In today’s Fact or Fiction national columnist Mike Farrell looks at three big recent topics in college football and decides whether each statement is indeed FACT or if it’s FICTION.
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1. Kentucky has the best OL in the SEC now.
FARRELL'S TAKE: FACT. This is hard to say because there are so many elite offensive lines in the SEC but with the addition of Dare Rosenthal, a starter at left tackle for LSU last season, Kentucky is loaded. With Darian Kinnard back at tackle, Jeremy Flax would likely push inside and Luke Fortner will likely be the other guard or push inside to center to compete with Quintin Wilson and Kenneth Horsey at center as they try to replace Drake Jackson.
Obviously Alabama, Georgia and others are loaded at offensive line but they don’t have the depth and experience heading into the season that Kentucky has now.
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2. Demetris Robertson can return to his Cal form at Auburn.
FARRELL'S TAKE: FICTION. I want to say yes to this because of the amazing potential Demetris Robertson once showed and how good he was at the start of his career but he’s just not the same player. He’s still fast but not as sudden and he can’t juke the way he used to. I think he has a solid year at Auburn but a return to his freshman, all-conference form is unlikely.
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3. Miami can win the national title this year.
FARRELL'S TAKE: FICTION. I love Pro Football Focus, I really do. I find the analytics fun and the debates lively but when I saw one of their experts pick Miami to win the national title this year I had to quash that. That’s not going to happen.
In fact, the odds of that happening over the next five years are 50-1 in my book as I wrote Thursday. The Hurricanes lack the offensive weapons to outscore everyone and the defense has some big holes to fill. Winning their division will be hard enough. Winning the ACC overall will be even harder. Then winning the playoff? No way.