ESPN ranks college football's Top 10 offseasons among Power Four teams

With most Power Four teams having already wrapped up their Spring practices over the past several weeks, the college football offseason is officially entering its Summer Break phase. And with no second transfer portal window to create chaos, most Power Four rosters are effectively set three months ahead of the start of the 2026 college football season.

That makes this the perfect time to evaluate the offseasons for each Power Four team and determine which teams won the offseason and set themselves up for prosperity in 2026, and which still have work to do. ESPN’s experts delivered a detailed breakdown of every Power Four team’s offseason and then ranked them within each conference as well as a Top 10 overall list to identify next season’s true contenders.

In the day and age of NIL, revenue-sharing, and the transfer portal, college football rosters face more turnover than ever, leading to significant offseasons across the sport. To determine which teams had the best offseasons, ESPN’s Eli Lederman, Max Olsen, and Adam Rittenberg ranked each Power Four team by prioritizing three key areas: roster additions through the portal and high school ranks; retention of top players; and coaching staff continuity or key upgrades.

With that in mind, check out how ESPN’s experts rank the Top 10 best offseasons among the Power Four ranks:

1. Indiana Hoosiers

For a team that won its first-ever national championship in football, the Hoosiers’ offseason couldn’t have gone better as Curt Cignetti looks to build his own dynasty in Bloomington. Despite losing key pieces from last year’s squad, including No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick Fernando Mendoza, Indiana reloaded with On3’s No. 1 transfer portal class, highlighted by QB Josh Hoover, WR Nick Marsh, and OG Joe Brunner. Add in the player and staff retentions, and the Hoosiers are once again built to win it all in 2026.

ESPN: “Indiana isn’t going anywhere after winning its first national title, putting together an offseason that sets up the team for even more success. The coaching staff continuity is staggering, and Indiana addressed clear portal needs at quarterback, wide receiver and pass rusher, while retaining core players at offensive line, defensive tackle and linebacker.”

2. Miami Hurricanes

After falling short in last season’s College Football Playoff national title game, Mario Cristobal and the Hurricanes redoubled their efforts this offseason and are primed to make another serious championship push in 2026. Not only did Miami reel in former Duke QB Darian Mensah from the portal, it also added star pass rusher Damon Wilson II from Missouri to help alleviate the loss of Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor to the NFL. Cristobal also managed to retain CFP star Mark Fletcher Jr. among other key figures.

ESPN: “Mario Cristobal’s pedal-down personnel approach got Miami to the brink of a national title, and his program is showing no sign of slowing down. The Darian Mensah addition from Duke solidifies the offense, and Missouri transfer Damon Wilson II should help offset NFL losses at pass rusher. Miami also retained all of its coordinators from a staff that works well together.”

3. Texas Longhorns

With superstar QB Arch Manning likely off to the NFL next year, Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian went all-in on making a CFP national title run in 2026. That included diving head-first into the transfer portal with 22 new additions for On3’s No. 10 portal class, highlighted by WR Cam Coleman (Auburn) RBs Hollywood Smothers (NC State) and Raleek Brown (Arizona State), and LB Rasheem Biles (Pitt). An underrated move that should pay major dividends was the hiring of new/old DC Will Muschamp.

ESPN: “Texas had a very aggressive offseason with who it retained (quarterback Arch Manning and others), who it added from the portal (wide receiver Cam Coleman, running back Hollywood Smothers and others) and even with its defensive coordinator change (Will Muschamp returning to Austin to replace the respected Pete Kwiatkowski).”

4. Oregon Ducks

Dan Lanning started the Ducks’ offseason by promoting internal candidates to replace coordinators Tosh Lupoi and Will Stein, who left to become first-time head coaches at Cal and Kentucky, respectively. More importantly, Oregon managed to retain several key playmakers on both sides of the ball, including star QB Dante Moore and DE Matayo Uiagalelei. The Ducks also added elite S Koi Perich (Minnesota), OL Michael Bennett (Yale), and QB Dylan Raiola (Nebraska), who plans to redshirt with eyes on 2027.

ESPN: “The Ducks retained quarterback Dante Moore, a top NFL prospect, as well as their entire starting defensive line, wide receiver Evan Stewart and other key contributors. They again lost no starters in the portal, while adding Minnesota safety Koi Perich and others.”

5. LSU Tigers

Arguably, no other Power Four team experienced more turnover than LSU, beginning with the hiring of former Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin before last season’s CFP. Kiffin then went about overhauling the Tigers’ roster with 40 new transfer additions in On3’s No. 5 portal class. That included landing QB Sam Leavitt, On3’s No. 1 overall transfer, along with OT Jordan Seaton and DE Princewell Umanmielen. Add in the staff members Kiffin poached from Ole Miss and LSU is poised for a return to the Playoffs in 2026.

ESPN: “LSU retained star defensive coordinator Blake Baker, brought over key assistants from Ole Miss and made portal splashes with quarterback Sam Leavitt, offensive tackle Jordan Seaton, defensive lineman Princewill Umanmielen and others.”

6. USC Trojans

Following another disappointing season in Hollywood, USC head coach Lincoln Riley managed to retain several vital pieces including star QB Jayden Maiava and RBs Waymond Jordan and King Miller on offense, as well as DLs Kameryn Crawford and Jahkeem Stewart. USC also added WR Terrell Anderson (NC State), DE Zuriah Fisher (Penn State) and CB Jontez Williams (Iowa State) out of the portal. Riley also convinced former TCU coach Gary Patterson to return to college football as the Trojans’ new DC.

ESPN: “Lincoln Riley says USC’s championship window is opening now in Year 5. The Trojans have backed up that ambition with major investment in its roster and the No. 1-ranked recruiting class, and they answered their few lingering needs with proven portal talent.”

7. Texas Tech Red Raiders

The Red Raiders once again dropped a bag on the transfer portal, including signing star QB Brendan Sorsby (Cincinnati). And while Sorsby’s 2026 status is in doubt pending an NCAA investigation into his gambling, Texas Tech still had the Big 12’s best offseason with On3’s No. 2 overall portal class. That included rebuilding its pass rush with the additions of LBs Austin Romaine (Kansas State), Adam Trick (Miami of Ohio) and Trey White (San Diego State), while retaining key pieces such as WR Micah Hudson.

ESPN: “The Red Raiders checked every other box with their offseason recruiting victories, reloading with premium portal pickups and blue-chip high school talent, to go along with strong roster and staff retention.”

8. Ole Miss Rebels

Despite an offseason that began before the end of last season with the departure of Lane Kiffin and subsequent promotions of DC Pete Golding to head coach, the Rebels still managed to emerge no worse for wear. That’s thanks to returning superstar QB Trinidad Chambliss, who won his eligibility case vs. the NCAA in February, as well as star RB Kewan Lacy, DT Will Echoles and LB Suntarine Perkins. Golding also added DBs Joenel Aguero (Georgia), Jay Crawford (Auburn), Sharif Denson (Florida) out of the portal.

ESPN: “New coach Pete Golding did an impressive job of reloading throughout the defense via the transfer portal. He and his staff capitalized on their CFP momentum and did what they needed to do to remain a contender in 2026.”

9. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

While not technically a Power Four team, the Fighting Irish entered the offseason with a serious chip on its shoulder after last season’s CFP snub. Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman rebuilt his defense under second-year DC Chris Ash with several new staff additions and portal signings, including DTs Francis Brewu (Pitt) and Tionne Gray (Oregon). Add in another season with QB CJ Carr, CBs Leonard Moore and Christian Gray, as well as signing Rivals’ No. 2 recruiting class, and the Irish could be elite in 2026.

ESPN: “Coach Marcus Freeman rejected NFL interest knowing this Irish team has more than enough coming back to make another CFP run. The Irish have a ton of talent for 2026, inked a top-five recruiting class and met their portal needs with high-upside additions at defensive tackle and wide receiver.”

10. Ohio State Buckeyes

Last but hardly least are the Buckeyes, who won it all in 2024 and nearly made another deep CFP run in 2025. Ohio State lost plenty of talent to the NFL, including four Top 11 picks, but managed to replace them with several key portal additions, including former Alabama defenders Qua Russaw and James Smith, and S Earl Little Jr. (Florida State). Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day also returns star WR Jeremiah Smith while landing Rivals’ No. 3 recruiting class, highlighted by five-star WR Chris Henry Jr.

ESPN: “It’s hard to nitpick much about how the Buckeyes’ offseason played out with plenty of star power returning and key veteran additions on defense. New OC Arthur Smith‘s influence on their offensive direction will be intriguing to follow as this squad pursues its second national championship in three years.”