Every team starts the year undefeated, but only a handful have a legitimate chance of winning the College Football Playoff.
After a long dry spell, Miami may be returning to that group of teams that can contend for the national championship. The Hurricanes finished 2016 with five straight wins, the first Miami team to do so since 2001, and notched their first bowl win since 2006.
It might seem difficult for the Hurricanes to keep that momentum going since quarterback Brad Kaaya declared for the 2017 NFL draft, but Miami is trending upward in a variety of ways that should allow it to more than offset that loss.