Latest news with #CottonBowl
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Ohio State football named in three of Joel Klatt's ten most impactful games of 2025
If you follow us here at Buckeyes Wire, you know we like to check in with Fox's Joel Klatt from time to time. We value his balanced insight, analytical mind, and sensible takes on college football. He doesn't just throw things out there as a company man for clicks, but rather, tries to be unbiased and insightful in his beliefs. We appreciate that in today's day and age, and we're sure you do too. Klatt recently named ten games that will shape the college football season, and contests defending College Football Playoff national champion Ohio State will be involved in are well represented. In fact, three of the ten games will have OSU participating, meaning the college football world might have its eyes fixed on the banks of the Olentangy much of the 2025 season. There are, of course, other games to keep an eye on with some ending up being more impactful than what we see from the Buckeyes, but there's no doubt some of the marquis and most notable tussles between behemoths on the gridiron this season will happen when Ohio State straps it up. There will be some teams and games that ultimately surprise throughout the calendar and end up being a major footnote to the season, but here's the ten most impactful game according to Klatt, with a lot of Scarlet and Gray flair. Week No. 1 - Texas at Ohio State | Aug. 30 It's a rematch of the classic College Football Semifinal in the Cotton Bowl last season and has two of the favorites to win the College Football Playoff in 2025. Both lost some key talent from last year's game, but the Arch Manning era begins in Austin, and Ohio State might have the best offensive and defensive players in the country with Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs. There's plenty of talent surrounding both for the Buckeyes to get back to the CFP and have a shot at defending their title. A win here would provide a huge early feather in the cap for one of the two teams, and Texas would like nothing more than to start the season with a win on the road in Columbus. Week No. 1 - LSU at Clemson | Aug. 30 Swinney's Clemson program has been slow to embrace NIL and other progressive changes in the sport, but it looks like he might have a team that has developed into one that can be a College Football Playoff contender again after making it there last season. LSU always has talent, and many think this game will be one where two Heisman contenders square off under center to plant a flag early on in the season when Clemson's Cade Klubnik and LSU's Grant Nussmeir do battle. Week No. 2 - Michigan at Oklahoma | Sept. 6 We're all still waiting to see what happens with Michigan this year after it finished the season on a high note with wins over Ohio State and Alabama, but either way, the intrigue between two giants of the sport is at least something to get everyone excited about. The winner here still has many things to prove, but it'll be a good step in the right direction for one of the two looking to get back to the Mountain top. Week No. 3 - Texas A&M at Notre Dame | Sept. 13 Why It Matters Is there another program in the country that gets less out of its talent than Texas A&M on a year-in, year-out basis? The Aggies will be trying to punch at their weight once again against a program that seems to get its collection of talent to come together more than almost any other. Head coach Marcus Freeman has Notre Dame on the rise, and a win here would set the table and narrative for both teams one way or another. Week No. 4 - Oregon at Penn State | Sept. 27 Oregon has supplanted itself as a program continually competing for league and College Football Playoff titles, yet it hasn't been able to break through on the biggest stage. Penn State has the history, tradition, and might just have the most experienced talent to finally break through this season. This game will not only shape the Big Ten but also have CFP implications as the chess pieces move about the board fairly early in the season. Week No. 5 - USC at Illinois | Sept. 27 Lincoln Riley was supposed to do special things in Los Angeles, but it has yet to come to fruition. The Trojans always have plenty of talent to play with, but defense has been a problem. Is this the year everything comes together? Illinois has had a resurgence under head coach Bret Bielema and is flying a bit under the radar coming into 2025. This game could fall flat with both teams not meeting expectations, or it could be one that produces a surprise run to a Big Ten title and beyond. Week No. 5 - Alabama at Georgia | Sept. 27 There seems to always be a lot on the line when these two play recently, and don't be surprised if that's the case again in a power-packed Week 5. Alabama might not be the Alabama Nick Saban ran out of the tunnel with, but there's still a lot of talent left over, and we all know what kind of skill is on the Georgia sidelines. This one may all come down to quarterback play, with the winner putting itself in a good position in the SEC race. Do well in the SEC, and we all know what that means in the national picture. Week No. 10 - Penn State at Ohio State | Nov. 1 By this time in the season, we'll know a lot more about the landscape of college football and where both of these annual Big Ten contenders stand. Either way, there's going to be a ton of talent on the field in Columbus. Penn State is getting a lot of notoriety for what it might be this year, but it'll have to go into Columbus and slay the defending national champions to get over the hump. It won't be easy, and by this time of the year, Ohio State might just have its act together on both sides of the ball to stamp itself a national title contender again. If things line up like we think they might, this might end up being the biggest of all regular season games in 2025. Week No. 11 - LSU at Alabama | Nov. 8 It's really hard to put your faith in LSU based on what we've seen under Brian Kelly, but this might be a chance to get that big-game monkey off his back. If Alabama can right the ship this year and have a typical Alabama season, and if LSU meets expectations to this point, this one could be for the SEC title -- and more. NFL scouts will be drooling over this one, and we all might join them late in the season. At the least, with the 12-team CFP, you have to think there will be something on the line between these two. Week No. 14 - Ohio State at Michigan | Nov. 29 We never have to build this one up -- definitely not on this site. You know the deal; despite winning the CFP national championship last season, Ohio State still lost to Michigan for a fourth-straight year, and the natives in Columbus won't stand for another one -- defending national champions or not. There's the whole sign-stealing accusations and bad blood surrounding this one, and the Buckeyes would love nothing more than to restore balance in the universe by taking back the Big Ten baton. There's hatred and a crumbling lack of respect between both programs, and there very well might be a spot in Indianapolis and CFP implications on the line. Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Notre Dame projected to return to the College Football Playoff by Athlon Sports
It's easy to be bullish on Notre Dame as the 2025 college football season approaches, and one national publication projects the Fighting Irish to return to the College Football Playoff. Athlon Sports released its bowl game predictions for every postseason tilt, including the 12-team Playoff, which could be the final time we see the field with this iteration if expansion goes through as expected. This is how the publication has the first round of the CFP stacking up: No. 5 Ohio State vs. No. 12 Boise StateNo. 6 Georgia vs. No. 11 MiamiNo. 7 Notre Dame vs. No. 10 OregonNo. 8 LSU vs. No. 9 Alabama The first-round features several of last year's teams, with LSU, Miami and Alabama entering the field this year. Athlon Sports has Notre Dame beating the Ducks and advancing to the quarterfinals to play Penn State. If the ND-Oregon matchup does take place, it would be just the third meeting on the gridiron ever and first since 1982. The Ducks have never defeated ND. The Irish won the first meeting in 1976 before the second meeting several years later, which ended in a 13-13 tie in Eugene. Here are the magazine's quarterfinal projections: No. 4 Kansas State vs. No. 5 Ohio State (Cotton Bowl)No. 3 Clemson vs. No. 6 Georgia (Orange Bowl)No. 2 Penn State vs. No. 7 Notre Dame (Rose Bowl)No. 1 Texas vs. No. 8 LSU (Sugar Bowl) The magazine projects Penn State to exacts its revenge against the Fighting Irish in Pasadena. Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions. Follow Dave on X: Miller_Dave
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Who will win college football national championship? SEC, Big Ten dominate preseason title odds
Can Ohio State go back to back? The Buckeyes begin the season as the co-favorites to win the national title with Texas. Both Ohio State and the Longhorns are at +500 to win it all ahead of their Week 1 matchup in Columbus. Advertisement So far, Georgia is the only team to win back-to-back titles in the College Football Playoff era. The Bulldogs took down Alabama at the end of the 2021 season to win the national title and then demolished TCU at the end of the 2022 season to win it all. Those two titles for the Bulldogs came in the four-team version of the CFP. Ohio State's title a season ago came in the first 12-team playoff as the Buckeyes had to win four games. Ohio State blew out Tennessee at home and Oregon in the Rose Bowl, then held off Texas in the Cotton Bowl and Notre Dame in the national championship game. Both the Buckeyes and Longhorns enter the season with new starting quarterbacks. We shouldn't have to introduce you to Texas' starter, as Arch Manning is the summer Heisman favorite ahead of his first season as a full-time starter. In Columbus, former Alabama signee Julian Sayin is in line to take over for Will Howard. Sayin was the No. 2 pro style QB in the class of 2024 when he signed with the Crimson Tide and enrolled early. But he entered the transfer portal a month after he signed with Alabama following Nick Saban's retirement and went to Ohio State. Arch Manning didn't get many snaps in Texas' CFP semifinal loss to Ohio State last season, but he'll be leading the Longhorns in Columbus in Week 1 this season. () (Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Sayin is +1800 to win the Heisman ahead of July and his teammate Jeremiah Smith is another one of the top favorites at +1000. Smith was simply dynamic as a true freshman in 2024 and was one of the best wide receivers in college football. Advertisement They both will be getting plays from a new offensive coordinator in 2025 as well. With Chip Kelly now the offensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Raiders, Brian Hartline will be Ohio State's new play caller. Kelly called plays in his only season in Columbus after Ryan Day relinquished play-calling duties. Former Detroit Lions coach Matt Patricia is also Ohio State's new defensive coordinator after Jim Knowles went to Penn State. Knowles, a Pennsylvania native, is now the highest-paid defensive coordinator in college football. Overall, the top five favorites to win the title all come from either the SEC or Big Ten. Georgia is the No. 3 favorite at +650 ahead of Penn State at +750 and Oregon at +800. Gunner Stockton is set to be Georgia's QB after taking over for Carson Beck in the SEC title game. The Nittany Lions return QB Drew Allar and a host of other key contributors as they look to make another postseason run. Penn State dominated SMU in the first round and beat Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl before losing to Notre Dame in the semifinals. Advertisement Oregon won the Big Ten title in 2024 thanks to a regular season win over Ohio State and a Big Ten title game win over Penn State. The Ducks will have former UCLA QB Dante Moore as their starter with Dillon Gabriel off to the NFL. The potential loss of WR Evan Stewart for the entire season because of a knee injury could loom large. The first team outside the two powerhouse conferences on the board is Clemson at +1300. The Tigers could be the best value pick among all the favorites. QB Cade Klubnik broke out in 2024 and both the offense and defense return a ton of talent. Notre Dame is at +1400 to win it all and ahead of both Alabama and LSU. The Tide and Tigers both missed out on the playoff field in 2024 and have the best odds of any team that failed to make the postseason a year ago. 2025 national title odds Ohio State (+500) Texas (+500) Georgia (+650) Penn State (+750) Oregon (+800) Clemson (+1300) Notre Dame (+1400) Alabama (+1500) LSU (+1500) Michigan (+2200) Ole Miss (+2500) Tennessee (+3000) Texas A&M (+3000) Miami (+3000)
Business Journals
4 days ago
- Sport
- Business Journals
Dallas' new pro soccer team reveals first jerseys
Atlético Dallas, a new pro soccer team slated to play in the Cotton Bowl, has releases its initial jerseys.
USA Today
16-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
'I really like what I see': Paul Finebaum on the 2025 Oklahoma Sooners
'I really like what I see': Paul Finebaum on the 2025 Oklahoma Sooners In the transfer portal era of college football, programs now have the capability to change so much for their team over just one offseason. A team that excelled can get gutted by players transferring elsewhere, while a team that struggled can make upgrades at the necessary positions to improve the following year. That's what fans of the Oklahoma Sooners are hoping happens for their team in 2025. After a poor season in 2024, OU is in serious need of a bounce-back this year. They made plenty of portal additions this winter and spring to try and avoid another subpar season. Oklahoma's biggest portal acquisition came in the form of a QB upgrade. Washington State's John Mateer replaces former starting quarterback Jackson Arnold, who now plays at Auburn. With the Sooners needing a total revamp on offense after last season's dumpster fire, many believe that Mateer is the key to getting OU back to their high standard on that side of the ball. That list includes Paul Finebaum, who covers college football and the SEC for ESPN and the SEC Network. He hosts "The Paul Finebaum Show," where he expressed his high expectations for Mateer and Oklahoma. "I think John Mateer is going to fit in very well," Finebaum said. "This is based on people who have seen him perform out there and those who know the Sooners' depth chart. I really like what I see. It's a big year. A couple of tricky games. The second half of the schedule, to me, is littered with tough road games." Mateer, along with new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, who also comes from Washington State, will be tasked with getting OU back on track offensively. However, Oklahoma's early schedule includes two big home games against Michigan and Auburn. If the Sooners can topple the Wolverines and the Tigers, they should be 5-0 when they head to the Cotton Bowl to face Texas. After the Red River Rivalry, Oklahoma's final six games are all against brutally tough competition. South Carolina, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Alabama, Missouri and LSU is about as tough of a half-season stretch as you can find in college football. It certainly won't be easy against the nation's hardest schedule, but with a difference-maker in place again at the quarterback position, the Sooners have high hopes for the 2025 season. Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.
