FPI ain’t all into a three-peat, homes.

Mickey’s computers have surveyed the 2023 season, and it’s not Georgia whom they love.

Ohio State’s 2022 ended in dramatic heartbreak in the College Football Playoff, but immediate redemption could be on the horizon. The Buckeyes are the best team in the nation and the favorites to win the national championship, according to ESPN’s Football Power Index and the Allstate Playoff Predictor.

The Buckeyes have a 37% chance to win the title — well ahead of Alabama at 20% and defending champion Georgia at 19% — according to the models.

The secret to the Buckeyes’ success?  A dominant offense, bolstered by the top returning offensive production in the country.  Georgia rates first on the defenside side, but not in as strong a fashion.

In any event, those three schools are on a different level from the rest of college football.  (FPI judges that there’s better than a one-in-four chance that all three make the CFP.)  What makes that really interesting is that none of the three returns a starting quarterback in 2023.  It’s gonna be interesting to see how that plays out.

Scenes inside the sausage factory

The door may have closed on spring football, but it’s just opened on roster management.  Per Chip Towers, there are now thirteen Dawgs who have entered the transfer portal this offseason.  Most have already found new homes.  There are rumors out there that several more may be poised to join them looking for greener pastures.

None of this should come as a surprise, not with the way Smart continues to stack top recruiting classes on top of each other.  Add to that the fact that Georgia is still well over the 85-man scholarship limit and there’s little choice but to cull the roster — for one thing, assuming they find some help in the portal to fill in a couple of spots, they can’t sign anyone without having a place on the roster for them.

In other words, there are worse problems for Kirby Smart to have right now.

“Greg, I’ve got a couple scheduling questions.”

It’s mid-April, 2023, and things don’t sound like the SEC is any closer to making a final call on the size of the conference football schedule.

That was the main discussion point a year ago when SEC presidents, athletics directors and coaches met in Sandestin, Florida, for spring meetings. No decision was made, though.

Will this year’s spring meetings, scheduled for May 30, finally be the finish line?

“Could be,” Sankey said. “Could be. But I said that last year, too. So be nimble.”

“Be nimble”?  WTF is that supposed to mean?

I would assume that Greg is having trouble getting Mickey to see the additional value a ninth conference game brings to the broadcast deal.  But, hey, they’ve still got another season to futz around with each other before it’s nut cutting time.