5 college football coaches in line to win their first national title this year

Edging out Kirby Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs are Ryan Day’s Ohio State Buckeyes. Though Georgia is a fantastic college football program, the Dawgs aren’t winning the national title this year. That’s because it’ll likely end up being one of three teams: Nick Saban’s Alabama Crimson Tide, Dabo Swinney’s Clemson Tigers or Day’s Buckeyes. Here is why it just might be Ohio State this year.

While the Big Ten has several great teams, the Buckeyes don’t have as many championship-caliber adversaries as schools in the SEC have to deal with. We know Clemson will face next to no challenge in the ACC again, but this isn’t about Swinney winning his third national title; it’s about Day’s shot at winning his first in his second season leading the Buckeyes.

With a superstar quarterback and Heisman Finalist Justin Fields back for his true junior season, Ohio State will be the presumptive favorite to win the Big Ten and get back into the playoff. Though the Buckeyes do have two daunting road games vs. the Oregon Ducks and the division rival Penn State Nittany Lions, just splitting those games will get Ohio State to Indianapolis.

Ohio State was a play away from facing the LSU Tigers for last year’s national title. We know Fields will do everything in his power to make sure his team doesn’t come up short this fall. Even if presumably the Wisconsin Badgers face them in Indianapolis, Ohio State is more likely to be a top seed in the tournament than to not make the playoff. If they beat Clemson, they’re champions.

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