ESPN Top 10 G5 that can make playoffs

[biggie]

https://www.espn.com/college-football/s ... contenders

"5. Appalachian State: Star quarterback Joey Aguilar (3,757 yards, 33 TDs) and almost his entire receiving corps return to supercharge one of the G5's best offenses. The defense is ultra-experienced and the Mountaineers get Liberty at home in a CFP elimination game of sorts. (They get a shot at Clemson, too.)"

Others in there:
10. Troy
9. UNLV
8. Tulane
7. Miami (Ohio)
6. James Madison
5. Appalachian State
4. Fresno State
3. Liberty
2. Boise State
1. Memphis

[AppStFan1]

https://www.espn.com/college-football/s ... contenders

"5. Appalachian State: Star quarterback Joey Aguilar (3,757 yards, 33 TDs) and almost his entire receiving corps return to supercharge one of the G5's best offenses. The defense is ultra-experienced and the Mountaineers get Liberty at home in a CFP elimination game of sorts. (They get a shot at Clemson, too.)"

Others in there:
10. Troy
9. UNLV
8. Tulane
7. Miami (Ohio)
6. James Madison
5. Appalachian State
4. Fresno State
3. Liberty
2. Boise State
1. Memphis

I thought we would be #4 just behind Liberty but that is a fair top 10. I will be interested to see where the magazines have us in the Sun Belt when they hit newsstands next week.

[kornegaylw]

Troy and JMU have lost a lot...I'm not sure I agree with them being ranked that high.

[AppStFan1]

Troy and JMU have lost a lot...I'm not sure I agree with them being ranked that high.

Both brought in a lot of quality transfers so I get it. Plus, they have proven to do a good job of reloading instead of needing to rebuild. I also think there is a drop off after he top 5 teams.

[ASUFan4863]

I agree with the ranking. I like how our game vs Liberty is coined as a “playoff elimination” game. September is gonna be filled with huge games.

[BambooRdApp]

Cannot speak to Troy...but the expected demise of JMU has been over exaggerated. They have reloaded through the transfer portal. They picked up a good QB from Washington...he was just not good enough to beat out QB1 that was drafted by Falcons..but he played in game action before Penix (sp?) arrived...as well as other transfer portal talent...time will tell if they gel together as a team ..I was hoping and still hope for their downfall

[Black Saturday]

Cannot speak to Troy...but the expected demise of JMU has been over exaggerated. They have reloaded through the transfer portal. They picked up a good QB from Washington...he was just not good enough to beat out QB1 that was drafted by Falcons..but he played in game action before Penix (sp?) arrived...as well as other transfer portal talent...time will tell if they gel together as a team ..I was hoping and still hope for their downfall

I like our chances better a The Rock vs. Liberty and JMU

[BambooRdApp]

Cannot speak to Troy...but the expected demise of JMU has been over exaggerated. They have reloaded through the transfer portal. They picked up a good QB from Washington...he was just not good enough to beat out QB1 that was drafted by Falcons..but he played in game action before Penix (sp?) arrived...as well as other transfer portal talent...time will tell if they gel together as a team ..I was hoping and still hope for their downfall

I like our chances better a The Rock vs. Liberty and JMU

I agree. My personal opinion is that JMU will be a good team.We will win!!

[Bigdaddyg1]

I think the days of talking about a team dropping off due to graduations is over. The free agent portal can be a quick fix if you have an established program. All you sometimes need is 5-6 quality players

[AtlAppMan]

So to all the folks on this board who have suggested that App making the CFP, doesn’t this demonstrate that there are analyst out there that see App having a reasonable path to CFP? Shouldn’t that be a goal for this year’s team? They show Boise as first but they have three P5 opponents on their schedule and they would have to run table.

[AppStFan1]

So to all the folks on this board who have suggested that App making the CFP, doesn’t this demonstrate that there are analyst out there that see App having a reasonable path to CFP? Shouldn’t that be a goal for this year’s team? They show Boise as first but they have three P5 opponents on their schedule and they would have to run table.

ESPN has us in a deep list but the reality is those top 3 teams are the ones with a real shot and everyone else will need help to get in position for it. If we go 13-0, Memphis goes 13-0, and Boise State goes 13-0... who gets in? I would say Memphis does. We need to run the table and need some things to happen. We really need to start 5-0 to have a legit shot.

As long as we go 12-1 or 13-0 and play a good G5 OOC and P4 then we have a path. The question is will the team take that path? The Sun Belt is very hard and we got 3 tough OOC games so it won't be easy.

[t4pizza]

Troy and JMU have lost a lot...I'm not sure I agree with them being ranked that high.

Both brought in a lot of quality transfers so I get it. Plus, they have proven to do a good job of reloading instead of needing to rebuild. I also think there is a drop off after he top 5 teams.

Yes, they brought in good transfers but they lost coaches and coaching staff and that usually makes a significant difference.

[AtlAppMan]

So to all the folks on this board who have suggested that App making the CFP, doesn’t this demonstrate that there are analyst out there that see App having a reasonable path to CFP? Shouldn’t that be a goal for this year’s team? They show Boise as first but they have three P5 opponents on their schedule and they would have to run table.

ESPN has us in a deep list but the reality is those top 3 teams are the ones with a real shot and everyone else will need help to get in position for it. If we go 13-0, Memphis goes 13-0, and Boise State goes 13-0... who gets in? I would say Memphis does. We need to run the table and need some things to happen. We really need to start 5-0 to have a legit shot.

As long as we go 12-1 or 13-0 and play a good G5 OOC and P4 then we have a path. The question is will the team take that path? The Sun Belt is very hard and we got 3 tough OOC games so it won't be easy.

Fair points about all 13-0 scenario, however, there are two factors that then impact CFP committee in that scenario 1) how we win/margin of victory and eye test which we can control and 2) what out other opponents do, i.e. Clemson and Florida State especially as well as other common opponents like Troy and and non-common Liberty,Tulane etc which neither team can control. So we have just as much control over our own destiny as the other G5 teams.

So run table and win every game by as much as possible and see what happens. Make no mistake the margin of victories DOES matter this year despite what some may say otherwise. You can’t tell me that if Aguilar and offense put up huge numbers we won’t get lots of attention.

[AppStFan1]

So to all the folks on this board who have suggested that App making the CFP, doesn’t this demonstrate that there are analyst out there that see App having a reasonable path to CFP? Shouldn’t that be a goal for this year’s team? They show Boise as first but they have three P5 opponents on their schedule and they would have to run table.

ESPN has us in a deep list but the reality is those top 3 teams are the ones with a real shot and everyone else will need help to get in position for it. If we go 13-0, Memphis goes 13-0, and Boise State goes 13-0... who gets in? I would say Memphis does. We need to run the table and need some things to happen. We really need to start 5-0 to have a legit shot.

As long as we go 12-1 or 13-0 and play a good G5 OOC and P4 then we have a path. The question is will the team take that path? The Sun Belt is very hard and we got 3 tough OOC games so it won't be easy.

Fair points about all 13-0 scenario, however, there are two factors that then impact CFP committee in that scenario 1) how we win/margin of victory and eye test which we can control and 2) what out other opponents do, i.e. Clemson and Florida State especially as well as other common opponents like Troy and and non-common Liberty,Tulane etc which neither team can control. So we have just as much control over our own destiny as the other G5 teams.

So run table and win every game by as much as possible and see what happens. Make no mistake the margin of victories DOES matter this year despite what some may say otherwise. You can’t tell me that if Aguilar and offense put up huge numbers we won’t get lots of attention.

I don't think margin matters so much for the early games as long as we go 5-0. I do think we need to put up big numbers in October and November though to keep rising and pass other teams. We have a long way to go and it only starts to become a legit reality if we are 5-0 on Sept 30 and we are in a reasonable position in the polls. I say that because we still aren't in a good spot for it if Memphis and Boise State are both undefeated and way ahead of us.

[KentHogan]

This is cool!

I’m thrilled that at least for now a G5 team gets in, and I will always see that as our goal.

So, if the highest ranked G5 champ gets the CFP bid, does the 2nd highest G5 get the NY6 bowl game? Or do the top 6 bowls make up round one of CFP?

[Black Saturday]

I think the days of talking about a team dropping off due to graduations is over. The free agent portal can be a quick fix if you have an established program. All you sometimes need is 5-6 quality players

Exactly what i've been pounding the table about.

You can get quality replacements from the portal that would have never given APP ST a sniff out of high school.

Recruiting and a mix from the portal is the new way to build a program.

Someone mentioned JMU getting a quality QB recently, he would have never given them a first chance, but now has been humbled for playing time.

[Howard Street Hooligan]

So to all the folks on this board who have suggested that App making the CFP, doesn’t this demonstrate that there are analyst out there that see App having a reasonable path to CFP? Shouldn’t that be a goal for this year’s team? They show Boise as first but they have three P5 opponents on their schedule and they would have to run table.

don't think Boise has to go undefeated to make it. they could win 1/3 of those P4 games and still make it because the Mountain West has a good reputation.

[AtlAppMan]

So to all the folks on this board who have suggested that App making the CFP, doesn’t this demonstrate that there are analyst out there that see App having a reasonable path to CFP? Shouldn’t that be a goal for this year’s team? They show Boise as first but they have three P5 opponents on their schedule and they would have to run table.

don't think Boise has to go undefeated to make it. they could win 1/3 of those P4 games and still make it because the Mountain West has a good reputation.

I will take App with 13-0 against Boise St 12-1 this year all day long. If we don't beat somebody (i.e. Clemson and/or Liberty and others) then we don't deserve to be in CFP. You have to prove you deserve to be there. Back in the old days the top teams had to literally go undefeated and beat somebody to get to top bowls, why is our situation so different?

[EastHallApp]

Making the CFP (and before now, the NY6) absolutely is the stretch goal, at least in my mind. Doesn't mean the season is CFP or bust, but there's also no reason all the top G5 programs shouldn't feel that way.

That said, I'm not giving it much thought at the moment, because I don't know if we're going to be "CFP good" this year. We do have some real question marks that need to be answered. Is it possible they'll be answered well enough for us to be a top 20 team? Sure, because some of our known strengths are REALLY strong.

Until we can start getting those answers, I'll cheer for us to win as many as possible. A Sun Belt title is a good year. A top 25 ranking is a great year. A CFP bid? That would be the stuff of dreams.

[Black Saturday]

Making the CFP (and before now, the NY6) absolutely is the stretch goal, at least in my mind. Doesn't mean the season is CFP or bust, but there's also no reason all the top G5 programs shouldn't feel that way.

That said, I'm not giving it much thought at the moment, because I don't know if we're going to be "CFP good" this year. We do have some real question marks that need to be answered. Is it possible they'll be answered well enough for us to be a top 20 team? Sure, because some of our known strengths are REALLY strong.

Until we can start getting those answers, I'll cheer for us to win as many as possible. A Sun Belt title is a good year. A top 25 ranking is a great year. A CFP bid? That would be the stuff of dreams.

If we have a much-improved defense will ensure we have a chance at the conference championship instead of back dooring it like last year