Kings of the North College Football

It's Michigan vs. Utah on this KOTN Showdown, as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis examine two winning programs with new quarterbacks and new offensive coordinators who are looking to bounce back into College Football Playoff contention after down seasons in 2024. Then the guys dive into the history of major NCAA penalties to provide some context as Michigan prepares for its hearing before the Commi...

The Big Ten and SEC are in control of college football - one silent partner and one very loud partner. After the SEC popped off all of last week, and the Big Ten stayed in the shadows as usual, Kings of the North is here to ask -- is the Big Ten losing the PR war to the SEC? On this episode Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis discuss how the Big Ten should handle itself, how this PR battle matters, th...

Can the Ohio State Buckeyes repeat as national champions in the 2025 college football season? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis go inside the numbers on attempted title repeats since the start of the BCS. That includes how many champs returned starting quarterbacks, lost coordinators and would have made an expanded 12-team playoff. There's a big picture discussion here ab...

Can teams jump up to college football blue blood status, and can programs not considered blue bloods win national titles? That's one of the questions in this Ask KOTN mailbag on Kings of the North. This Monday show is not live because of the holiday, but we are glad you're here as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis take questions and comments, analyze feedback on Ohio State noon games, and entertain...

In the expanded College Football Playoff era, will conference depth matter more than it did before? And is the Big Ten ready to compete with the SEC when it comes to not only elite teams at the top, but better teams in Tiers 2 and 3? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis look at the playoff history of conference depth, and come up with some surprising answers. Then it's 16 sh...

Which college football teams won the offseason? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises is joined by Adam Rittenberg to run through offseason winners from Oregon to Utah, from Penn State to Illinois. Then it's onto another KOTN Showdown, as Doug and Bill Landis debate two teams with sophomore quarterbacks who could be ready to break out. That's Washington and Demond Williams Jr. and Nebraska a...

It's time for another college football KOTN Showdown as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis pit BYU and Indiana against each other as upstarts from 2024 who are trying to, and could, continue their program momentum with runs at the playoff in 2025. Who would you rather be this season? But first, Doug is joined by Connor O'Gara of Saturday Down South. O'Gara has to admit that Doug is a genius for one o...

College football is considering a 16-team playoff, and to start this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis break down what that would mean for the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12 and ACC, and how it would affect fans from when it comes to scheduling and getting more great college football games in a season. Then it's the first KOTN Showdown of the offseason, as Doug and Bill compare two similar...

Which players from the 2025 transfer portal will be the stars that help shape Northern college football this fall? On this Kings of the North, Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises look at the most impactful Northern transfers from 2024 to help get a handle on 2025. And then they run though the 23 Northern portal additions they think will make the biggest differences for their teams this season. That's...

Michigan coach Sherrone Moore will be suspended for two games in the 2025 college football season, ESPN reported Monday. What's it mean for the Wolverines? Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis discuss it to open this Kings of the North. Then it's onto the heart of the show -- has your Northern college football team had a perfect QB in its history? Based on winning, stats, big plays and legendary aura,...

Four offensive lines in Northern college football are primed for great seasons in 2025. Another three are in pretty good shape. And then a lot of them are under pressure, as Kings of the North dives into the trenches on this episode. You'll learn: • Which teams are working the transfer portal for O-linemen • What kind of transfers have the most success on the offensive line • Which teams handled o...

Shedeur Sanders was the biggest story of the 2025 NFL Draft, but Quinn Ewers was the quarterback lesson that should have the greatest lasting effect on college football. On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis look at the one thing that did NOT happen in this draft for college quarterbacks and what that means for the future of third-year college football quarterbacks like Arch...

The SEC and the South used to dominate the NFL Draft. But those days are over -- though not many people will tell you the truth about that. On Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis explode Southern draft myths while explaining how the Northern talent wave is already here and will continue. From development to keeping North talent home, they dive into the reasons this is happening. Th...

The transfer portal window for the spring is wide open in college football, and Kings of the North isn't looking just at what's happening, but at what are the right ways to go about winning in the portal. On this KOTN, from Oregon, Indiana and Colorado relying heavily on transfers last year, to Iowa, Utah and Iowa State barely doing anything in the portal a year ago, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landi...

Michigan true freshman Bryce Underwood seems poised to seize the starting job for the Wolverines in 2025, and if he does, where might he fit in the hierarchy of best college football quarterbacks? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis look at and take apart the consensus rankings of the best returning quarterbacks in college football. Southern QBs are overrated and too many N...

Ohio State has created an receiver pipeline and it's a huge part of the Buckeyes' success. How do they do it, what can other teams learn from it, what other teams have been elevated by great receiver play, and do your NEED great receivers to win at the highest level in college football? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis dive into the stats and strategies of dominating a p...

What college football teams are already locks for the 2025 College Football Playoff? What teams are the greatest contenders to be the next Indiana, SMU or Arizona State to come from off the radar? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis each drop three locks and three dark horses for this season. Plus, there's news from around college football on a 5-star receiver prospect reaf...

Frauds or Fearsome? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis play that game with college football teams across the South. Gotta keep an eye on those guys. From Georgia to Miami, from Clemson to Texas, from LSU to USC, the Doug and Bill run through 14 Non-Northern teams in rapid fire succession and decide whether anyone in the North needs to worry about them this season. Plus it'...

From quarterback play at Syracuse to offensive line action at Pitt, from young stars at Oregon to a receiver search at Utah, from Nebraska offensive plans to Indiana pass protection, Kings of the North takes you around Northern spring football on this episode. Then it's the fourth region of our Most Important Person in Northern Football bracket. This time, Bill Landis has 16 seeds for Defensive Pl...

Penn State coach James Franklin is entering Year 12 leading the Nittany Lions, with his best chance at a national title yet. But there haven't been many modern coaches who won their first national title in Year 12. Is Franklin ready to lead a natty run this season? Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis discuss that. They also open the show with their latest region for their Most Important Person in Nort...

Where will your college football coach be in five years? Only 11 of our 28 Northern coaches were in their current jobs five years ago, so on this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis look to 2030 and guess who the head coaches will be then. Will your coach be around? If not, who might be a replacement? Then it's the second region in our bracket of Most Important People in Northern C...

Which college football quarterbacks will have the greatest impact on the North in the 2025 season? On this Kings of the North, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis unveil their first bracket of the spring, and it's the 16 Northern quarterbacks with the chance to affect this season the most. With the help of the audience, they'll produce a bracket winner. But first, it's a look at which teams are having...

It's a college football recruiting reset for the Class of 2026, from a Clemson invasion to Oregon's national reach, from Northern victories in the South to Kansas wins in its homestate, from Maryland five-stars to quarterback commits at Penn State, Michigan State, Notre Dame and more. Join Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis for a spin through Northern recruiting on this Kings of the North. Then, all...

It's college football trades on Kings of the North, as the rosters of teams like Michigan, Pitt, Kansas State, Iowa, Texas, Ohio State, Clemson, Penn State and Oregon are examined and some tweaks found ... if only college football allowed trades. It's a version of transfer portal movement where teams on both sides get something. But Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis had more trouble with the trades...

The 2025 College Football Playoff is less than 10 month away, so how could Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis not have playoff picks on the board yet? They are fixing that on this episode of Kings of the North, putting their first 12-team brackets on record. How many North teams? How many South? How many locks? Who are the off-the-radar contenders like Indiana and Arizona State turned out to be last...