Three predictions: CFB playoffs, Miami to win 2027 star, 2028 QB

Let’s start with the final round of the College Football Playoff, where Lady and Penn State play on Thursday earlier Ohio State and Texas meet on Friday for their potential spot in the final. There’s no doubt these two programs will be playing their best ball right now, and a head-to-head collision would create quite a few storylines not just from a football standpoint, but anywhere from branding to good old-fashioned coaching with ties to both Notre Dame and Ohio State. .

The top units of the Irish and Buckeyes, ND’s defense and of course OSU’s offense, have been shut down so far in the playoffs and it would be strength versus strength if the two go head-to-head. Does that mean the national title could come down to which undercard unit outplays the other if Notre Dame’s offense faces Ohio State’s defense?

Before we get there, it looks like this is the match we’ll be watching on January 20th. Texas somehow avoided the most epic collapse of the playoffs 28-3 and Penn State’s opponents wouldn’t let us believe they’ll still get over the hump – so it’s Freeman bowl game as the Irish coach will face the team he chose to play like a blue-chipper then.

In the recruiting world, this time of year often allows us to start looking ahead to the incoming junior class – and beyond. The latter was the subject of Saturday night’s Miami Raw 7v7 practice, where the most polished cover look may have been one of the youngest in Ft. Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas’ Zayden Gamble. The national champion, who led the team in interceptions along the way, is trending on recruiting boards and just added Ohio State offer on Monday.

But the team to beat in this recruiting is the program that just landed the STA product among the top freshmen nationally in 2024, Miami. Gamble wants to see the field early and has the mature type of game to follow in the footsteps of a recruit like him OJ Frederick did this fall, and the Hurricanes are doing the best job of prioritizing him despite how early it is in his recruitment. That means something to him and that early lead should help the Canes keep the blue blood as the 2027 cycle eventually comes into focus.

We’ve guessed the College Football Playoff and the Class of 2027 so we might as well roll the dice on 2028 to start the New Year. We’ve been hinting at it for the past year, but when there’s talent that’s going to pull its own gravity and that’s clear from an early age, it’s worth reminding, especially when it comes to the quarterback.

The potential No. 1 overall recruit out of South Florida isn’t next Jeremiah Smith or a two-pointed star like 2026 with five stars Derek Cooper – It’s the QB Neimann Lawrence. Already a national recruit at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, he just totaled 35 touchdowns in 10 games as a freshman playing varsity ball.

Georgia offered Lawrence on Monday, while Ohio State, Miami and more than a dozen others had previously done so. The 2028 talent has it all, from an effortless release to a big arm, a quiet confidence and enough mobility to fit the modern mold in the spread era. The frenzy is far from its peak, but when it doesn’t say, we didn’t tell you.