- Ohio State still has the two best players in the country: The defending champs should still feel good about their chances to repeat with Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs on their roster.
- The blueprint remains the same for Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish will once again rely on their run game and defense to make another run at a national championship.
- 2025 NFL Draft season is here: Try PFF’s best-in-class Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2025’s top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.
Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes
This past college football season marked the first year of the 12-team playoff, tripling the previous format’s size. Programs that would’ve never dreamed of making the playoff in past seasons were suddenly given access to the field, which led to more excitement around the nation.
Here’s why every team who made the inaugural 12-team playoff can make it back in 2025.
Ohio State Buckeyes
The defending national champs have plenty to replace as they enter 2025, namely both coordinators and 15 projected draft picks. Still, Ohio State has to feel very good about its chances entering next year.
While the Buckeyes lost a boatload of talent to the NFL craft, they also return the sport’s two best players in wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and safety Caleb Downs. Both were the most valuable players at their respective positions this past season, according to PFF’s wins above average metric.
Julian Sayin is projected to take over at quarterback and was a top-10 overall recruit in the 2024 high school class. Speaking of, Ohio State has signed a top-five recruiting class in each of the last six years, so talent will never be an issue.
And in the 11 years of the College Football Playoff era, the lowest the Buckeyes have finished in the final ranking was seventh. It’d be wise to pencil Ohio State in a 12-team playoff until proven otherwise, regardless of talent depletion.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Notre Dame made it all the way to the National Championship Game because of its dominant run game and elite defense. Both remain intact entering next season.
Jeremiyah Love is the best running back in America, and his backup, Jadarian Price, is extremely talented as well. The Fighting Irish also brought back four offensive linemen with significant starting experience, including a top-five offensive tackle in Aamil Wagner. On defense, Notre Dame has the best returning corner in Leonard Moore and a loaded linebacker room with Drayk Bowen headlining it.
The biggest question stems from who will replace Riley Leonard under center. Redshirt junior Steve Angeli is the most experienced of the options, but redshirt freshman CJ Carr was the No. 6 quarterback recruit in the 2024 class. Regardless of who wins the job, they’ll have a very talented receiving corps to throw to with Jaden Greathouse and Jordan Faison returning while bringing in two very good transfers in Virginia’s Malachi Fields and Wisconsin’s Will Pauling.
Texas Longhorns
The Arch Manning era is officially underway in Austin. He’ll be one of the most hyped quarterbacks in history, partly because of his last name but also because of how good he looked in relief of Quinn Ewers. His 88.1 PFF grade was 13th among FBS quarterbacks with at least 200 snaps. Manning will have a retooled offensive line in front of him but has some exciting playmakers to lean on in running back CJ Baxter and wide receiver Ryan Wingo.
After placing second in the nation in defensive EPA per play last year, the Longhorns are loaded on that side of the ball once again. True sophomore Colin Simmons might already be the best edge defender in the nation while safety Michael Taaffe, cornerback Malik Muhammad and linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. are among the best at their positions as well.
After making the semifinals in back-to-back years, Texas has the opportunity to win it all next season.
Penn State Nittany Lions
After making it all the way to the semifinals in its first playoff appearance, Penn State has its sights set on winning its first national title in nearly 40 years next season.
That’s mainly due to the Nittany Lions returning most of their key players from last year’s squad. It starts with Drew Allar, a top-five quarterback in the sport. He’ll have the nation’s best backfield to rely on with both Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen returning as well. Penn State also has some star defenders returning like defensive tackle Zane Durant, edge defender Dani Dennis-Sutton and cornerback A.J. Harris. Each of them are among the best players in the nation at their respective positions.
James Franklin also made the biggest coordinator hiring of the offseason by luring away defensive coordinator Jim Knowles from Ohio State. He, along with offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki, form the best coordinator duo in the country.
Oregon Ducks
Oregon entered the playoff as the top-ranked team in America before suffering its first loss of the season to Ohio State in the quarterfinal round. The Ducks once again look like one of the favorites to win it all next year, thanks in large part to the work Dan Lanning has done in the transfer portal.
He added two players in Purdue safety Dillon Thieneman and Tulane running back Makhi Hughes, who are among the best in the nation at their respective positions. The Ducks also brought back many players poised for breakout seasons like tight end Kenyon Sadiq, edge defender Matayo Uiagalelei and wide receiver Evan Stewart.
Redshirt sophomore Dante Moore will take over at quarterback and he was a top-three overall recruit in the 2023 high school class. It’s fair to assume he’ll be uber-successful in an Oregon offense that’s produced back-to-back Heisman finalists in Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel.
Georgia Bulldogs
Georgia’s chances of making the playoff are always high, considering it has the best coach in the country in Kirby Smart. Under his watch, the Bulldogs have finished ninth or better in the final College Football Playoff ranking in eight straight years and were top-five in each of the last four. That’s mainly due to Smart’s dominance on the recruiting trail. The last time that Georgia didn’t sign a top-three class in the nation was back in 2016.
As for what the Bulldogs have returning, they have a rising superstar at safety in KJ Bolden. They also rebuilt their receiving corps with USC’s Zachariah Branch and Texas A&M’s Noah Thomas transferring in along with tight ends Oscar Delp and Lawson Luckie returning.
Boise State Broncos
While Boise State lost the main catalyst for its quarterfinal run last year in running back Ashton Jeanty, the Broncos are still one of the top contenders to obtain the Group of Five spot once again.
Boise State returns a loaded linebacker room, led by Andrew Simpson and Marco Notarainni. Each of them earned 75.0-plus grades last year. The Broncos also brought back quarterback Maddux Madsen, who had a very solid year under center. He’ll be glad to have left tackle Kage Casey protecting his blindside, who was seventh among FBS tackles with an 86.9 pass-blocking grade.
Arizona State Sun Devils
Arizona State was one of college football’s best Cinderella stories in 2024, winning the Big 12 despite being projected as one of the worst teams in the conference.
Returning to the Sun Devils in 2025 is the nation’s best quarterback-wide receiver connection in Sam Leavitt and Jordyn Tyson. Leavitt is my No. 2 returning quarterback in the nation while Tyson is my No. 3 returning receiver. Arizona State also brought back 10 of 11 starters on defense, including safety Xavion Alford.
A major reason why Tennessee made its first College Football Playoff this past season was its defense, which finished third in the nation in EPA per play. The Volunteers have many stars returning on that side of the ball, such as cornerback Jermod McCoy and edge defender Joshua Josephs.
Nico Iamaleava is back to lead the offense, and he’s a top-10 returning quarterback in America. If he can take another step as a redshirt sophomore, Tennessee can make an even deeper playoff run next year.
Indiana Hoosiers
Indiana was one of the biggest surprises of 2024. The Hoosiers had a program-record 11 wins under first-year head coach Curt Cignetti after winning a combined nine games across the previous three seasons.
A major reason for Indiana’s overnight success was the transfer class Cignetti brought in, mainly from his previous school in James Madison. Three of those former Dukes became some of the best players in the nation at their respective positions in wide receiver Elijah Sarratt, edge defender Mikail Kamara and cornerback D’Angelo Ponds. All three of them are back for another season.
The Hoosiers once again attacked the transfer portal this offseason, with 10 of their 22 projected starters transferring in. The most important one is California quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who earned a 77.4 PFF grade this past season.
SMU Mustangs
SMU was back in a power conference for the first time in nearly 30 years and made the College Football Playoff in its inaugural season as a member of the ACC.
If the Mustangs are going to make it back to the playoff, it’ll likely be on the back of redshirt junior quarterback Kevin Jennings. He’s one of the 10 best returning signal-callers in the nation after earning an 85.0 passing grade this past year.
SMU has plenty to replace on both sides of the ball, but its defense will be led by one of the nation’s best safety duos in Isaiah Nwokobia and Ahmaad Moses. They were two of the 15 highest-graded safeties in the country this past season.
Clemson Tigers
Clemson won its eighth ACC title of the last decade this past season and is the clear-cut favorite to do so once again in 2025.
A big reason is the return of Cade Klubnik, who enters next year as the best quarterback in the nation. His 87.7 passing grade in 2024 was the fifth-best mark in the country. He’ll have one of the nation’s best receiving corps to throw to with Antonio Williams, Bryant Wesco Jr and T.J. Moore.
The Tigers are absolutely loaded defensively. They have the best defensive tackle returning in Peter Woods and one of the best edge defenders coming back in T.J. Parker. Wade Woodaz and Sammy Brown make up one of the better linebacker duos in the sport, while Avieon Terrell and Ashton Hampton are one of the best cornerback duos.
Clemson has an excellent chance of winning its first national title in seven years.
