Written by Barton Simmons at CBS Sports.com
A new college football season means a fresh slate for teams and coaches around the country, but it also means a new set of pressures. Some programs waste no time staring down those pressures and though it’s only Week 1, there are already a few games that carry ‘must-win’ status. Here are six teams that absolutely have win their opening games of 2017.
NC State
The expectations this season are enormous for NC State. It boasts one of college football’s best defensive lines. It returns almost all of its offensive skill and a 3,000-yard passer. Our own Barrett Sallee calls for the Wolfpack to finish ahead of Louisvilleand Florida State in the ACC while others have even predicted a playoff berth. And yet under coach Dave Doeren, NC State has never finished better than 4th in its own division.
Those expectations all come tumbling down with a loss to South Carolina and that disappointment could turn up the heat on Doeren’s coaching seat. There are also regional recruiting implications on the line as South Carolina tries to ascend after a few years pulling up the rear in the Carolinas.
Georgia
Georgia could be this year’s SEC East champion. Or it could just be last year’s Tennessee. Remember the 2016 Vols? They were everyone’s pick to win the East (including mine) with a talented returning roster, an experienced quarterback and a wide open division. Then Tennessee played Appalachian State at home and barely survived with a win. That game was more predictive of a disappointing season than anyone could have guessed.
This year, it’s Georgia with the returning starter at quarterback and the most talented roster in the division that is the popular pick to win the East (including mine). But like Tennessee last year, it doesn’t feel like they’ve quite earned the trust to be prohibitive favorites. Like Tennessee, Georgia has the dangerous Mountaineers to start the season and App. State should be even better than the team Tennessee faced. An impressive win by Georgia could be the confidence booster to shoulder the burden of those expectations, but a disappointing showing or an upset loss could pull the legs out from under those lofty visions.
Vanderbilt
There’s some foreboding line movement coming out of Vegas if you’re a Vanderbilt fan. The Commodores opened as 9-point favorites playing down the road at MTSU. That line has plummeted down to 3.5 at last check. That tells me that there are some smart people with money at stake that see the Blue Raiders as a big threat to win its fourth game against Vanderbilt in its last six tries.
Vanderbilt went to a bowl last year in Derek Mason’s third season in Nashville and improved on its win total for the second straight season. A loss to Middle Tennessee would make the margin for error very slim for continued improvement. In addition to the SEC slate that includes a cross-divisional game against Alabama, Vandy also gets a tough Kansas State team out of conference and one of college football’s best mid-majors in Western Kentucky. A loss in week one means a suddenly steep uphill climb for bowl eligibility.
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