Favorite Underdogs From Each P4 Conference To Make The College Football Playoff

With the recruiting landscape starting to heat up in these past couple of weeks as well as the calendar flipping over to July, the return of college football is starting to feel within our grasp.

That being said, these next eight weeks are going to feel like an eternity until our beloved sport is back, so I figured what better way to pass the time than to gas up some College Football Playoff underdogs.

I decided to sift through the Power 4 conferences (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC) and pick one longshot from each to make it to the promised land of the Playoff.

With the shift to a 12-team playoff, there is likely to be at least one "out of left field" team, a la Indiana last year, to make a splash in the college football landscape.

Without any further ado, let's dive in!

ACC: Georgia Tech

While Georgia Tech may not be considered a true long shot in the ACC - they currently hold the fifth-best odds to win the conference - they're coming in at +15,000 according to DraftKings to win the national championship.

I really like this Yellow Jackets team, particularly on offense.

They possess a lethal backfield combination with dual-threat quarterback Haynes King and sensational running back Jamal Haynes both returning, and while they lost stud wide receiver Eric Singleton to the transfer portal, they mitigated that loss nicely with the portal addition of the highly sought-after Eric Rivers from FIU.

The Rambling Wreck is 26th in returning production, and will face a relatively tame schedule, getting Clemson and Georgia at home while avoiding Miami entirely.

The ACC looks like a two-horse race with the Tigers and Hurricanes jockeying for conference title honors, but I wouldn't be shocked if Tech emerged on top at season's end.

Big Ten: Illinois

This should come as a shock to absolutely no one, but there is a reason Illinois is everyone's darling to make a Cinderella run to the Playoff in 2025.

We will start with their head coach, as Bret Bielema returns with a ton of big game experience going all the way back to his days at Wisconsin.

Their quarterback, Luke Altmeyer, also returns after leading the Illini to their first ten-win season since the Bush administration.

Illinois ended the season on an absolute tear, including a minor bowl upset over the red-hot South Carolina Gamecocks, but the biggest reason for optimism out of Champagne is the returning production.

After securing double-digit wins, the Illini rank third in the nation in returning production.

Couple that with a forgiving schedule (no Oregon or Michigan along with Ohio State at home), and you can see why pundits are picking Illinois to bust down the CFP's doors this coming season.

Big 12: Texas Tech

Similarly to Georgia Tech in the ACC, Texas Tech's odds of winning a wide-open Big 12 aren't incredibly long, but they're +12,000 to win a national title and I think they are gaining a lot of buzz as a trendy team to make a CFP appearance.

The Red Raiders were a sneaky 8-5 team last year that flew mostly under the radar, save for a big win over #11 Iowa State in Ames, but two things really stand out to me this offseason.

For starters, they rank fourth in the nation in returning production at 75%, including a defense that ranks number one in that same category.

Then, when you throw in their second-ranked transfer class, with a big chunk of that class being made up of highly coveted trench players, you have a recipe for success.

As I mentioned, the Big 12 is about as wide open as it gets, so don't be shocked if Texas Tech rides a combination of returning production and big money transfer portal additions to a Playoff berth.

I am a big fan of what head coach Joey Maguire is building in Lubbock. Now it's time to see if the labor bears some fruit.

SEC: Oklahoma

This was nearly a three-way tie between Oklahoma, Florida, and South Carolina.

All three had similar odds to win the SEC, but I decided to roll with the Sooners by process of elimination.

South Carolina plays a similarly brutal schedule as Oklahoma does, but the Sooners are top-ten in returning production while the Gamecocks are all the way down at 71st.

Florida has the returning production I am looking for (18th), a stud signal caller in DJ Lagway, and first-round talent on both lines of scrimmage, but I can't fully trust Billy Napier as a playcaller in big games.

That leaves Oklahoma, with the aforementioned returning production to go along with a very solid portal class, headlined by quarterback John Mateer, as my pick.

The Sooners have signed a top-ten recruiting class in three of the past four cycles, so the cupboard is stacked with talent for Brent Venebles to make a run this year.

I felt as though Oklahoma was a quarterback away from having a much better year in 2024, and Mateer is a clear upgrade over the likes of Jackson Arnold.

Don't let that 6-6 record from last season fool you. This is a talented roster with an elite defensive line and a high-end quarterback, two very important ingredients to make a Playoff run.