College football coaches poll: USA Today names 5 most overrated teams in top 25

Alabama (No. 11)
Brice believes Alabama has too many questions to justify their No. 11 ranking entering the season. The Crimson Tide lost 15 starters, including 10 NFL Draft picks, while replacing quarterback Ty Simpson and rebuilding an offensive line that already struggled at times.

Alabama also faces one of the nation’s toughest stretches, with games against Georgia, Tennessee, Texas A&M and LSU packed into a six-week span. Brice believes that combination makes another College Football Playoff appearance far from a guarantee.

LSU (No. 13)
Brice has long praised Lane Kiffin as a head coach, but he believes expectations may be getting ahead of reality in Baton Rouge. Kiffin inherits a program coming off a 7-6 season and must integrate transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt, who has not played since suffering a Lisfranc injury during the 2025 campaign.

LSU also lost several key contributors while navigating a challenging SEC schedule in Kiffin’s first year. The USA Today analyst sees enough uncertainty to question whether the Tigers belong inside the preseason top 15.

Michigan (No. 16)
Michigan enters 2026 with a new coaching staff and only three returning defensive starters after significant roster turnover. Brice also pointed to a brutal schedule featuring road games at Minnesota, Oregon and Ohio State, along with home matchups against Oklahoma, Iowa, Penn State and defending national champion Indiana.
That’s a daunting path for a team undergoing a major transition. In Brice’s view, the Wolverines are ranked a bit too high entering the year, even if Bryce Underwood could take another step forward in 2026.

Penn State (No. 17)
Penn State begins a new era under head coach Matt Campbell after returning only four starters from last year’s roster. Although Campbell brought several familiar players from Iowa State, Brice noted the Cyclones did not win the Big 12 or reach the conference championship game in 2025.

The Nittany Lions also face road trips to USC, Washington and Northwestern despite avoiding Ohio State and Oregon. Brice believes the schedule and roster turnover make a top-20 ranking difficult to justify.

Clemson (No. 23)
Clemson rounds out Brice’s list as the Tigers prepare to break in another new starting quarterback. Christopher Vizzina has attempted fewer than 75 career passes and will also be learning under new offensive coordinator Chad Morris after spending three seasons with Garrett Riley.

The Tigers also must replace multiple offensive linemen while navigating a demanding schedule that includes LSU, Florida State, Duke, Miami and South Carolina. Brice believes those factors make Clemson one of the preseason’s most overrated teams.

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