We have now reached the midway point of the college football season, and there's an answer to one question that no one seems to have an answer to: Who is actually the best team in college football right now?
Georgia is No. 1 but is banged up. Michigan is destroying everyone but hasn't played any real competition yet. Florida State is undefeated by wins against LSU and Clemson don't look as good as they did in September. Washington might have the best win, but what about that defense?
On and on.
There is no clear cut answer, or is there.
Aaron Torres, and Torres Media college football writers debate: Who is actually the best team in college football right now?
Garrett Carr - Michigan
I can’t remember a season with less clarity through seven weeks of the season on who is the best team in the country than this season. But, if I had to choose a team that is the best team right now, it would be the Michigan Wolverines.
Yes, Michigan has not had a test yet. They haven’t even had an open-book quiz. But you can only play who is on your schedule, and the Wolverines have dominated so far.
Michigan is tenth in the nation in scoring offense, and first in scoring defense. Considering the schedule, that’s not that impressive on its own. But, when watching them play, it’s evident that this team has not needed to get out of first gear yet, and they are still pounding teams.
They’re actually not running the ball as well as you’d expect them to. Star running backs Donovan Edwards and Blake Corum only average 4.76 yards per attempt so far this season. But, quarterback JJ McCarthy appears to be even better in his second year as a starter, and Roman Wilson has emerged as one of the nation’s most dangerous receivers. I expect that run game to continue to get better and better as the offensive line gels.
The defense looks like the most fundamentally sound unit in the country once again, as the Wolverines seem to blow fewer assignments than any other defense in the country. I’d like to see them get home rushing the passer more than they are, but the secondary is good, and they tackle so well at all levels of the defense, that they don’t need sacks and tackles for loss to stop drives.
I think Jim Harbaugh knows that this is his best chance yet, and maybe the best one he will ever get, to win a national title. Right now, with big tests against Penn State and Ohio State coming in November, they look the part of the team that could bring home Michigan’s first full national championship since the 1940s.
Jake Faigus - Washington
As Garrett said, the college football season has been a roller coaster this season, and at the halfway point it’s fair to ask who is good this season. Right now, the answer is out west with the Washington Huskies looking like best team because they’ve not only passed the eye test to anyone, but they have one of the best wins during the entire season with their thrilling win against Oregon this past Saturday in Seattle.
They are led by an offense that scores on average of 44 points per game. Michael Penix Jr. is the main architect of the pass-happy offense the Huskies run. He’s the second-leading passer in the country at 2,301 passing yards on the year and the Huskies average a total of 424.7 passing yards per game. Penix Jr. also has 20 passing touchdowns, three interceptions, and a 72.7% completion percentage. Penix has cemented himself as the Heisman Trophy frontrunner after this past weekend too. Rome Odunze, Ja’Lynn Polk, and Jalen McMillan all make up one of the best receiving corps in the entire country. Odunze is the primary receiver and already has 736 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.
Dillon Johnson has also emerged as a good complement to Penix in the running game and the offensive line has been one of the best in the country only giving up seven sacks overall.
The Husky defense has been solid overall, but they haven’t needed to be amazing because of how good the offense has proven to be. Bralen Trice is the best edge rusher for the Washington Huskies, but they have depth overall, with the team having a total of seven sacks. They also have a total of eight interceptions and one defensive touchdown on the year. They need to just be more consistent overall, but with how good the offense has been that’s very doable.
Washington was supposed to be good this year with how much they returned from last year, but right now they are playing like the best team in the country, and it helps that a handful of other teams haven’t looked great so far. Still, the Huskies seem like a team on a mission and will definitely be in the College Football Playoff hunt.
Aaron Torres - Michigan
I wish I had a differing opinion, just to make this conversation a little more palatable and interesting, but at the sake of being a bit boring, I agree with Garrett.
Michigan, as of today is my answer.
Could I be a little bit biased because they were my preseason title pick? Maybe.
Was that last sentence a thinly veiled excuse to mention that I picked Michigan in the preseason? Absolutely.
But at the same time, the Wolverines are still my answer.
Since Garrett laid out all the facts above, let me go a step further and reiterate what he said: It isn't just that Michigan is beating teams: They're pummeling them. I don't care how bad the competition is, they're making a mockery of the word "competition" and leaving Vegas scrambling to try and make numbers big enough to get people to bet the other side.
Just for fun, here is how Michigan has performed the last three weeks against the spread: They were a 17-point favorite at Nebraska. They won by 35. A 19-point favorite at Minnesota and won by 42, and also won by 42 as a 33.5 point favorite against Indiana.
Again, even the people who are paid to reasonably handicap their games have no idea what do with the Wolverines (unrelated, it has led to my favorite gambling trend of 2023 - "blindly bet Michigan")
And really, what stands out most to me about these Wolverines is the swagger with which they play. Yes, the competition hasn't been great, but it feels like they go into every game with the sole goal to embarrass the opponent. To see opposing fans empty out of the stadium by halftime.
As Garrett said, this is Jim Harbaugh's best team.
Will it result in a national championship? That remains to be seen.
But right now, this is the best team in college football.