Seven college football teams with the most to prove in spring practices

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

Sports Illustrated, Colin Becht/Sports Illustrated

The 15 practices that make up spring football represent an exceptionally short window. With roughly six months until the 2017 college football season kicks off, how much are teams really expected to accomplish in a few weeks of drills and scrimmages?

However, for teams facing serious questions in the off-season (and that applies to nearly every team to some extent), spring practices offer the first insight into how those questions might get answered. For coaches on the hot seat, it’s their chance to ease some concerns so they don’t face quite so many tough questions when the preseason begins. For new coaches, there’s nothing like a good first impression. And for teams facing significant roster turnover, it marks the turning of the page, the time to put last season’s successes behind them and find new paths to victory.

As college football teams prepare for their spring practices, here are seven, listed alphabetically, with the most to prove.