A CFP berth at 10-2 is definitely a possible outcome this year
The 2016 prediction was based largely on the finish in 2015 as the young players developed and became dominating down the stretch in November
As Yella Piss mentioned, this is a different era
Having an OL and DL that is even just Big10 average would be a massive step up versus what there was for the 2024 season
I have some questions at LB (will have better depth but not sure we have a player as good as Bruener currently) and at S (I don't think we were great there in the portal)
The tough games on the schedule are Ohio St (home), Illinois (home), Oregon (home), Michigan (road), and Wisconsin (road) … how UW handles those games will be key
The other key part of the season is beating the programs that we're supposed to beat on the road … Wazzu, Maryland, and UCLA
I don't think it's unreasonable to think that this is a roster that could be 9-2 heading into the Oregon game … win that game and UW is in the CFP