As we start to approach the halfway point of the 2024 college football season, some of the teams in the Group of Five Conferences have started to make some noise. Below are the top five Group of Five Teams at this point in the season. Let’s not forget that only one team from this group will make the College Football Playoff.
Keep in mind that one loss from any of these teams will make it very difficult for them to make the playoff especially if any of the other teams remains unbeaten.
James Madison
The Dukes made some early season noise when they dropped 70 points on North Carolina Tar Heels. While the Tar Heels are down this year, putting up that many points is impressive.
Quarterback Alonzo Bartlett III is the clear leader of the offense as through four games he has passed for 1022 yards with 12 touchdowns and only one interception and has rushed for 247 yards and three touchdowns.
The defense will have to show some improvement as evidenced by the fact that they gave up 50 points in the win in Chapel Hill. The schedule the rest of the way is very manageable, however, James Madison is one of the Group of Five teams that not only can’t afford a loss but they might need some help to get into the top 12 no matter what they do.
UNLV
The Rebels football program has been down for what seems like forever. This year they are off to an impressive start with victories at Houston Cougars, a road win at Kansas Jayhawks and a 59-14 blowout over a respectable Fresno State Bulldogs squad yesterday. What makes yesterday’s win over Fresno State even more impressive is that starting quarterback Matthew Stuka decided during the week he would skip the rest of the season over an NIL dispute. However backup quarterback and now presumed starter Hajj-Malik Williams turned in a flawless performance against the Bulldogs by throwing for 182 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also picked up 119 yards on the ground with one touchdown. It looks like the Rebels might not skip a beat with Williams under center.
So far the defense has looked good enough to compete against the competition to keep them in every game.
UNLV has back-to-back difficult games this month at Oregon State Beavers followed by a home game against Boise State Broncos. If they can win both of those games and remain unbeaten they have an excellent chance to find themselves in the playoff.
Liberty
There is no doubt that the Flames will have a tough time getting to the playoffs. The playoff selection committee will certainly remember that the Flames got blown out by Oregon in last season’s Fiesta Bowl even if they never admit it. Having Saturday’s game against App State doesn’t help because it won’t be rescheduled meaning they will have one less win than the teams they will be compared to at season’s end. For now, they make our list because they have looked very good so far this season. They will need help from other teams to make the top 12.
Quarterback Kaidon Salter is the unquestioned leader of the team and is one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the nation. The Flames also have a stable of capable running backs to complement Salter. The defense will need to improve as they have given up just over 20 points per game so far this season against less-than-stellar competition.
Not only will Liberty most likely need help from other Group of Five Teams to make this year’s playoff they will also need to start putting up some dominant performances which they have not yet done so far.
Army & Navy
Let’s daydream for a minute about the hype leading up to this year’s game if a possible spot in the playoff was at stake in this year’s season finale between two of the service academies. Both teams remain unbeaten so it is a possibility.
In addition, both teams have been impressive this year beating most of their opponents decisively. What many people consider a boring game every year because of the lack of a legitimate passing attack by either team would now be viewed as a throwback to yesteryear if a playoff bid were on the line.
Both teams have looming matchups against Notre Dame which could end the playoff dream for both teams.
Similar to Liberty, the Army and Navy will both need to keep winning and do so in impressive fashion. However, if either (or both?) of them can take down the Fighting Irish and win their remaining games we could have a season finale for the ages. There is no way that an unbeaten service academy team with a win over Notre Dame will get left out of the top 12. The backlash against the committee would be too severe and the victory over Notre Dame would justify letting them in.
Boise State
The Broncos are the one team on our list that is not unbeaten this season. They do have a close loss at Oregon by a score of 37-34 in a game that could have gone their way.
Remaining road games at UNLV and Oregon State would bolster their case if they can win both of those and win all of their other games. Already having one loss means the Broncos have zero margin for error. A two-loss Group of Five teams is simply not getting a spot in the playoff.
Heisman candidate running back Ashton Jeanty is the leader of this team. Through four games he has rushed for 845 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Boise State also needs to shore up things on the defensive side of the ball. Through four games this season they have given up an average of 30 points per game. That simply isn’t going to cut it especially when they hit the road later this year for two crucial matchups.
Fortunately for the Broncos, a convincing win over previously unbeaten Washington State looks good on their resume.
There you have the list of the Group of Five teams with the best chance to crash the playoff party this season. We know that one of them will make it. We also know that only one of them will make it. Who will it be?
Main Image: © Brian Losness-Imagn Images
