Michigan State is our squad and will be who we live and die with this upcoming season. But who else out there deserves some love (or hate) from our fanbase?
If you’re anything like me, you’ll find yourself pulling for a few teams every year outside of the Big Ten. Obviously, not as much as the Spartans but a team or two that I’ll keep tabs on through the season. This year will be no different for me and because of that, I’ve put together a list of a few teams from each power five conference and a pair of bonus group of five teams to either root for or against this fall. I will be avoiding the Big Ten as we all know who we’d be rooting for and against from our own conference.
Check out my list of teams to root for and against this upcoming season below:
Root for: North Carolina
Reasoning for rooting interest
I’m starting off with the Tar Heels as the team I’ll be rooting for from the ACC this upcoming season. North Carolina is by no means a traditional power but a team that could potentially contend for a spot in the College Football Playoff if star quarterback Drake Maye lives up to the Heisman hype. So with that being said, the Tar Heels are the perfect Cinderella bandwagon team. Not to mention, North Carolina could also be joining the Big Ten down the road so this may be one of the final seasons you can pull for the Tar Heels.
Root against: Pitt
Reasoning for rooting interest
Full disclosure is that there was not a true team I’m passionately going to root against — but the disrespectful comments from former Spartans defensive coordinator and now Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi last fall still sit with me. Narduzzi took a shot at the Spartans and Big Ten after losing the Peach Bowl in 2021 and I’m still not ready to let that go — hence why the Panthers are my least favorite team in the ACC this fall.
Root for: Texas Tech
Reasoning for rooting interest
Texas Tech is the trendy pick to win the Big 12 this upcoming season and I can dig that. The Red Raiders run a fun offense, have a coach that’s easy to like and could be the one team that blocks Texas and Oklahoma from winning the conference one final time before they head to the SEC. What isn’t there to like about Texas Tech?
Root against: Oklahoma
Reasoning for rooting interest
So the obvious choices for the Big 12 are either Oklahoma or Texas. Those two schools essentially set the next force of conference realignment into movement when they jumped to the SEC in the summer of 2021 so it wouldn’t be right to root for them during their final season in the Big 12. I’m going with Oklahoma due to the fact that they’ve generally experienced more success recently but I wouldn’t argue against Texas here either.
Root for: Oregon State
Reasoning for rooting interest
It would be truly amazing if the Beavers were able to storm onto the scene and win the Pac-12 in its final season. Oregon State is one of the four remaining Pac-12 schools that were left behind so it would be pure justice if they were able to beat out the likes of USC, Oregon, Utah and Washington this year in the battle for the Pac-12 championship. And for the record, that’s not off the table as Oregon State is a very good team that should be in contention for the league title this year.
Root against: Arizona State
Reasoning for rooting interest
I don’t have a problem with the football program, coaches and players at Arizona State — it’s the admins that I have bone to pick with. Shortly after the Sun Devils dumped the Pac-12 and left for the Big 12, the school president and athletic director made some comments that were in bad taste. In particular, Ray Anderson stated he would “no go to Morgantown” when the Sun Devils played new conference foe West Virginia — which comes off as if he’s too good to visit the Mountaineers. Anderson has since apologized for the comments but that alone has me rooting against the Sun Devils this fall.
Root for: South Carolina
Reasoning for rooting interest
South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer seems like a downright good dude. He’s energetic, easy to like when I hear him talk to the media and has revitalized the Gamecocks football program very quickly on the field. Those are all good enough reasons for me to be pulling for the Gamecocks this upcoming season.
Root against: LSU
Reasoning for rooting interest
It’s easy to say Georgia or Alabama here but I’m going to actually hope both of those teams prove to be legit since they may be the only two that can stand between Michigan winning it all this year. So the next easy choice is LSU — not that I have a problem with the Tigers but I just have never been a big fan of Brian Kelly. To be fair to LSU, unlike many of the other conferences, there are plenty of programs I could find myself rooting against from the SEC.
Root for: UTSA
Reasoning for rooting interest
How can you not like a team named the Roadrunners? Mix in the fact that UTSA is actually pretty darn good and has a star quarterback that could have left to join a bigger program but elected to stay, and you have a perfect recipe for my favorite group of five team this year. UTSA is moving up to the American Athletic Conference and will have to face stiffer competition this fall (which is also a good reason to follow the Roadrunners) but don’t be surprised if they earn the group of five’s bid into a New Year’s Six bowl in 2023.
Root against: San Diego State
Reasoning for rooting interest
I don’t often openly root against the group of five teams so this was a tough one to select. But I went with San Diego State for how they completely botched their move to the Pac-12 to only come crawling back to the Mountain West Conference this offseason. That may not be a strong reason to root against the Aztecs this fall but someone has to be my group of five villian.
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