff. If he doesn't, it's hard to see a schedule with Oklahoma, Iowa, Indiana, Oregon (road), and Ohio State (road) ending better than 9-3 again.

5. The obvious incoming trainwreck at Florida State

I know that Mike Norvell is getting fired sometime in the next six months.

You know that Mike Norvell is getting fired sometime in the next six months.

Florida State knows that Mike Norvell is getting fired sometime in the next six months.

Yet somehow, all parties involved head into the 2026 season awaiting a spectacular crash we can all see coming from a mile away. Florida State's past two seasons have devolved into chaos, poor play, bizarre quotes, and reported dysfunction within the program. This season won't be any different. With apologies to Florida State fans, I can't wait to see how it unfolds from afar.

6. Hot Seat activity