Harry Douglas doubts Ohio State's chances to defend home field vs. Texas in Week 1

After the SEC and Big Ten wrapped up their media days, everyone is pining for college football to return, and the two conferences will link up for one of the biggest games in all of the sport to start the season. Week 1 features Texas traveling to Columbus to face Ohio State.

Everyone wants to know who will begin the 2025 campaign with a gigantic dub. Predictions are rolling in with a little over a month until game time, and ESPN’s Harry Douglas locked his in — he’s riding with the Longhorns. 

“I’m going fiction,” Douglas responded, regarding whether the Buckeyes defeating Texas is a fact, via Get Up on Friday. “You look at that ferocious defense that Texas had last season, and they have major players coming back. Starting with Anthony Hill Jr. at the linebacker position. Colin Simmons, Michael Taaffe, who’s a preseason All-American. That defense for Texas will be great again for a second year in a row.”

It isn’t hard to see why Douglas is a believer in Texas. As he mentioned, their defense should be awesome this season, and their offense won’t be half bad either, with Arch Manning leading the charge.

Still, Ohio State is no slouch. While Douglas and many others are on the Longhorns, other experts believe in the Buckeyes, like FOX’s Urban Meyer.

Meyer is thinking Ohio State’s roster is just as impressive as Texas’ group, but there’s one thing that’ll separate Ryan Day’s squad. They have the player who stands head and shoulders above the rest of the field in wide receiver Jeremiah Smith.

“They have Jeremiah Smith, the best player in college football, and I don’t think it’s really that close,” Meyer said, via the Triple Option Podcast. “You can roll up on him, you can double him, and you can slow him down. But you can’t stop him.

“But they have other weapons. … They’ve recruited so well at the skill positions there. That’s why they won last year.”

Additionally, Meyer pointed toward new quarterback Julian Sayin, who sat behind Will Howard during last season’s national title. Fellow pass-catcher Carnell Tate is another player Meyer expects to have a breakout season on offense, calling him a “freakish athlete.”

As you can tell from Harry Douglas and Urban Meyer, there’s a bevy of ways you can read Ohio State’s showdown with Texas in Week 1. Regardless of which side of the aisle you’re on at the moment, a tremendous game should be on hand for Aug. 30 in Columbus. 

— On3’s Barkley Truax contributed to this article.