THE 20 COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAMES THAT WILL DETERMINE THE 12-TEAM PLAYOFF FIELD
While the Big Ten seeks to find as many ways as it can to sabotage the playoff system, we are keeping our focus on the 12-team field to be assembled in December.
We will take a look at the 20 marquee games that will pave the way to a College Football Playoff berth. That means a heavy dose of power conference games. Sorry Conference USA, this is invite only.
Ten of the 12 berths likely will come from the four power leagues. Independent Notre Dame, the runner-up to Ohio State in January, and Boise State of the Mountain West are frontrunners to be the other two teams in the field. The Broncos would land the bid for the non-power conference schools.
The defending national champion Buckeyes, Penn State and Michigan lead the Big Ten brigade while the Southeastern Conference is loaded: Texas, Georgia, Alabama and LSU all have a reasonable road map to winning their way into the playoff field. The Atlantic Coast Conference has Clemson in the lead position while the Big 12 is wide open, kind of like last season when Arizona State came out of nowhere to win the automatic bid.
While a committee helps decide the field, each team ultimately controls its own fate. Just win your games – no matter who you’re playing and no matter the venue.
Let’s start the countdown to the national championship game in Miami Gardens, Fla.
20. Texas A&M at Texas, Nov. 28, 7:30 p.m. ET
The Aggies were 7-1 last season before wilting and missing the playoffs. One of the losses was the first meeting against the Longhorns since 2011. It reasons Texas A&M will need a huge upset but the Longhorns will be on guard to avoid stumbles while chasing a No. 1 seed.
19. Boise State at Notre Dame, Oct. 4., 3:30 p.m. ET
A victory in South Bend would put the Broncos in the driver’s seat for the non-Power 4 berth with the Mountain West surely providing just lukewarm competition. The Fighting Irish have just three preseason Top 25 teams on their slate and might have to pack their shillelaghs as they look to return to the CFP title game.
18. BYU at Iowa State, Oct. 25, TBD
Two years ago, the Cyclones walloped BYU 45-13 and you can picture that score being taped all around the Cougars’ complex during game week. Iowa State still has Rocco Becht thriving at quarterback but BYU lost Jake Retzlaff in the offseason due to a scandal in which he was accused of sexual assault and later admitted to consensual sex, a big no-no in Provo, Utah.
17. Clemson at North Carolina, Oct. 4. TBD
The Tigers are somehow the only preseason ranked squad on Bill Belichick’s first college schedule, which has to be girlfriend Jordon Hudson’s doing. But the real catch is ACC Dean of Coaches Dabo Sweeney matching wits and schemes against six-time Super Bowl champion Belichick.
16. BYU at Texas Tech, Nov. 8, TBD
The Red Raiders were highly aggressive in the transfer portal and have been very willing to pay to get good players to Lubbock (if you’ve ever been there, you understand why). For BYU, this could be its season as its previous game will be on the road at Iowa State. Lose both and get ready to watch playoff games on television.
15. Miami at SMU, Nov. 1, TBD
The Mustangs are the only preseason ranked ACC team on the Miami slate as the Carson Beck-led Hurricanes look to take advantage of a favorable schedule. SMU won’t be sneaking up on anybody this season after posting an undefeated regular season in its first go-around in the league in 2024.
14. Oklahoma vs. Texas at Dallas, Oct. 11, 3:30 p.m. ET
Sooners quarterback John Mateer will surely bet on himself – show us the Venmo slips — as Oklahoma tries to spring an upset in the Red River Shootout. The Longhorns have won two of the past three meetings with the victories coming by scores of 49-0 in 2022 and 34-3 last season.
13. SMU at Clemson, Oct. 18, TBD
The Tigers knocked off the Mustangs in the ACC Championship Game last season when Nolan Hauser kicked a career-long 56-yard field goal as time expired. This should be another barnburner with both quarterbacks returning — Clemson’s Cade Klubnik and SMU’s Kevin Jennings — and everyone aware the loser of this game could be the odd team out in the ACC title game chase.
12. Arizona State at Iowa State, Nov. 1, TBD
The Sun Devils pounded the Cyclones 45-19 in last season’s Big 12 title game but rumblin’ Cam Skattebo is now earning NFL paychecks instead of stomping college defenders. Iowa State will be aiming to deliver some payback and the winner of this contest will be looking good per landing a spot in this year’s conference decider.
11. Oregon at Penn State, Sept. 27, 7:30 p.m. ET
The Ducks beat the Nittany Lions in the Big Ten title game last season but that was when efficient Dillon Gabriel was running the offense. Oregon will need new quarterback Dante Moore to be comfortable by this matchup, while Penn State just may let Kaytron Allen (124 yards, 8.9 average in last year’s matchup) and Nicholas Singleton (105, 10.5) run the ball all night.
10. LSU at Alabama, Nov. 8, TBD
The Tigers need to end their issues against the Crimson Tide – 12 losses in the last 14 meetings – if they harbor thoughts of reaching the SEC Championship. Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier was picked off twice last season when LSU was hammered 42-13 by an Alabama squad that dominated the trenches and rolled up 311 rushing yards.
9. Ohio State at Michigan, Nov. 29, Noon ET
The Wolverines have won the past four meetings with last season’s showdown being a huge stunner as an unranked Michigan squad beat No. 2 Ohio State in Columbus. How much meaning this game will have depends on how well Michigan freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood progresses this season while Ohio State will again have the better all-around squad.
8. Penn State at Ohio State, Nov. 1, TBD
Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar has taken some heat for miscues on the big stage and he’ll have a major opportunity to silence that narrative against the Buckeyes. Of course, Ohio State isn’t fretting after beating Penn State eight straight times and 12 of the last 13 meetings, including last season in Happy Valley.
7. Alabama at Georgia, Sept. 27, 7:30 p.m. ET
This could be the week that the Crimson Tide really miss Jalen Milroe. It’s also possible it will be the one they learn Ty Simpson is on his way to being the next great Alabama quarterback. Perhaps the Bulldogs have more to prove. They have dropped nine of their past 10 games against the Crimson Tide – the lone win coming in the 2021 season national championship game.
6. Texas at Georgia, Nov. 15, TBD
A late-season game with two quarterbacks in the Heisman Trophy race and two squads craving an SEC Championship Game invite. The Longhorns’ season-opening No. 1 ranking surely didn’t sit well with a Georgia team that beat Texas twice last season, including a 22-19 overtime win in the SEC title game.
5. Texas at Ohio State, Aug. 30, Noon ET
The enticing showdown right out of the gate means one of the top national champion contenders shuffle into September saddled with a loss. It will be the first game with Arch Manning as the Longhorns’ full-fledged starting quarterback while the defending champion Buckeyes also will unveil a new signal caller in former Alabama commit Julian Sayin.
4. Big 12 Championship Game, Dec. 6, Noon ET (projected Iowa State vs. Texas Tech)
When Texas and Oklahoma abandoned the league, everything went downhill. A league that might be in the running for three or four bids will likely just receive one for the second straight season. And no Big 12 team will be around when the semifinals arrive.
3. ACC Championship Game, Dec. 6, 8 p.m. ET (projected Clemson vs. Miami)
You’d like to think both qualifiers in this game are assured CFP berths but you just never know. Clemson made the field last season by winning this contest, while the Hurricanes missed the ACC title game and the postseason. This time around, expect both teams to get in.
2. Big Ten Championship Game, Dec. 6, 8 p.m. ET (projected Ohio State vs. Penn State)
The Nittany Lions get a second chance to beat the Buckeyes this season, and this is the one you’d rather win. Ohio State will get the answers it needs earlier in the season and will be rolling by this time of year.
1. SEC Championship Game, Dec. 6, 4 p.m. ET (projected Texas vs. Georgia)
Arch Manning will be totally settled in and hearing chatter about being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. The always-tough Georgia defenders will get tired of hearing the Manning chatter and make a run at shutting down Texas.
GALVANIZED AND 15TH-RANKED FLORIDA WOULD RATHER BE NO. 1 THAN SEE NO. 1 ON THE FIELD THIS SEASON
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s roster has a glaring omission: No one wearing No. 1.
It’s by design, and coach Billy Napier had nothing to do with it.
Veteran team leaders decided it would be fitting if the 15th-ranked Gators avoided the number altogether in 2025. No prima donnas. No egos. No self-serving agendas.
It wasn’t meant as a knock on any former Florida players who donned 1. In fact, running back Montrell Johnson Jr. and defensive end Justus Boone wore it last year and were two of the most respected guys on the roster.
But this year’s team, which returns 13 starters who gained strength from four lopsided losses and constant speculation about Napier’s future in 2024, has aspirations of carrying the Gators back to national prominence.
It is possible to be No. 1 without having a No. 1? Florida will find out. Napier’s squad is the only Southeastern Conference team without one, and nearly all the others have two.
“A little bit of an initiative about the team coming first, the team being No. 1,” Napier said. “Will that be every year? No. But I think it’s a good indicator of the leadership of our team.”
Florida believes it has the core, chemistry and cohesion to be special, a collection of mostly home-grown players who endured a career’s worth of adversity last year alone. Florida got embarrassed at home by Miami and Texas A&M, stoking flames underneath Napier’s already warm seat, and then got drubbed at Texas in early November.
Instead of pointing fingers or looking for lifelines, the Gators stuck together.
“It definitely does feel rewarding when you have a team that’s build on principles and is actually a family. It’s not a portal team,” defensive end Kam James said. “It’s like being here with family versus being here with co-workers.”
The Florida family has welcomed baggage, the kind of shared experiences that bond rather than break. It helped the Gators rally down the stretch last season, winning their final four games and entering 2025 with the conference’s longest winning streak.
“It was very challenging for them as young people and certainly as teammates,” Napier said. “When you do go through something like that, it can galvanize the team and their perspective.”
Florida’s success likely hinges on its quarterback
Sophomore quarterback DJ Lagway is the key to Florida’s season. Lagway has been limited all year, first because of surgery to repair a sports hernia, then because of a sore throwing shoulder and most recently because of a strained left calf.
But he’s closing in on returning to 100% and has a soft opening two games — against Long Island University and South Florida — to get right and find a rhythm with talented receivers J. Michael Sturdivant, Dallas Wilson and Tre Wilson.
“He’s done a phenomenal job of handling everything, good and bad,” offensive coordinator Russ Callaway said.
Napier wants to see defensive strides
The Gators haven’t finished in the upper half of the league in total defense since 2019, and they’ve been double digits every year under Napier. They insist they have the right mix of experience and depth to be a factor on that side of the ball.
“We are on a mission here to play championship-caliber defense,” Napier said.
Keep an eye on these legacy players
Napier has eight players with family ties to the program, including freshman receiver Vernell Brown III, sophomore linebacker Myles Graham and freshman defensive back Ben Hanks III. The trio of highly touted recruits could end up being as good as their Florida fathers.
Schedule includes a daunting stretch
The Gators get two relative cupcakes to open the season but then face four ranked teams – at No. 9 LSU, at 10th- ranked Miami, against No. 1 Texas and at 19th-ranked Texas A&M. Those four games over five weeks should determine whether the College Football Playoff is a reality or a reverie for Florida.
DABO SWINNEY’S FAITH IN QB CADE KLUBNIK HAS PAID OFF AS NO. 4 CLEMSON EYES NATIONAL TITLE RUN
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Cade Klubnik read the comments on social media.
He heard the chatter around him, about how he simply wasn’t good enough to be the starting quarterback for the Clemson Tigers. He heard fans clamoring for coach Dabo Swinney to tap the transfer portal and find a quality replacement.
It was all coming to a head after Klubnik’s sophomore season in 2023, a year in which the Tigers struggled early but closed with five straight wins to finish 9-4. While that might be considered a good season for some schools, it was a down year for Clemson, snapping a streak of 12 straight double-digit win seasons and leaving the Tigers out of the College Football Playoff for the second straight year.
There were questions about whether Clemson’s run was over, and much of the blame fell on Klubnik’s shoulders after throwing just 19 touchdown passes with nine interceptions that season.
“Everybody kind of told me I sucked, and wasn’t very good,” Klubnik said. “A lot of people wanted me out of Clemson.”
About two weeks after the Tigers’ 38-35 win over Kentucky in the Gator Bowl, Klubnik was still relatively uncertain about his status at Clemson and that’s when Swinney called Klubnik into his office and put any speculation about his future to rest.
As he sat across from Klubnik, Swinney told him directly: “I believe in you.”.
“To have somebody that I look up to and believe in, tell me that he believes in me, it just filled me with confidence,” Klubnik said. “He could have gone and done what a lot of other coaches would do (and find a transfer quarterback), but he didn’t.””
Klubnik called it a moment in life he’ll never forget. He left Swinney’s office more confident than ever, and eager to reward his coach for the faith he showed in him. And he did just that.
Klubnik piled up more than 4,000 yards from scrimmage and 42 touchdowns last season while leading Clemson to its eighth ACC championship in 10 years with an MVP performance that included four touchdowns in a dramatic 34-31 win over SMU in the title game. The victory assured the Tigers a return to the playoff, where they lost 38-24 to Texas in the first round.
Now Klubnik enters his final season at Clemson as a likely Heisman Trophy candidate and the fourth-ranked Tigers are expected to compete for a national championship.
“When you sign up to do this, whether you’re a coach at this level or certainly play the quarterback position, there’s a lot of criticism,” Swinney said. “I just knew there was going to be a lot of noise. He’s a young person and I just felt like it was important that I let him know that that I fully believed in him. I didn’t want him worrying about me going out and getting another guy. I wanted him to know, hey, you’re my guy.”
Added Swinney, “I told him if it don’t work out, then I’m going down with you.”
Swinney has been around college football for more than three decades and has won two national titles at Clemson, so he knows a thing or two about player development. He said one of the most difficult parts of coaching college football in today’s world is having the patience to develop a quarterback while remaining competitive.
Swinney saw enough in Klubnik after his sophomore season to believe he had plenty of potential.
“You know, this is a developmental game,” Swinney said. “We forget that because now we’re in this world where if you’re not great as a freshman it’s, oh well, you stink. And then you move on to the next guy.”
Tigers wide receiver Antonio Williams, who figures to be Klubnik’s primary target in the passing game, said off the field his quarterback is “kind of laid back and goofy.” But Williams said Klubnik was all business last season.
“He’s definitely growing up a lot,” Williams said. “When it comes to leadership, he’s definitely been more vocal and he has the respect of all the guys in the locker room. So when he speaks, everybody listens. That respect has gone a long way for him.”
Swinney called Klubnik an “amazing human being” and he continues to believe in him, perhaps on a run to the Tigers’ first national title since 2018.
“He’s got a lot of great days ahead,” Swinney said. “And you need a little luck, you know. I know everybody wants to make all these predictions and things like that, but you predict your way in anything. You gotta go do it. I know this if that guy stays healthy, we will have a chance. He’s gonna always give you a chance.”
COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACHES ARE GOING FOR TWO AND CONVERTING AT THE HIGHEST RATE SINCE THE 1970S
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Brent Venables’ decision late in the Armed Forces Bowl last December was a sign of the times.
Oklahoma scored a touchdown in the closing seconds against Navy to cut its deficit to 21-20. Rather than kick the extra point and likely force overtime, Venables did what coaches increasingly are doing — he had his team go for two.
Venables said his team had practiced the scenario often, so he had decided that if the game was close enough with fewer than 30 seconds remaining, the Sooners would go for the win. Though Oklahoma had converted just one of four 2-point conversions on the season at that point, he still felt confident.
The Sooners failed, and Navy escaped with the win. Afterwards, Venables said he wouldn’t flinch in the future if a similar situation arose.
“I’d go for it again, every situation,” he said.
That’s in part because analytics have emboldened coaches. Last season, Bowl Subdivision teams converted their highest number of 2-point conversions — 226 — since 1970, according to NCAA statistics. They attempted 493 last season, the most since 1978. Teams made 45.8% of their 2-point tries last season — the best percentage since 1974 and the third-best mark of all time.
“Number one is the analytics and the value of those, and the more educated everyone has become through those analytics,” Venables said.
Part of the jump can be attributed to overtime rules. Before 2021, teams would start all overtime possessions at the opponent’s 25-yard line, and if they scored a touchdown, starting in the third overtime, they were required to attempt 2-point conversions afterward. Starting in 2021, the first mandatory 2-point conversions were moved up to the second overtime; if a game reached a third overtime, teams would alternate 2-point conversion attempts until a winner was determined — much like a soccer shootout.
“I’m going to guess that across the country, teams are practicing them a lot more because of the overtime rules,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said.
The increased emphasis has made coaches more comfortable trying them during regulation.
“I think you see people start the game, and they’re trying to create some momentum and get people on their heels early too,” Venables said. “You see all different types of strategy when utilizing the two-point conversion.”
The evolution of the 2-point try
Two-point conversions debuted in college football in 1958, and they were the shiny new toy coaches wanted to play with, particularly with point-after tries not as automatic as they are now. That was the only season on record during which more 2-point conversions were attempted than PATs. Records for attempts and makes from that season still stand from a year that saw kickers miss 31% of their extra point kicks.
Two-point conversion tries were relatively common in the 1970s, but as kickers became more accurate, the practice waned. In 2008, there were all-time lows of 181 2-point attempts and 67 makes.
In 2014, teams set a record by attempting PATs 96.4% of the time and the success rate on 2-point conversions hit a record low of 34.3%. As recently as 2019, only 286 2-point tries were attempted nationwide.
The shift came as dependence on analytics increased and overtime rules changed. Last season, NCAA stats show there were 79 more attempts than the previous year, 101 more than in 2022 and 169 more than in 2021.
Even if overtime 2-point conversions were removed, the increase in attempts the past few seasons is significant. According to Sport Radar, 2-point attempts in regulation increased from 331 in 2022 to 366 in 2023 and 416 last season.
More confidence in skipping the PAT
In the Atlantic Coast Conference, there were just 18 2-point attempts as recently as the 2018 season. That total rose to 38 in 2022 and 2023, then to 73 in 2024. Last season saw six teams attempt at least seven tries; by comparison, only one team in the previous decade (Miami in 2020) had attempted at least seven 2-point tries, according to SportRadar.
Pittsburgh is among the teams trying them more often. The Panthers attempted 10 and converted five last season, both good for second nationally. The number is inflated by a 4-for-5 showing in a six-overtime loss to Toledo in the GameAbove Sports Bowl. But the five attempts before that extended game nearly matched the Panthers’ number of attempts the four previous seasons combined (six).
Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi laid out two scenarios – the first where it wouldn’t make sense to try for two.
“In a game, if you’re up, let’s just say you’re up by three, you kick an extra point, well what’s an extra point do? It gets you to four,” he said.
Narduzzi then offered a scenario that would make sense to go for two.
“You’re up by five, what does an extra point get you — to six, and then (a touchdown and) an extra point by the other team gets you beat,” he said. “So there’s all those analytics of like, why kick an extra point when you can possibly get two — if it’s not going to hurt you.”
Still, for all the fancy analytics and numbers, Venables said it still comes down to decision making.
“Still at that point, the best thing you can do is use your guts and your instincts, your feel for the game and how that’s going,” he said.
NO. 8 ALABAMA TRYING TO RECLAIM SPOT ATOP COLLEGE FOOTBALL IN KALEN DEBOER’S 2ND SEASON
Six national championships in 12 seasons vaulted Alabama into its own college football category: THE team to beat.
It’s a designation the eighth-ranked Crimson Tide would like to earn back in 2025.
Alabama failed to meet expectations the last two seasons, slipping into the College Football Playoff to close legendary coach Nick Saban’s career and then getting left out in Kalen DeBoer’s debut season in Tuscaloosa.
Roll Tide? Maybe in the wrong direction.
“There’s a lot of things that I’m super proud of that have happened within the program that are part of the progression,” DeBoer said. “Yeah, we want it right now, too. Yeah, we fell short. … Sometimes there’s ups and downs that you have to go through, unfortunately, that we had to experience. But in the end, we’re going to take advantage of the failures we’ve had and be better because of it.”
Alabama went 9-4 in DeBoer’s first season, losing to three unranked teams away from home: at Vanderbilt in October, at Oklahoma in November and against Michigan in a December bowl game in Tampa, Florida.
“We got to be better in big moments,” DeBoer said.
Where did it go wrong for a program that had become the standard bearer for the league, maybe even the nation? The Tide ended up middle of the conference pack in offense and defense, hardly the same juggernaut Saban built during his nearly two decades in Tuscaloosa.
Some of that should have been expected given the coaching change. But it should look different with a year’s worth of experience.
“You want Year 2 to be moments of growth, where you can polish and clean things up,” DeBoer said. “You never are taking it for granted. You’re starting over from scratch every season. Now you build on tangents which you have that help you win more football games.”
Who will replace quarterback Jalen Milroe?
DeBoer named Ty Simpson the team’s starting quarterback last week, picking the longtime backup over former Washington transfer Austin Mack and highly touted freshman Keelon Russell.
Simpson, a fourth-year junior from Martin, Tennessee, spent the last three years waiting for his shot. He backed up Bryce Young in 2022 and then Milroe the last two seasons.
“My journey is like no other,” Simpson said. “I’ve had opportunities to leave and I didn’t because I want to be here, and I want to be with my guys.”
Simpson has completed 29 of 50 passes for 381 yards, with no touchdowns and no interceptions in 16 games.
Who are the team’s brightest stars?
Alabama has plenty of talent surrounding Simpson. It starts with electrifying sophomore receiver Ryan Williams, who caught 48 passes for 865 yards and eight touchdowns as a 17-year-old last season.
“He’s definitely a pro,” defensive lineman Tim Keenan III said. “He’s wise beyond his years. I appreciate how he carries himself. His name may be ‘Hollywood,’ but he’s far from it. He’s very humble.”
The Tide also expects to have one of the nation’s best offensive lines, a unit anchored by 6-foot-7, 366-pound left tackle and projected top-10 NFL draft pick Kadyn Proctor. Keenan and linebacker Deontae Lawson headline a defense that returns eight starters.
Opening on the road could be a good thing
Starting the season Aug. 30 at Florida State could be therapeutic for a team that went 2-4 away from Bryant-Denny Stadium last season. The Tide also play at No. 5 Georgia in late September, Alabama’s first trip to Athens in a decade.
“(Playing on the road is) something we look forward to,” Lawson said. “We’re all about a challenge, and we love coming into an away-team stadium and trying to clear it out.”
But the meat of Bama’s schedule comes during a five-week stretch beginning in mid-October that includes games against No. 24 Tennessee, 13th-ranked South Carolina, No. 9 LSU and 18th-ranked Oklahoma. Three of those come at home.
IT’S MANNING’S SEASON TO SHINE: THE TEXAS LONGHORNS ARE NO. 1 BEHIND PRODIGY QB
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The big expectations at Texas keep growing. And the path is there for the Longhorns to do something special this season.
Texas starts the season ranked No. 1 for the first time in program history and a betting favorite to win the national championship. Arch Manning takes over at quarterback and is just about everyone’s early favorite for the Heisman Trophy.
The Longhorns open with a bang at No. 3 Ohio State, a game between SEC and Big Ten powerhouses that could reverberate all the way to the postseason in December.
Of course, none of this will be easy. Texas is hardly the runaway No. 1 choice and there are slivers of doubt they really belong on top. The Longhorns barely edged No. 2 Penn State for the top spot in the preseason rankings. They must navigate a rough SEC schedule and replace 12 players who were drafted after last season’s run the College Football Playoff semifinals.
“It’s irrelevant to the way the season is going to go. It’s irrelevant to the way we’re going to play. It’s irrelevant to how our opponents are going to play,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said of the No. 1 ranking. “Maybe it puts a little bigger bullseye on us for our opponents. But the reality is, we have to go do it.”
The Longhorns haven’t won the national championship since 2005.
Manning’s moment
College football has been waiting for this: the latest prodigy from football’s famous quarterback family is finally ready for prime time.
Manning is now THE guy in Austin:, no longer just the promising backup who has teased Texas with flashes of brilliance when pressed into duty because of injuries or used in on situation-specific plays to keep defenses off balance.
He shoulders enormous expectations borne from his name, the Heisman chatter and NFL draft projections, whenever he turns pro. And perhaps no player is cashing in on the name, image and likeness era of college athletics more than Manning. According to On3, which track’s college NIL deals, Manning ranks No. 1 in college football at $6.8 million, including contracts with the likes of Red Bull, Uber and Vuori.
Long gone is the kid who twice lost his school-issued ID during his freshman year. Now a 6-foot-4 sophmore, Manning carries a cool confidence on and off the field and seems ready to shine.
“I’m not really sure how they got these opinions because I’ve only played in, what? Two games?” Manning said. “I guess it’s nice of them to say, but it doesn’t mean anything. Talk is cheap, I’ve got to go prove it.”
Rebuilt offensive line
Manning will play behind a rebuilt offensive line that will have four new starters replacing standouts who are now in the NFL.
Right guard DJ Campbell is the only returning regular starter. Left tackle Trevor Goosby will face the most scrutiny as he takes over for All-American Kelvin Banks to protect Manning’s blind side. And overall depth took a blow when right tackle Andre Cojoe was lost for the season with a training camp knee injury.
Defensive pressure
The Longhorns must rebuild the interior of their defensive line. But they have plenty of speed and power on the edges to punish opposing quarterbacks. Defensive end Colin Simmons had nine sacks as a freshman. Senior Trey Moore had 6.5. All-everything linebacker Anthony Hill, who might be the best sideline-to-sideline defender in the country, had eight.
Rushing around
Quintrevion Wisner is the SEC’s top returning rusher after posting 1,064 yards and five touchdowns last season. He also was the team’s third leading receiver with 44 catches, making him a versatile weapon. Texas boasts some serious depth in the backfield. C.J. Baxter in 2023 was the first Longhorn freshman tailback to start a season opener in since Ricky Williams in 1995. But he missed last season with a knee injury.
The schedule
The Longhorns open with that blockbuster matchup at Ohio State on Aug. 30. They spend the entire month of October away from home. The SEC opener is Oct. 4 at No. 15 Florida, before the annual rivalry with No. 18 Oklahoma in Dallas a week later. The November slate includes a trip to No. 5 Georgia (Nov. 15) before Texas closes out the regular season at home against old rivals Arkansas (Nov. 22) and No. 19 Texas A&M (Nov. 28). The Aggies pay their first visit to Austin since 2012.
ARCH MANNING: GRANDPA ARCHIE APOLOGIZED FOR NFL COMMENTS
Arch Manning has started only two games in his collegiate career and enters the season opener as the unquestioned starter at Texas for the first time in three seasons.
Yet a majority of the talk surrounding the redshirt sophomore coming into the 2025 campaign has focused on his plans for the NFL. And on Tuesday, the third-generation quarterback said he received an apology from the person who most recently fanned those flames.
His grandfather.
In an article recently published in Texas Monthly, Archie Manning, the patriarch of the family that includes Peyton and Eli Manning — Arch’s uncles — predicted his namesake won’t be a one-and-done starter and jump into the 2026 NFL Draft.
“Arch isn’t going to do that. He’ll be at Texas,” Archie Manning said.
Arch Manning addressed his grandfather’s comments for the first time Tuesday.
“I don’t know where he got that from,” the 21-year-old Manning said of his grandpa. “He texted me to apologize about that. I’m really just taking it day by day right now.”
Some NFL teams likely already have Arch atop their draft boards. After the 2025 season, he’ll be draft-eligible.
Despite his lack of college playing time, oddsmakers have Arch Manning as the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy and, before Archie’s comments, to be the first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. In limited playing time while backing up Quinn Ewers in Austin the previous two seasons, Arch Manning has thrown for 969 yards and nine touchdowns in 12 games played.
Both Peyton and Eli were No. 1 overall draft picks. Archie was a No. 2 selection himself in 1971 out of Ole Miss. Peyton is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, while Eli (who most famously twice Tom Brady and the New England Patriots twice in the Super Bowl) has yet to be voted in.
Arch’s father is Cooper Manning, the oldest of the three Manning brothers.
The Longhorns are ranked No. 1 in the nation and open the season Aug. 30 against No. 3 Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio.
NO. 24 TENNESSEE TRYING TO BUILD OFF CFP BERTH WITH NEW QB IN JOSH HEUPEL’S 5TH SEASON
Josh Heupel has a new starting quarterback for his 24th-ranked Tennessee Volunteers, with Joey Aguilar coming through the transfer portal to earn the job for the season opener Aug. 30 against Syracuse in Atlanta.
“He’s extremely comfortable in what we’re doing right now,” Heupel said of Aguilar.
Quarterback had been the biggest question for the Vols because Nico Iamaleava stunningly left just before the spring game. Iamaleava landed at UCLA, where Aguilar changed his mind and chose Tennessee after throwing for 3,003 yards with 23 touchdown passes and 14 interceptions last season at Appalachian State.
He beat out Jake Merklinger, who played in two games for the Vols last season, and freshman George MacIntyre.
Quarterback is just one of many positions on offense that will feature a new starter from 2024, when Tennessee went 10-3. The Vols reached the College Football Playoff before losing in the first round to eventual national champion Ohio State.
Replacing Sampson
Tennessee also has a deep group to help replace Dylan Sampson, the SEC Offensive Player of the Year who left for the NFL. He keyed the SEC’s best rushing offense and ninth nationally by running for a school-record 1,491 yards.
DeSean Bishop earned a scholarship after running for 455 yards last season, and the Vols also have Star Thomas, who transferred from Duke. He has experience with 40 career games at Duke and New Mexico State and 2,044 yards and 16 rushing touchdowns.
New offensive line
Left tackle Lance Heard is the only returning starter with David Sanders Jr., a five-star recruit, on track to start at right tackle. Tennessee has to find a new center with Cooper Mays gone after holding that spot for Heupel’s first four seasons.
Heupel also added experience through the transfer portal Sam Pendleton started seven games at left guard and was the backup center for Notre Dame, which lost in the national championship game. Wendell Moe Jr. started two seasons at guard for Arizona.
Catching questions
This position may be the Vols’ biggest issue. The top three wide receivers from 2024 are gone to the NFL, medical retirement or the portal. Seven are on scholarship with only three having played in college.
Watching McCoy
Preseason AP All-American Jermod McCoy could be the first cornerback selected in the 2026 NFL draft depending on his return from the ACL torn in January. He started practicing in early August. Tennessee has experience in the secondary, but McCoy tied for the team lead with four interceptions in 2024.
The schedule
The Vols have one of the easier schedules in the SEC. ETSU is the home opener Sept. 6 before hosting No. 5 Georgia, then UAB. The SEC road slate starts Sept. 27 at Mississippi State with visits to No. 8 Alabama on Oct. 18 and Kentucky on Oct. 25.
Tennessee leaves Rocky Top only once in November to play No. 15 Florida. That leaves the Vols playing three of four at home hosting No. 18 Oklahoma, New Mexico State and Vanderbilt.
FRESHMAN BEAR BACHMEIER TO START AT QB FOR BYU
Bear Bachmeier has won the quarterback competition at BYU, coach Kalani Sitake said Tuesday.
“He settled it on the field. He gives us the best chance to win right now,” Sitake said.
He will become the first true freshman in program history to start Week 1 when the Cougars open against Portland State on Aug. 30, ESPN reported.
Bachmeier will wear the unusual QB number of 47, which he showed off in a social media video while dressed as a bear.
It’s a quick turn for BYU, which saw starter Jake Retzlaff withdraw from school on July 11 amid news BYU intended to suspend him for seven games over a violation of the school’s honor code.
Retzlaff now is at Tulane.
Bachmeier initially committed to Stanford and spent the spring in Palo Alto, but he entered the transfer portal in May and headed to BYU. Transferring with him from Stanford was his older brother, Tiger.
Tiger caught 46 passes for 476 yards and two touchdowns over two seasons at Stanford.
The Bachmeier name could sound familiar. Oldest brother Hank concluded his six-year career as a college quarterback in 2024 with Wake Forest after previously playing for Boise State and Louisiana Tech.
Bear was a four-star recruit, as ranked by the 247Sports composite, in the Class of 2025. Tiger was a three-star in the 2023 class. The brothers are from Murrieta, Calif.
Bachmeier bested transfers Treyson Bourguet, a redshirt junior from Western Michigan, and redshirt sophomore McCae Hillstead from Utah State, to win the starting job.
The Cougars finished 11-2 in 2024 in his second season in the Big 12.
