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Texas Longhorns Top The 2025 Preseason Coaches Poll; Ohio State, Penn State Follow

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Football

(BCSNN) -- The 2025 college football season will kick off with Texas ranked No. 1 in the preseason Coaches Poll, marking the Longhorns’ first-ever top spot in the poll’s history. Texas received 28 first-place votes after finishing 13–3 last season and reaching the College Football Playoff semifinals, where they fell to eventual champion Ohio State.

Ohio State, the reigning national champion, landed at No. 2 with 20 first-place votes. The Buckeyes went 14–2 in 2024, defeating Notre Dame 34–23 in the national title game. They open the 2025 season with a marquee matchup against Texas in Columbus, a rematch of last year’s Cotton Bowl semifinal.

Penn State, which also finished 13–3 and reached the CFP semifinals before falling to Notre Dame, earned the No. 3 spot with 14 first-place votes. The Nittany Lions return quarterback Drew Allar and a loaded backfield, positioning them as a serious contender in the Big Ten.

Georgia, fresh off an SEC Championship win over Texas but a Sugar Bowl loss to Notre Dame, is ranked No. 4. The Bulldogs posted an 11–3 record and will look to rebound behind quarterback Gunner Stockton. Notre Dame rounds out the top five after a 14–2 campaign and a runner-up finish in the national championship.

Other notable teams in the Top 10 include Clemson (No. 6), which won the ACC and returns quarterback Cade Klubnik; Oregon (No. 7), which went undefeated in the regular season before falling in the Rose Bowl; Alabama (No. 8), LSU (No. 9), and Miami (No. 10), all of whom posted strong 2024 campaigns.

The SEC leads all conferences with nine teams in the Top 25, followed by the Big Ten with six, the Big 12 with five, and the ACC with three. The expanded 12-team College Football Playoff format will give many of these programs a path to the postseason, but early-season matchups like Texas–Ohio State and Clemson–LSU could shape the playoff picture early. Then again, we've seen the CFP committee completely ignore early season results in order to get a "larger brand" into the Playoff. So, maybe every regular-season game will matter, including Texas at Ohio State, but ultimately, it all comes down to how the CFP committee votes. And isn't that better than letting results decide things (in the bizarro world of college athletics we live in now)?