Dom’s Overrated and Underrated College Football Teams – Week 7

This is a new weekly article I will be doing to cover the many teams that deserved to be called out for being overrated, but also to cover teams that deserve recognition for being an underrated team, even when no one else will recognize this. After many weeks of college football, there are a handful of teams that have either flown under the radar, or are too high on numerous power rankings. With many teams to choose from, I had to look at different aspects that go into deciding between them. Some of these are injuries to major role players, how different players are playing on their respective teams, and how young and inexperienced a team is.

Overrated Team: Michigan Wolverines (4-1)

Win vs Florida 33-17

Win vs Cincinnati 36-14

Win vs Air Force 29-13

Win vs Purdue 28-10

Loss vs Michigan State 14-10

Don’t let the 4-1 record fool you. Michigan has played some easy games the first four weeks, especially since their matchup vs the Florida Gators had 10 of Florida’s players suspended, including a couple that were star players on the offense. The only game that helped reveal the true identity of the Wolverines was against the Michigan State Spartans. With Michigan’s main quarterback out for the season, it was up to the backup, who did fight for the starting job at the beginning of the season, to lead the Spartans. The game may have been played in a monsoon, but the quarterback still needs to learn, and is expected, to control the ball in a situation like this, but John O’Korn must not have gotten the memo about this as he went 16 for 35, threw for 198 yards, no touchdowns, and three interceptions. This was a tough game for not just him, but the whole Wolverines team. They graduated many seniors last year, and lost a lot of starters on both sides of the ball. Although the defense is looking to be doing alright against every team so far, the offense is a major area of concern. The wide receivers include many young players that range from sophomore year to even that of true freshman. They have never played in big games before and this will surely affect them in a negative way. They only have one main rusher that can handle the ball in Karan Higdon, which can also spell trouble when he’s either injured or tired from many carries. The back behind him is a sophomore that also is inexperienced with big games. With the slow, low scoring offense, it puts a lot of pressure on the defense to hold a team to a low amount of points. This can be tough to ask for every game, especially with games against Penn State, Ohio State, Maryland, and Wisconsin coming up. With all that being said, I see a grim season for the Wolverines as they will in all likelihood drop 3-4 of those games and ruin their season in its entirety.

Underrated Team: North Carolina State Wolfpack (5-1)

Loss vs South Carolina 35-28

Win vs Marshall 37-20

Win vs Furman 49-16

Win vs Florida State 27-21

Win vs Syracuse 33-25

Win vs Louisville 39-25

The Wolfpack have looked like a playoff caliber team this year. They’ve upset a Florida State team that is missing their main piece, and they’ve upset reigning Heisman Trophy winner, Lamar Jackson’s, Louisville team. The leader and quarterback of this team, Ryan Finley, has put up impressive numbers, as he’s gone 158 for 223, with 1,770 yards, 10 touchdowns, and no interceptions. Now this is a quarterback that knows how to control the ball and not create any turnovers. The offense has looked totally amazing overall in a balanced passing and running game, as Nyheim Hines is the leading rusher with 513 yards and 5 touchdowns. But it’s not just the offense that has been winning games, the defense has come to play in every single game as well. This side of the ball is led by defensive end Bradley Chubb, who is a force that can make a whole offense crumble. He has accounted for 35 tackles, and 6.5 sacks. If this doesn’t say one man wrecking crew, I don’t know what will! Along with the strong defensive line, the secondary has been playing outstanding limiting opposing quarterbacks to smaller throws, rather than the big plays downfield. They have some of their harder games ahead as they will face  Clemson, Wake Forest, and Notre Dame. These are some of the tougher teams that you can play, but if NC State sticks to the style of play that they have been showcasing, then they have a legitimate chance of beating 2-3 of these teams. After watching a lot of film of this team, I feel confident in predicting that the North Carolina State Wolfpack can put up a fight not only for a spot in the ACC Championship game, but also contend for a playoff spot.

Written by Domenic Buccini