For as much as it seemed significant swaths of the country were rooting against Michigan’s run to the program’s first national championship since 1997, college football fans of historically relevant programs not named Georgia, Alabama and Ohio State should have been inspired by Monday night’s result.

The Wolverines featured just two consensus five-star recruits — running back Donovan Edwards and cornerback Will Johnson, each of whom just happened to make massive contributions to Michigan’s 34-13 victory over Washington. But the Wolverines were a true team in every sense of the word. They were developed methodically by an excellent staff led by Jim Harbaugh and came together to change every narrative that existed about their program

On one hand, if Michigan can do it, many programs can do it. On the other, the Wolverines did it the hard way. It took three years of getting to this point that formed a resolve that wouldn’t break.

Who has the best chance to dethrone Michigan in 2024, the first year of the College Football Playoff’s 12-team format?

The fun part about this year’s “way-too-early top-25” is that basically any team listed here should have a puncher’s chance to find itself in the bracket next December if some things break the right way.

Ranking teams this early in the era of the transfer portal is a fool’s errand. Knowing rosters will remain in flux through the spring, I’ll be leaning toward teams with a proven quarterback and a dependable culture of winning more than going deep into the depth charts for answers.