Loyal to a fault: These 5 teams are paying the price for sticking with familiar faces in 2026

Unproven internal offensive coordinators and standing pat under center have turned two preseason top-10 powerhouses into the biggest busts of 2026 We value loyalty everywhere in our society, from our partners to our pets, but especially within sports. The players and coaches who stay out of loyalty are beloved. Those who leave are traitors. In college football, the transfer portal and the coaching carousel have especially amplified those feelings. But what if loyalty can be … bad? Especially loyalty in the face of evidence that suggests change could be good for all involved? It's a situation college coaches find themselves in every season. Do they stick with what they know or go for a potential upgrade?

There are risks in believing the grass may be greener elsewhere, but there are real risks in not capitalizing on a window to improve the program out of loyalty. Misplaced loyalty, in fact, may define two of the bigger disappointments of the 2026 season thus far. Oregon and Texas A&M started the season ranked Nos. 2 and 8 in the country, respectively. The Ducks even received 14 first-place votes and were a popular preseason pick to be national champions. It made sense on paper, as Oregon returned star quarterback Dante Moore and other key contributors from a team that reached a College Football Playoff