Greg McElroy has locked in his picks for the 2026 conference championship games, and in each of the Big Ten, SEC and ACC, he went with the preseason media favorite.
The former Alabama quarterback and ESPN college football analyst sees Ohio State, Georgia and Miami finishing the job when the season shakes out. Week 0 is right around the corner, and with it comes the last wave of preseason predictions for 2026.
In the Big Ten, McElroy is siding with Ohio State over Oregon. The Buckeyes and Ducks are the two highest-ranked teams in both the AP Poll and USA Today Coaches Poll, and McElroy expects them to be the ones playing for the title in Indianapolis. Oregon returns more production, but McElroy believes Ohio State’s less proven pieces may have the higher ceiling.
“I have Ohio State sitting there at 11-1 in the regular season, they win it in Indianapolis,” McElroy said. “They're my No. 1 team and they're the AP's No. 1 team.
I look at the team across from them, Oregon, I love them. I don't know where exactly their losses might fall, I have two (losses) potentially in the regular season.”
The SEC pick follows a similar script. Georgia and Texas have become a popular projected matchup for the 2026 SEC Championship Game, with Georgia coming off five straight appearances in the league title game and Texas loading up through the portal to build one of the sport’s most dangerous rosters.
McElroy has both teams arriving in Atlanta at 10-2, but he’s taking Georgia to win the conference for a fourth straight season. He also believes Texas can still make the 12-team College Football Playoff even if it drops the championship game and finishes 10-3.
“Georgia goes 10-2, gets to Atlanta,” McElroy said. “You look at Kirby Smart, 10-2 in a nine-game league's not necessarily a disappointment, it's just a tax and he pays and still walks out with the trophy. Meanwhile, Texas finished 10-2 in the regular season with a loss in the conference championship game, but still a 10-3 team with that schedule, arguably the third-toughest in America with Ohio State in the non-conference, is a really good season that will be more than enough to make the College Football Playoff.”
McElroy’s ACC pick is Miami, which has become close to the consensus choice in preseason talk. The Hurricanes bring back a lot from a defense that was elite a year ago, and the arrival of Darian Mensah is expected to give the offense a much bigger ceiling than it had with Carson Beck.
“Miami, I have them going 11-1, you can probably assume where that one loss is coming, if you look at their schedule it's a little bit easier to pick out,” McElroy said. “I have them at 11-1, 12-1 after they win the ACC.”
McElroy did not weigh in on Louisville’s path in the ACC race. The Cardinals have posted at least nine wins in each of the last three seasons under Jeff Brohm, but they’re bringing in several new pieces for 2026. Even so, Louisville returns the backfield duo of Isaac Brown and Keyjuan Brown, along with multiple key defensive starters.
In Other News...
Miami Legend Xavier Restrepo Is Fighting For His NFL Future
Xavier Restrepo has turned the late summer runway into a real chance to stick in Tennessee. The former Miami standout is in his second season with the Titans after going undrafted in 2025, and he has helped himself with a stronger preseason showing, tying for the team lead in receptions through two games and finding the end zone twice in a recent joint practice.
Restrepo still has work to do before the final roster is set, but he has at least made the conversation interesting in a camp that often leaves little room for margin. If he does not land on Tennessees 53-man roster, the next stop could be the practice squad, which would keep his NFL opportunity alive and give him another path to prove he belongs. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Put A Former Receivers Exit Into NCAA Limbo
Cam Vaughns Miami tenure never got as far as a snap, but the paperwork around his exit has become its own story. The former wide receiver transferred in from West Virginia in January, then wound up in a dispute with the university after he alleged the school canceled his scholarship without explanation and would not initially submit the waiver needed for him to move on.
Now Miami has filed the legislative relief waiver with the NCAA, and Vaughn has dropped the lawsuit he had brought against the school. Even with that step taken, his next move is still stuck in the leagues hands, because the NCAA must process the waiver before he can sign with another program. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Enters 2026 With ACC Pressure It Can No Longer Dodge
Miami heads into 2026 with the kind of preseason billing every program wants and every rival resents. In a tiered ACC forecast that sorts the league by recent results, coaching stability and roster outlook, the Hurricanes are alone at the top, a sign that the conference sees them as the team to beat before a snap is played.
For Miami, that kind of status brings more than praise. After last seasons 13-win College Football Playoff run, the expectations have clearly shifted from hoping to contend to assuming it should be in the thick of the race again, even as other programs jockey below it in the next wave of contenders. The ACC picture still has plenty of uncertainty elsewhere, but Miami is now the team carrying the burden that comes with being viewed as the standard. [Read more 🡒]