10 more bold predictions for the 2025 college football season

With first-year starters at quarterback on six of the eight teams atop the preseason polls, 2025 feels like the most unpredictable college football season in years.

So what do we do when faced with an unpredictable season?  We make bold predictions with even more certainty …

1. Arch Manning will be in New York for the Heisman ceremony

It’s my full belief Arch Manning‘s last name worked against him during this offseason discourse about his ceiling. People believe he was overrated as a recruit because of his last name, which has made it easy to disregard who he is as a player. When you look at his physical skillset and what he has around him at Texas, it seems like an impossibility that he won’t be very good.

That’s when his last name is going to work in his favor. Heisman voters are lazy, and they’ll see a Manning with fat stats on a very good team and just vote for him, regardless of whether he’s most deserving. Though I think he will be deserving, the hype around his name will play a major factor in voting, which makes his trip to New York feel like a virtual lock.

2. New College Football Playoff protocol won’t have tangible change on selection process

On Wednesday, the College Football Playoff announced there would be a new strength of schedule and strength of record metrics utilized in the selection process. That, of course, is the response to last year’s results that had an 11-1 Indiana without any quality wins make the field.

Here’s the joke: nothing is going to change. Why? Because a hard schedule and quality wins have always meant a lot to the committee. This may be a new “metric,” but the CFP committee works with a binder of information that’s thicker than “War & Peace” already and these won’t have a tangible impact.

Believe it or not, playing a hard schedule and beating good teams already went a long way in determining your fait in the CFP selection process.

3. One of the “Big Three” won’t win the SEC

The three favorites to win the SEC this year are Texas, Georgia and Alabama. Most of us have felt like its an inevitability that one of those three teams will win the SEC. Honestly, it’s probably a safe bet. But is it the right one?

Think about the field. LSU, Auburn, Florida, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Mizzou. Those all seem like long shots, but if you get all of them? It seems highly likely that a few of those teams will catch lightning in a bottle this year. And considering the quarterback talent most of those teams possess, this seems like a pretty safe year for a team outside of the mold to make a run in the SEC. 

4. A 9-3 team makes the College Football Playoff

Last year’s Indiana run created a false reality where it feels like you have to be 10-2 or better to get into the College Football Playoff. That’s not true. The three teams vying for the final CFP spot last year — Alabama, Ole Miss and South Carolina — were all three-loss teams. They were, of course, blocked by an 11-1 Indiana, but a situation like last year’s probably isn’t going to play out most years. It seems highly likely that a three-loss team — or a few — get in this upcoming season.

5. Oklahoma will make the College Football Playoff

I’m really going on a limb on this one. Maybe I’m feeling a little froggy, but it just feels like the Sooners are the most undervalued team in the country heading into the season. We’ve all gotten so hyper-focused on how bad they were a year ago, fixating on things that have no application when analyzing this year. Also, Oklahoma had awful injury luck last season.

Oklahoma has a quarterback nobody appreciates yet, a new offensive coordinator, an upgraded offensive line and one of the best defensive-minded head coaches in the country. Yes, Oklahoma faces the hardest schedule I’ve ever seen, but review prediction No. 4 on this list. It could happen.

6. Carnell Tate leads Ohio State in receiver, Jeremiah Smith is the No. 1 overall pick in 2027 NFL Draft

Let me get this out there off the jump: I think Smith is the best college football receiver I’ve ever seen. I’ve been saying things like that for over a year, even before he stormed onto the scene at the end of last season. Now it’s not so hyperbolic. I legitimately think he’s a lock to be an NFL Hall of Famer, just based on his size, speed and ability.

That said, people obsess too much over stats. Though there’s only so much you can do to slow Smith, every single defense Ohio State faces is going to strive to take him away. The problem? Ohio State has a bunch of other really good receivers, too, which opens the door for Carnell Tate to have his breakout season.

But don’t worry, even if Smith isn’t as statistically productive this year or even next as he was as a true freshman, he’ll be the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft when he comes out after the 2026 season.

7. Oregon plays in the Big Ten title game again

This is the offseason of Penn State hype. It makes sense, especially considering the fact James Franklin finally has one of the top three most talented teams in college football. Penn State is going to be really, really good and is worthy of the hype. And Ohio State is, well, Ohio State.

People are anticipating Oregon is going to take a sizable step back from last season. That could happen, but those predictions may be a huge mistake. When you go up and down Oregon’s roster — on both sides of then ball — you see dude after dude after dude. Oregon also doesn’t play Ohio State or Michigan in the regular season.

Dan Lanning has built one of the best rosters in college football and he;s a young coach who is getting better and learning. Oregon may have taken the sport by storm last year, but it seems highly likely the Ducks are going to be able to do it again.

8. Austin Simmons becomes a household name in the SEC

There is so much talent at the quarterback position in the SEC. Manning, Florida’s D.J. Lagway, South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers, LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier and so many others. I don’t need to go through the whole list.

But one player that has been overshadowed as a result of his competition is Ole Miss’ Austin Simmons, who may be an overlooked emerging star. There are two context clues for why this prediction exists.

1. When Jaxson Dart got injured against Georgia last year, Simmons came into the game under what had to have been unfathomable pressure and led a touchdown drive.
2. If Simmons couldn’t play, there is no way Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin wouldn’t have hit the portal to find someone who could.

It seems highly likely that Simmons, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound freak with a big arm, has a chance to put up big numbers in Ole Miss’ high-flying offense.

9. Clemson goes undefeated on the way to ACC title

There have been people who have thought Swinney was cooked at Clemson. I’m one of them. I’ve written time and time again over the course of the past few seasons that Swinney’s stubbornness in his refusal to go all-in on the transfer portal is coaching malpractice.

But here we are, in 2025, and Clemson has one of the best rosters from top to bottom in the sport. There is no team I’m more sure will win its conference than the Tigers. So here is a bold prediction that Clemson won’t only beat LSU in the opener, but it will go wire-to-wire undefeated into the College Football Playoff like Oregon did last year.

10. Texas wins the national title

College football success is about knocking on the door. Nick Saban made winning national titles seem easy, but when you look around, he’s the only one who has been able to win them with that much regularity. Clemson’s Dabo Swinney, Georgia’s Kirby Smart and Ohio State’s Ryan Day all had to contend for years before finally breaking through and capturing the ring.

Who has been knocking on the door harder than Steve Sarkisian? It seems like a matter of when, not if, the Longhorns break through and get it done. And with high expectations for Manning, and an ultra-talented roster, Texas seems to be the team to beat heading into 2025.