College football rankings 2021: Alabama, Oklahoma, Georgia, Clemson, Ohio State vie for No. 1 in way-too-early Top 25

Heading into the 2020 season, it might’ve been a wild notion to think Mike Gundy and Oklahoma State could be as good in 2021 with the impending departures of key players such as Chuba Hubbard, Tylan Wallace and Kolby Harvell-Peele. But after their Cheez-It Bowl win over Miami with returning quarterback Spencer Sanders and other skill position and defensive players stepping up, the Cowboys could be ready to fill the role of a Big 12 sleeper next year.

Steve Sarkisian takes over for Tom Herman at the helm of the Texas Longhorns and, as with any new head coach in the program, he’ll immediately be met with big expectations. With Sam Ehlinger now departing, Casey Thompson will likely take over an offense that is filled to the brim with elite talent. The defense, as always, needs to be better but Sark could make some sweet noise with the offensive group that will be at his disposal.

Ending the season with losses in the SEC Championship Game and then their bowl game will leave a bad taste in the Florida Gators’ mouth but 2021 will be a crucial year for head coach Dan Mullen. Emory Jones will step in to replace Kyle Trask after the latter was a Heisman finalist and, with the loss of numerous weapons, that will dramatically give the offense a facelift.

In truth, for the Gators to get to the level of success they enjoyed for much of 2020, they will have to resume their identity as a defensive team, or at least more so than they did this past season.

Suffice it to say that things didn’t go as planned for the USC Trojans this year, particularly with the Pac-12 Championship Game loss to Oregon and then opting out of a bowl game. But as is tradition, the expectations are big for the Trojans coming into next season.

Quarterback Kedon Slovis has been immensely productive in his time as the USC starter and he’s back for another year, albeit with a new group of pass-catchers to work with. The key for the Trojans making a jump, though, will be 2021’s No. 1 overall recruit, Korey Foreman, giving an inconsistent defense a spark.

Full disclosure, slotting Manny Diaz’s Miami Hurricanes at No. 11 largely hinges upon the assumption that quarterback D’Eriq King fully heals from torn ACL suffered in the Cheez-It Bowl. If that happens, though, there is dangerous upside with The U. King proved he could be a dynamic force offensively in his first season in the program and, armed with now-experienced offensive weapons and a slew of talented young defenders stepping into bigger roles, the Canes have real potential.