Sleeper teams from each Power 4 conference: Who will exceed expectations this college football season?

With college football beginning in earnest this Saturday, many fans are anxiously awaiting to see how the chips will fall in a wide open season in 2026.

Sure, on paper, there is a clear delineation between the teams who have everything to win a national championship and the rest of the field, but as they always say, "paper never played a football game." With that in mind, I wanted to take a look at some of my favorite sleeper teams from each Power 4 conference.

PREDICTING EACH POWER 4 CONFERENCE CHAMPION AHEAD OF THE 2026 COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON I already discussed who I think is going to win each conference, but what about the teams no one sees coming that could upset the established order.

These aren't necessarily teams that I would put money on to win their respective conferences, but they are certainly could if things break the right way.

Let's take a look at some power conference teams who are flying under the radar this season.

I wrote an entire article about how shocked I was to see the Hokies not in the preseason top-25, and I was even more shocked to see they were projected to finish 8th in the ACC.

I understand it hasn't exactly been a bed of roses for Virginia Tech since legendary coach Frank Beamer retired, but the Hokies — at least to my eye — have everything they need to finish in the upper echelon of the ACC this season.

For starters, landing head coach James Franklin was an absolute coup.

RANKING THE TEN BEST COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES IN THE COUNTRY AHEAD OF THE 2026 SEASON I know I haven't been the most vocal defender of Franklin, but I still think he's a hell of a coach who will benefit from a change of scenery and a slightly less competitive conference.

The Hokies also rank top-five in the country in returning production and will feature Franklin's handpicked signal caller Ethan Grunkemeyer under center.

Grunkemeyer was forced into action after Penn State starter Drew Allar was lost for the season midway through 2025, and that experience will be invaluable for Virginia Tech this season.

A soft start to their schedule could provide the perfect "ramp up" into the meat of their slate in late October, and I wouldn't be shocked at all to see the Hokies push teams like SMU and Louisville for that silver medal spot in the ACC this year.

Everyone knows about Texas Tech and the stockpile of talent they have out in Lubbock, but I'm keeping my eye on another team on the opposite end of the Lone Star State to make some noise in the Big 12.

I'm surprised I haven't heard more about the Cougars during the preseason hype sessions, considering they won 10 games and finished in the top-25 last season, but perhaps this is right where they want to be.