Desmond Howard's Surprising Pick To Win College Football National Championship

College football changed drastically this offseason in terms of conference expansion. The Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners joined the SEC. The Oregon Ducks, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, and Washington Huskies moved to the Big Ten. The Arizona Wildcats, Arizona State Sun Devils, Colorado Buffaloes, and Utah Utes joined the Big 12. The Stanford Cardinal, California Golden Bears, and SMU Mustangs moved to the ACC.

Desmond Howard picked a new conference member for his pick to win the Big Ten and the national championship. He honored his Michigan Wolverines heritage by not choosing the Ohio State Buckeyes. Howard won the Heisman as a wide receiver for Michigan in 1991.

The former Michigan WR decided to pick Oregon to win the Big Ten and national championship on "College GameDay." Oregon has played in a national championship game before but never won it. The Ducks reached the final round of the College Football Playoff in 2014 and lost to Ohio State.

Oregon has not made the playoff since losing that game to Ohio State.

Head coach Dan Lanning has had a successful stint in Eugene. He has a record of 22-5 heading into his third season with the program. He returns plenty of talent after losing players like Quarterback Bo Nix, running back Bucky Irving, and receiver Troy Franklin to the NFL draft.

Running back Jordan James, WR Tez Johnson, defensive end Jordan Burch, and linebacker Jeffrey Bassa are some of the top returning players for Oregon.

Lanning also utilized the portal well. He brought in transfers like former Oklahoma QB Dillon Gabriel, former Texas A&M Aggies WR Evan Stewart, and former Washington Huskies corner Jabbar Muhammad.

Oregon starts the 2024 season against the Idaho Vandals on Aug. 31. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network.

Related: Colin Cowherd Makes Prediction For Massive CFB Matchup Between Ohio State And Oregon