ESPN college football analyst Greg McElroy takes a deep dive into the sport with the biggest names on and off the field. With off-seasons being a thing of the past, McElroy goes year-round with analysis, opinions and insight on top teams and under-the-radar stories from coast to coast.
Crazy Stats and Numbers YOU need to know headin...
Georgia has won 48 straight vs unranked opponents, Florida State has not won a road game in two years, Curt Cignetti is undefeated at home as Indiana’s head coach, Oregon has won 12 straight road games and Texas A&M is looking to end a 32 year drought of back-to-back 10+ win seasons. McElroy crunched the numbers and gives you 21 of the most improbable and crazy stats heading into the 2026 season and tells you if the streak continues or dies.
48 min
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Who got LUCKY with their schedule in 2026? | Al...
McElroy goes over the most “getable schedules” in the SEC, BIG 10, BIG 12 and ACC. Did Vanderbilt, South Carolina and Auburn hit the scheduling lottery in 2026? Will Luke Fickel at Wisconsin and Matt Campbell at Penn State BOTH get more wins than expected with “lighter” paths in the BIG 10? Can BIG 12 favorite Texas Tech take advantage of missing out on BYU & Utah and will Virginia be back in the mix for the ACC in 2026? Plus, McElroy gives you the biggest trap games for 12 legit contenders.
39 min
3
Who REALLY has the HARDEST schedules in college...
Is the FPI correct with their strength of schedule metric? McElroy explains what we should use the FPI for then goes through the P4 and gives you the toughest schedules in each conference. Texas, Oklahoma & Texas A&M have a gauntlet to get through to make the CFP, while Ohio State and USC have the toughest road schedules in the BIG 10. In the BIG 12 Colorado and Oklahoma State will be grinding out the season and can Clemson and Florida State bounce back with the toughest schedules in the ACC? Plus, McElroy answers mailbag questions about Notre Dame, Tennessee, the BIG 12 coaches poll and much more.
45 min
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BIGGEST What IF’s in college football part 2! ...
What if the SEC misses the title game (again) and the BIG 10 wins ANOTHER national title? What if Arch Manning struggles, Lane Kiffin and LSU BEAT Ole Miss and Jeremiah Smith wins the Heisman? McElroy tackles some of the biggest ‘what if’s’ heading into the 2026 season including if a Group of 6 team can win a college football playoff game, if money CAN buy a national championship and what if everything goes chalk in September?
31 min
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Who should be preseason #1 & is it a CURSE? | A...
The weight of being the preseason #1 team is very heavy. In 76 years of the AP poll there is only ONE team that started #1 and stayed that way throughout the entire season and won a National Championship - that was Florida State in 1999. While the CFP has given more leeway for the top ranked teams it’s still a big target on your back to start the season. So who deserves to be ranked #1 in the preseason? McElroy makes the case for and against Texas, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Oregon, Miami, Indiana and Georgia all to be the preseason #1 ranked team.
38 min
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Biggest ‘What IF’s” in college football heading...
What if the SEC has a really bad start in non-conference play to open the season? What if Indiana drops three games or Penn State wins 10? What if Notre Dame finally breaks through for their first National Title since 1988 and what if USC finishes UNDER 8 wins in year five under Lincoln Riley? What if the BIG 12 is a two bid league and what if the college football playoff gets even messier in November? McElroy tackles some of the biggest ‘what if’s’ heading into the 2026 season.
34 min
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Best “WEAPONS” in College Football: A Quarterba...
Greg McElroy breaks down who has the most elite pass catching units in college football knowing the Ohio State is Wide Receiver U until further notice. Will Miami be even better than last year with Malachi Toney & Cooper Barkate, can Trey’Dez Green and a group of transfers get LSU to the next level and does Indiana with Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh have the best WR duo in the BIG 10? Can Moore and Wesco improve the Clemson offense, how great can Texas be with Wingo and Cam Coleman and if the Oregon WR’s stay healthy will the Ducks have one of the most dangerous pass catching units in the country?
35 min
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Top 10 secondaries in College Football heading ...
Who has the best secondaries in college football, the ones that could change games, the ones who could swing college football playoff races? Would you rather have Ohio State’s or Michigan’s secondary? Texas Tech showed out last year, can Pollock & Boyd do it again? Does Notre Dame have the best player on the best secondary or can Alabama lay claim to both? Are the transfers ready to step up EVERYWHERE and where do Texas A&M, Oregon, Georgia and LSU land in the rankings? McElroy ranks the Top 10 “no fly zone” DB units in 2026.
31 min
9
Mike Elko has built something REAL at Texas A&M...
Texas A&M head coach Mike Elko talks with Greg McElroy about the expectations in College Station, the growth of Marcel Reed, what new offensive coordinator Holmon Wiggins will bring, how the Aggies will handle a brutal SEC schedule and much more. Plus, Elko is just one of a handful of coaches entering year 3 at their respective schools so McElroy ask the questions: what will Cignetti do following up a National Championship, what Kalen DeBoer can do to appease Alabama fans, and watch out for Manny Diaz (Duke) and Jedd Fisch (Washington).
44 min
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The Sorsby Decision: the moral compass is BROKE...
McElroy details the Brendan Sorsby decision and tells you what impact it will have on college football moving forward, if other conferences boycotting Texas Tech will hold, if other BIG 12 teams could really opt out of games and if Sorsby should still enter the NFL supplemental draft. Plus could (or should) the NCAA penalize other programs at Texas Tech (baseball, basketball, softball, etc) to show that there are institutional consequences for circumventing their rules?
37 min
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Top 10 Linebacker units in College Football | A...
Greg McElroy goes through and ranks the Top 10 linebacker units in College Football heading into the 2026 season. Are the veteran leaders at Clemson and Pittsburgh enough and can Georgia just continue to reload with NFL caliber talent? Can transfers at Texas A&M and Texas keep the production level up and will Ben Roberts and Austin Romaine be able to pick up where Jacob Rodriguez left off? Can Indiana and Oklahoma keep up their domination, is the key to Auburn finally turning it around at linebacker and does Notre Dame have the deepest and most dominant linebacker unit in college football?
36 min
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The REAL challenge facing Steve Sarkisian & Tex...
Expectations will always be high at Texas and this year is no exception. Head Coach Steve Sarkisian joins Greg McElroy to discuss the pressure on Arch Manning, what he loves about his roster, what Will Muschamp will bring to the defense and why he feels coaches should have a bigger voice in college football. Plus, Coach Sark talks about strength of schedule and why it might expose a huge CFP flaw and how Curt Cignetti and the “Indiana Way” has changed nonconference scheduling until proven otherwise.
31 min
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Why the SEC has College Football CORNERED! | Al...
Greg McElroy is joined by new SEC Nation host Matt Barrie to discuss if the BIG 12 and ACC can keep up with the SEC and BIG Ten, if the system as a whole is sustainable and the inevitable playoff expansion and what (if anything) will be lost. Barrie also tells you the moment that changed college football for him, if the SEC can break a three year streak without a National Title and if the SEC could really breakaway from the NCAA? Plus, McElroy issues a mea culpa for leaving Miami’s defensive line out of his Top 10.
40 min
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Top 10 Defensive Lines heading into 2026! | Alw...
What is the most expensive real estate in college football? Answer: the 7 yards between the OT's outside shoulder and the QB's chin. So why not rank the Top 10 defensive line units in college football heading into the 2026 season. Can A.J. Holmes Jr. lead a rebuilt Texas Tech line back to the CFP, is Will Heldt ready to continue the Clemson D-line NFL pedigree, and is everyone sleeping on David Stone and the Oklahoma front? McElroy goes over all it plus tells you why this is the deepest Notre Dame defensive line in a generation, if anyone will be able to run on Texas and why Oregon has far and away the best defensive line in the country.
39 min
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Can College Football survive as we know it? | ...
It’s spring meeting time in college football and the number 1 topic is whether or not to expand the College Football Playoff. McElroy dives into the sustainability of the sport moving forward, why the BIG Ten and SEC are in a standoff and if anyone is thinking of the sport as whole or just their conferences. Plus, we hit the mailbag to discuss Michigan’s Jordan Marshall, the Oregon RB room, who is the better overall football player Jeremiah Smith or Malachi Toney and why so many in the media are taking a “dooms day” approach to the 24 team CFP.
50 min
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Top 10 Running Backs heading into 2026! | Alway...
Who are the best running backs heading into the 2026 college football season? Can Kewan Lacey get Ole Miss back to the CFP, how much better can a healthy Isaac Brown be at Louisville, what impact will the transfers have at Oklahoma State and West Virginia and can anyone challenge the SEC as the best conference for running backs in 2026? McElroy goes over all of it plus gives you some honorable mention RBs who could work their way into the top 10 after the season.
33 min
17
Kalen DeBoer on Alabama expectations, the QB Co...
Kalen DeBoer talks with Greg McElroy about where the Alabama program is heading into the 2026 season, what he has learned about being the head coach at Alabama, the quarterback competition, the growth of the offensive line, why Ezavier Crowell will be a player to watch this fall and much more. Plus, McElroy breaks down the Presidential College Sports Reform Committee’s 8 proposals and tells you what loves and hates about them and if they can actually be implemented.
51 min
18
BIG Ten BIGGEST Questions | Always College Foot...
The BIG Ten is going for their 4th consecutive National Championship with a handleful of legit contenders. McElroy goes through the entire conference and gives you the ONE question about each team heading into the summer. Can Josh Hoover really just replace Fernando Mendoza? Can two new coordinators maintain Oregon's offense and defensive dominance? Is Ohio State playing with a chip on their shoulder? Will Byrce Underwood make a sophomore step under a new coaching staff? Can Gary Patterson turn USC into a program that can win big games? Did Pat Fitzgerald walk into the best situation at Michigan State and are there any effects from the Demond Williams/NIL drama at Washington?
43 min
19
Top 10 Wide Receivers heading into 2026! | Alw...
We all know Jeremiah Smith is the best wide receiver, but is he the best “football player” in college or does that go to Malachi Toney? McElroy goes through and lists the Top 10 wide receivers heading into the 2026 season and outside of Smith and Toney you will see other familiar names like Charlie Becker, Ryan Wingo and Duce Robsinson but watch out for Beau Sparks at Texas State and transfers Cam Coleman and Wyatt Young. Keep an eye on Michigan, Notre Dame and Alabama headlining some potential breakout WR players.
38 min
20
Dabo Swinney talks expectations, changes in the...
Greg McElroy talks with Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney about overcoming the disappointment of the 2025 season, the state of the Clemson program, how he can get the most out of this Clemson team in 2026, the ACC moving to a 9 game conference schedule and much more. Plus, McElroy looks at everything that has changed in the sport since the show started 4 years ago and wonders - what will the sport look like in four years from now?
48 min
21
Questions for EVERY SEC team after spring! | Al...
What is the one question that is standing in the way of each SEC team? Can Alabama defense carry the program while the offense figures itself out? How fast can the culture be built in Arkansas and Kentucky? Can the Florida and Texas offensive lines hold up throughout the 2026 season? Will John Mateer, Marcel Reed and LaNorris Sellers put together a complete season? Are the Tennessee and Ole Miss defenses ready to step up? McElroy looks at every SEC team and gives one BIG question that must be answered for these teams to have a successful 2026 season.
35 min
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Top 10 Quarterbacks heading into 2026! | Always...
Spring camps are over so we decided now was the best time to give you McElroy’s Top 10 QBs entering the 2026 season. Where will Arch Manning rank? How much does Dante Moore have to prove at Oregon this year? Where will CJ Carr and Jayden Maiava rank and who are the immediate impact transfers? McElroy goes over all of it plus gives you some honorable mention QBs who could work their way into the top 10 after the season.
44 min
23
1-on-1 with Jon Sumrall + Notre Dame, Penn Stat...
New Florida Gators head coach Jon Sumrall joins Greg McElroy to discuss the message he is sending to his players and Gator nation, the portal class that was brought in, what the staff learned this spring, how the QB competition is shaping up, the partnership with Brad White and when he will know that the Gators are back. Plus, McElroy looks at the spring wrap up for Notre Dame, Oregon, Penn State and North Carolina and gives you one thing to watch for.
40 min
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Is a 24-team CFP inevitable?! 👀 | Always Colle...
A 24 team College Football Playoff feels like a matter of “when” not “if” with college football power brokers and a White House presidential committee meeting in North Texas this week. McElroy is here to break down what a 24 team CFP would look like, what the impact of the presidential committee is, the impact it will have on the regular season and why it will be a good thing for the sport.
37 min
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1-on-1 with Kyle Whittingham + Texas, Miami & m...
Greg McElroy talks with Michigan head coach Klye Whittingham about his move as the head coach of the Wolverines, how Jason Beck will unleash Bryce Underwood, expectations in the the BIG 10, what he is looking for in the spring game and much more. Plus, Ohio State, Texas, Georgia, Miami and Virginia Tech all have spring games this weekend and McElroy gives you his ONE thing he wants to see from each game.