How far are we from the “top 12?”

It's more like how far are we from the top 3-4 in the SEC. There are Playoff teams we'd be a coin flip with this year.

Honestly the answer is not that far. More consistent QB play and improving the offensive line and returning to functional special teams and we can compete with anyone on our schedule. The question is do we have the right coaching staff to get us there? They can get the players but can they put it all together on gameday?

We will be as close as we have and will ever be under freeze next year.

We aren't losing huge in the portal, recruiting is great.

Biggest question is that we aren't willing to go out and get a stellar QB from the portal. Jackson Arnold may turn out great, but to me hes a even trade for Walker White. I can tell Freeze wants to develop QBs so he can have multiple seasons with them and not have to fork out 3ish mil each year. Every other position seems replaceable to him except QB.

That's probably smart by Freeze long term, but hes really just got this one season. If Freeze goes 3 seasons with poor QB play, then as a coach with a reputation for developing and having good QB play, hes really failed. This is fully on how well Freeze can coach Arnold and get the best out of him.

I think our roster is 10-2 ceiling, 7-5 floor.

Not as far as many think. We weren’t blown out in any game and many games were really winnable this year. If we get great QB play next year combined with even more talent on the roster combined with the whole SEC being more wide open than it’s been in a long time, maybe not far off at all.

But, it comes down to coaching. Can Hugh do it? Probably not but I hope so. Who knows?

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But, it comes down to coaching. Can Hugh do it? Probably not but I hope so. Who knows?

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how many times would a Freezus coached team reached the playoffs had they been structured the way they are now?

i count zero

We are _almost_ there on talent. One more set of classes like this HS class and now the portal class, and we will be in the top quarter of the SEC in blue chip ratio.

Experience - especially experience that we lack in playing together, under the same system, is what we lack. Our roster next year looks a LOT like Notre Dame's does this year, except that our SOS will not be in the 50's or 60's like ND's was prior to the playoffs. Remember ND's crater vs NW SE MW Illinois or whoever that was? That was a youth meltdown. We will face something more akin to 19-20 SOS with young players still learning to play together, and it's going to show in a couple of games. I suspect we end around 8-4 next year.

The Texas-Clemson game was a great illustration of this. Two veteran teams used to playing together. Clemson wouldn't quit and kept fighting back, the hallmark of a veteran team, and Texas took every shot and then delivered one of their own, another hallmark of a veteran team. In the end, the vastly superior blue chip ratio of Texas was too much for Clemson. Texas went 4 deep at RB with elite guys, lost one early in the season, lost another one in the game, lost their all-star C on the OL, and still rushed for nearly 300 yards. Next man up. That's blue chip ratio ball right there.

Next year, we are ND without the hype machine against a far tougher schedule. We should concentrate on getting revenge on Pavia and OU ($1 to Jackson Arnold's NIL) and maybe upsetting either bammer or UGA. In '26, we're ready for our first run at it all.

Most of it depends on Jackson Arnold.

Still need a starting OL from the portal because I don’t think Murphy is going to be good enough to start.

Need an edge rusher and a big time interior guy not just bodies either.

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I’m frustrated by losses like Oklahoma and Mizzou where we actually played well, but failed at crunch time.

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Same. But the reason for a lot of those loses is not the jim and joes.

Some. Yes. Most, NO


But only moar time will tell my friend. We will all see. And hope the folk like me are wrong and paster Hugh will rise to the promise land and take us all with him.


And shower us with virgins

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If Freeze goes 3 seasons with poor QB play, then as a coach with a reputation for developing and having good QB play, hes really failed.

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Freeze seems to disregard the obvious red flags when signing QBs. Arnold makes 2 portal QBs in a row that were benched at their previous schools. Arnold has the tools that PT doesn’t, but he’s still a massive gamble. It might end up costing Freeze his career if Arnold is a bust and he doesn’t get another portal QB for security if he is.

The offseason of sunshine pumping begineth!

We were good enough to go 7-5 or 8-4 this season and herped and derped our way to a losing season.

I have zero expectations this season. If we beat Georgia and it’s not via some flukey plays, I will have some hope.