Podcaster Poll

          Today we take a look at the FunBelt PodCast’s ballot and hear about what they believe 2023 has in store for Alabama, Tulane, the Big 10, Texas, and the Sun Belt. The SunBelt PodCast ranked as the fourth most irregular ballot with a score of 59.2 compared to the median score of 29.4. You can read more about the Irregularity Index here.

          Coming in at second on the FunBelt PodCast’s ballot was the Alabama Crimson Tide. 2022 was something of a down year for an Alabama fan base which has come to expect playoff contention as an expectation, not a goal. With the loss of Heisman caliber quarterback Bryce Young there are absolute questions surrounding the Crimson Tide and how competitive they can be in the new SEC status quo where LSU, Tennessee, and Georgia are on the rise,”Alabama for 2022 was the 2nd best team in the nation despite dropping a pair of games in the season. I think we’ve seen the peak of Alabama football though and especially after the QB woes in T-Town, the Tide will have an uphill battle to win the SEC West and the SEC as a whole.”

          At number three on the FunBelt PodCast’s ballot was one of the bolder picks of the entire Pod Poll and the pick which propelled the podcast into its place as the fourth most irregular ballot. Tulane at number three,”Tulane was a great team in 2022 and showed that in their bowl game win. With that said, they were the hot G5 team this year, likely there will be another team to fill that role in 2023, but every year we see that one G5 team really propel to the top.”

          Farther back than its average standing was Ohio State, which the FunBeltPodCast ranked at number six. But that doesn’t mean that the Big 10 is weak. In fact, quite the opposite,”Ohio State will be near the top of the standings in the Big10, but Michigan is the team to beat this year, as Harbaugh finally has all of the pieces in place to make another CFP run. The fact that 2 Big10 teams were in the CFP semi-finals, shows that it finally has arrived on the scene.”

          From the ACC, coming in at 22 is Duke. The team made leaps and strides in improving its program’s standings in 2022 and seems poised to continue improving,“They have to be the better team in the ACC Coastal; UNC just seemed a little snake bit last year but Duke looks to have the team to make a title run.

          On Texas, the FunBelt PodCast is split on their expectations,“Texas is a peak and valley team – they show that they can hang with alabama one week, then struggle with Iowa State. Quinn Ewers looks to have solidified the QB role, but his play will dictate the successes for the Horns.

          Finally, we take a look at the podcast’s namesake, the Sun Belt. As per tradition, we asked what happens in the Sun Belt and what 2023 has in store for the conference,“Early on, Troy returns the most and should once again be in contention to capture the SBC West and the SBC title. App State was really off last year, and with the talent that departed, I look for this to be a reload year for the ‘Neers. I would look out for Georgia Southern on the east side, but Head Coach Clay Helton has to break in a new QB and that will dictate how successful/unsuccessful the Eagles are.

          You can check out the FunBelt PodCast here, and follow the PodPoll Twitter for article updates. You can also check out the PodPollCast for some great, in depth discussions!