Predicting every college football Power 5 conference for the 2022 season

As much as college football has changed over the past few seasons through the transfer portal, conference realignment and NIL money, the lopsided nature of the sport has largely remained unchanged.

Alabama, Clemson, Georgia and Ohio State are still the most dominant teams in the FBS, and it’s difficult to find any other program that might challenge them for one of the four spots in the College Football Playoff.

If you’re a fan of the 127 other FBS teams, an expanded playoff can’t get here soon enough.

As the 2022 college football season kicks off with 11 games on Saturday, here are predictions for each of the Power 5 conferences:

ACC

Atlantic

Clemson 11-1, 8-0

NC State 10-2, 6-2

Louisville 8-4, 5-3

Wake Forest 8-4, 4-4

Florida State 6-6, 4-4

Boston College 6-6, 3-5

Syracuse 4-8, 2-6

Coastal

Miami 9-3, 6-2

Pittsburgh 8-4, 5-3

North Carolina 8-4, 5-3

Virginia 6-6, 3-5

Virginia Tech 6-6, 3-5

Georgia Tech 3-9, 2-6

Duke 2-10, 0-8

ACC champion: Clemson
Offensive player of the year: Devin Leary, QB, NC State
Defensive player of the year: Bryan Bresee, DT, Clemson
Freshman of the year: Blake Miller, OT, Clemson
Impact transfer: Kedon Slovis, QB, Pittsburgh (USC)
Coach of the year: Dave Doeren, NC State
Coach on the hot seat: Geoff Collins, Georgia Tech
Coordinator who will be a head coach: Josh Gattis, offensive coordinator, Miami
Nonconference game of the year: Clemson at Notre Dame, Nov. 5
Conference game of the year: Clemson vs. NC State, Oct. 1
Upset of the year: Louisville over NC State, Nov. 19

Three bold predictions for the ACC

1. Clemson goes back to the CFP: The Tigers had a bit of a rebuild last season, especially on offense, but they still won 10 games for the 11th straight year, which shows how solid Dabo Swinney’s foundation is built. Now Clemson will have to do it without longtime defensive coordinator Brent Venables, who left for Oklahoma, and offensive coordinator Tony Elliott, who departed for Virginia. Clemson’s offensive woes were exposed in a 10-3 loss to eventual national champion…