25 predictions for the 2025 college football season

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It's hard to believe the 2025 college football season starts tomorrow. Congratulations on making it through another offseason of not forgetting 2019 LSU, Cam Newton at Auburn, or the time USC's players were barking like dogs in the ATT Stadium entranceway before getting dusted by Alabama. I'm proud of you! Here are 25 predictions I have for the 2025 season!

1. Ohio State repeats

I take pride in this website being a place where I can give my opinions on college football and not have my subscribers accuse me of being an Ohio State homer. I've been plenty critical of the Buckeyes, to the point where I even wrote a whole article calling for Ryan Day's job after the Michigan game! That said, I'm picking them to go back-to-back.

Despite losing a handful of important pieces from last year's team, they've still got the two best players in college football (Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs) leading each side of the ball, the usual collection of high-end talent replacing those who departed, and a head coach who's finally broken through. As we saw with Will Howard last year, new quarterback Julian Sayin doesn't have to be a superstar for the offense to roll. He'll put up even more impressive numbers than Howard, though, thanks to a receiver room that's still the nation's best, plus the addition of Purdue transfer TE Max Klare. He's the best weapon they've had at that spot in years.

The most obvious roadblocks to a repeat are how Brian Hartline (OC) and Matt Patricia (DC) fare as coordinators, and whether the defensive line is deep enough to hold up for another lengthy playoff run. I don't think the Buckeyes are slam-dunk, runaway favorites by any means, but I'll take them at what I believe their best will be against anyone else. Whether Day can finally beat Michigan for the first time since 2019 on the road to another title is a separate prediction later in the article.

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2. Penn State disappoints

The people picking Penn State to either win the national championship or make a deep run aren't out of their minds. James Franklin's squad has the best running back duo in the country in Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton, an experienced QB in Drew Allar, made smart portal additions, and pulled a coup by plucking defensive coordinator Jim Knowles from Ohio State. I see the logic in believing this is Franklin's breakthrough year on paper. I'm just not on board with it.

Last year's offense lived and died with star tight end Tyler Warren, while getting almost nothing from their receivers. Allen and Singleton will do their part on the ground, but Warren's exodus to the NFL puts even more pressure on Allar and the new group of portal receivers to step up. I've seen enough of Allar for three years –and in big games– to believe he's hit his ceiling as an acceptable QB and nothing more. Against Ohio State, Oregon, SMU, Boise State, and Notre Dame last year, Allar completed 54% of his passes, with a 6:4 TD:INT ratio that was even only that because Warren bailed him out a few times. Even if the receivers are better, they won't come close to making up for the loss of the all-world play Warren gave them.

This is more or less the same Penn State team from last year, with a few portal adds and minus their best player. They'll make the playoff behind a top ten defense and a productive ground game, while losing close-ish games to Ohio State and Oregon because Franklin still can't coach on the margins. (Plus one other loss we'll get to later.)

There are logical reasons to think Penn State can break through this season. What isn't logical is the, "Well, if Ryan Day did it - So can Franklin!" take I've seen regularly for the past five months. If that's your line of thinking, you're in for a very 'Charlie Brown will kick the football this time' scenario with the Nittany Lions. I'm still picking them to make the playoff, but I'm not buying them as a true title contender.

3. Florida State is still a mess

It's a low bar, but I fully expect Florida State to improve on last year's 2-10 record. Regardless, I've liked almost nothing I've heard coming out of Tallahassee all offseason. Whether it's camp quotes that sound like more than just coachspeak:

Or the transfer QB who keeps talking:

And talking:

The further we get from the events of last season, the less I think they were a blip for Mike Norvell's program. The Noles will be looking for a new head coach when they lose to Florida to end the regular season. Which means......

4. Jimbo Fisher returns to Florida State

Let's get spicy. The wheels are already in motion for Jimbo Fisher's coaching return, wherever that may be:

He even did a podcast this summer talking about his days at FSU and how he never wanted to leave:

There's a strong segment of Noles fans who still love Jimbo for good reason. I'm not trying to be funny either when I say him returning wouldn't be the worst move - depending on his coordinator choices. I also imagine it'd be at a hefty discount, given FSU's buyout for Norvell, plus how much Fisher clearly loves FSU. It may seem ridiculous on the surface, but watching guys like Scott Frost and Rich Rodriguez return to their old programs has me eyeing this as an outside possibility once the coaching carousel revs up again.

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5. You realize how unreal last year's Heisman race was when this year's returns to QB talk 24/7

Last year's Heisman race was the best since Reggie Bush vs. Vince Young in 2005. While Travis Hunter dominated on both sides of the ball like no other player in modern football history, Ashton Jeanty compiled the greatest pure running back season since Barry Sanders in 1988. Both were worthy of the Heisman based off their on-field achievements, while also having the requisite compelling stories surrounding them to capture the average fan and voter. Throw in the fact that neither played QB, and you had an all-time race. I'd love to be wrong, but don't expect something similar this season. Of ESPN's top-20 player odds to win the Heisman, 17 are QBs:

If Texas and Clemson are as great as people think they'll be, this feels like a pre-ordained duel between Arch Manning and Cade Klubnik. Sure, there'll inevitably be receivers and running backs who pop into the discussion over the course of the season, but I can't shake the feeling that we're headed back to the drab QB arguments that've dominated most Heisman races for the past 20 years.

6. Utah sends Kyle Whittingham out with a Big 12 title and playoff appearance

It's no secret that Kyle Whittingham is closing in on retirement. Two decades into leading Utah, he's taking things "year-to-year," and the Utes already have his successor on staff. What started with a top-15 ranking and playoff dreams last year ended abruptly thanks to injuries and an offense in disarray - which held back a nasty defense. Utah lost seven straight at one point before winning their final game to finish 5-7. Whittingham couldn't stand the idea of ending his storied tenure like that, so he's back for at least one more swing that I believe will send him out on a high note.

The offense gets a much-needed injection of firepower with the hire of New Mexico Offensive Coordinator Jason Beck, who's joined by his dynamic QB for the Lobos in Devon Dampier. Dampier isn't the greatest passer, but his presence as a runner and playmaker gives Utah a level of pure electricity they haven't had recently. The line is experienced, the backfield is stocked, and Whittingham added to the receiver group through the portal. Pair that with a defense that will at the very least be a top-25 unit, and a schedule that brings Texas Tech, Arizona State, and Kansas State to Salt Lake? Whittingham gets a deserved storybook sendoff after 20 spectacular years.

7. The teams who finish 13-16 in the final CFP rankings whine for more playoff expansion

This was on last year's predictions and I'm using it as a free space here.

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8. Urban Meyer has to publicly deny interest in the Florida job on Big Noon Kickoff at some point

I need a Bill Clinton-style, "I have not, and will not, have conversations with anyone at the University of Florida about their head coaching position," point-and-look directly into the camera when this happens.