The long offseason is finally over as college football starts in earnest this week. After an offseason of change across the college athletics landscape, we finally get to trade in court rooms for packed stadiums. We’re marking the occasion as we always do — with the release of national picks from our full complement of experts.
We’re heading into one of the most wide open seasons in recent memory. No team fields better than +600 odds to win the national title, and nine teams have 15-to-1 odds or better. The preseason No. 1 and 2 teams have not won a national championship in more than 20 years. More acutely, six different teams have won the national title in the past seven years as the transfer portal and NIL open up the field.
That wide open nature will translate to the Heisman race, where our experts picked four different players. It also includes a competitive Group of Five race for an all-important College Football Playoff spot. Our college football experts at CBS Sports made their picks for most overrated and underrated teams in the country, plus a pick for their coach of the year and Heisman winner.
Expert picks for all of these categories can be found below as we head into Week 1 of the season. All betting odds below provided via FanDuel Sportsbook.
Most overrated team
Texas: Let me provide some context here! Texas is going to be good. It will be one of the 10 best teams in the league. But is it the best team? Why are we so confident that a team with a new QB and very little returning production on offense, as well as new starters on both sides of the lines of scrimmage, deserves to start the year at No. 1? While the schedule may not feature the weekly hammering other teams will deal with, there are still road games against Ohio State, Florida and Georgia, as well as home dates with Texas A&M and the annual clash with Oklahoma. Nobody should be surprised if the ‘Horns finish the regular season 9-3 and spend the final week of November on the campaign trail for an at-large bid. — Tom Fornelli
Iowa State: I’ve got the Cyclones rated as a plus-value Big 12 and power conference team, but the top 25 ranking they are carrying into the season seems to be an extended celebration from the program’s first-ever 11-win season. The team has to replace two 1,000-yard receivers and could see a regression after going 5-1 in one-score games last season. Iowa State has a solid foundation with its run game and defense but makes more sense as a top-40 team to start. — Chip Patterson
Oregon: It’s OK to agree to disagree. Oregon at No. 7 despite losing so much talent at the skill positions, including quarterback, is just too much for me to swallow. I believe we’re giving Oregon credit because of the incredible coaching staff, led by Dan Lanning, and how the Ducks have become the Kings of the West in recruiting. I will not debate either point; I agree. But is it possible that this new Oregon team, with the youngest quarterback in the Lanning era, might just be a year away from contention? Oregon is exiting an incredible run of the most experienced quarterbacks in the sport’s history — Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel — and the loss of that veteran presence at both quarterback and across the offense is difficult to replace, even with great depth and some notable additions from the portal (Tulane running back Makhi Hughes is the real deal). Oregon is not going to fall off the map, but the Ducks may struggle early in the year and on the road in big environments. That defense will be stellar, especially if Matayo Uiagalelei takes another step forward, and that will keep them as a borderline contender. Still, I feel this roster is a year away from contending for the Big Ten title again. — Brandon Marcello (also John Talty)
South Carolina: My worry about the Gamecocks is it’s just too much gone from last year’s roster, and not just the multiple defenders drafted but also the others who are at least good enough to get on a training camp roster as a UDFA. I’m just not sure this team has any choice but to take a step back. Yes, LeNorris Sellers is one of the can’t-miss players in the sport this year, but there are serious questions about who he has around him to throw to, and with a quarterback who is still developing into form as a passer, that matters. — Richard Johnson (also Chris Hummer)
Michigan: It’s great to see the Wolverines solidify the quarterback position with the addition of Bryce Underwood and Mikey Keene, but this offense still has plenty of structural holes. The receiver group has been lackluster and the offensive line is not the kind of experienced group that spurred their greatest successes. Additionally, while there’s plenty of talent remaining, standout defensive tackles Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant are gone too. Improved? Yes. Top 15? No. — Shehan Jeyarajah
Arizona State: The Big 12 is too wide open to reasonably expect that Arizona State will replicate the success it enjoyed in 2024. Games at Baylor, at Utah and at Iowa State will be treacherous, and home dates against TCU and Texas Tech are no cakewalk, either. The Sun Devils have a high floor with star quarterback Sam Leavitt returning. But replacing the do-it-all stardom of running back Cam Skattebo will be tough in a muddy league race. ASU is transitioning from the hunter to the hunted while still relatively early in its promising transformation under Kenny Dillingham, and that paradigm shift will bring a bit of regression. — David Cobb
Illinois: Debuting at No. 12, this is the Fighting Illini’s highest preseason ranking since 1990. That’s immense pressure on the shoulders of Bret Bielema, who’s enjoyed one nationally ranked finish his last 10 seasons as a coach spanning his final campaign at Wisconsin, five years at Arkansas and now four with Illinois. Returning 16 starters off a 10-win team is certainly positive, but it’s going to take nine regular-season victories to make this lofty preseason ranking warranted, and that’s a stretch with matchups against Duke, Indiana, Ohio State, Washington and USC, among others. — Brad Crawford
Most underrated team
USC: Year 1 of Big Ten life did not deliver a record fitting for the USC standard, but the Trojans did not look out-classed in their debut run through a new landscape. All but one of the five losses were one-score defeats, and offseason staffing upgrades have pointed to more building in the right direction when it comes to modernization of a tradition-rich program. The fact that Lincoln Riley did not seek out a replacement for Jayden Maiava suggests that the player who went 3-1 as a starter could be set for a breakout season this fall. This is probably not a national title contender, but when it comes to exceeding the win total expectations and flirting with College Football Playoff contention, the Trojans are a great value bet. — Patterson
Utah: Firstly, shoutout to the CBS Sports crew for ranking Utah at No. 25, just within the top 25, unlike our colleagues in the AP and Coaches polls. But that’s still not enough. Utah is always one of the toughest teams in the trenches in the West, and the offensive line might just be the best in the country this season. You add New Mexico transfer Devon Dampier — a runner and gunner — at quarterback and a new offense that will implement an up-tempo RPO system, and it has me excited for what’s possible for the Utes. In fact, Kyle Whittingham, who wants to retire on top, is my pick to win the Big 12 title this season. That 5-7 season a year ago was a hiccup marred by injuries. A big bounce back is on the menu this fall. — Marcello
Louisville: This is a bet on Jeff Brohm more than anything as the Louisville coach somehow won nine games at Purdue one season and has a reputation as one of the best QB gurus in the country. Look for Brohm to get more out of USC transfer QB Miller Moss, who will settle in nicely away from Los Angeles and have the Cardinals in the ACC title hunt. The back half of the schedule is brutal with road games at Miami and SMU plus a home tilt against Clemson, but Louisville has the talent and coaching to finish in the top 25 and be a possible CFP participant. — Talty
Indiana: Well, for starters they took arguably the best quarterback of anyone in the last cycle, Fernando Mendoza, and add it to an offensive line that took some good transfers (Pat Coogan and Zen Michalski), and I don’t think there’s going to be too much of a drop off for the Hoosiers. This isn’t the playoff team of last year, but they aren’t going back to your idea of Indiana football. This team is built to be a dark horse in the Big Ten, and with dates against Oregon and Penn State, it has a serious chance to be a major factor in who plays in the conference title game. — Johnson
Duke: The Blue Devils were perhaps the quietest nine-win team in the country last season and now have a chance to take another step with the addition of quarterback Darian Mensah. The Tulane transfer gives a level of playmaking to the offense that Maalik Murphy could not match. Additionally, Duke retained key pieces, like cornerback Chandler Rivers, safety Terry Moore and defensive end Wesley Williams. Keep an eye on the Week 2 matchup against No. 12 Illinois. It could be a coming out party in Durham. — Jeyarajah
Alabama: Alabama’s offense might be on rocket fuel in 2025 with former five-star quarterback Ty Simpson slinging the rock to a stud group of receivers while protected by an offensive line that includes potential top-five pick Kadyn Proctor at left tackle. The addition of offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, a trusted confidant of coach Kalen DeBoer, will also help push this group forward in a major way. Even if the defense stagnates, the offensive improvement will be enough to lift the Crimson Tide into the playoff. If DC Kane Wommack’s unit improves at all, this team will be at or near the top of the national title odds sheet by the end of October. — Cobb
Nebraska: Outside of the preseason top 25, there’s a chance the Huskers can get to 8-0 this season with USC coming to Lincoln if they’re able to conquer Michigan early. This is the most favorable schedule Nebraska’s had in years by Big Ten standards, and Matt Rhule did an admirable job filling personnel gaps this season where he felt his team needed it most. Dylan Raiola will ascend with OC Dana Holgorsen calling the shots, and Nebraska’s a team worth taking a flyer on as a playoff dark horse within the Big Ten. — Crawford
LSU: Underrated can mean many things, but I think in the context of winning a national championship, the Tigers are severely undervalued as the preseason No. 9 team. The roster in Baton Rouge is loaded following back-to-back-to-back top nine classes and with the addition of the nation’s No. 1 overall portal group. LSU has the QB (Garrett Nussmeier), top-end skill talent and enough all-conference-caliber defensive pieces to make a legitimate run at the national title. The Tigers are my preseason SEC pick and should not be picked fourth or worse in the league like we’ve seen this preseason. — Hummer (also Fornelli)
College Football Playoff predictions
Top four seeds (first-round byes)
Rest of field (Nos. 5-12)
2025 national champion
Texas (+600): Arch Manning is even better than expected and the Longhorns finally end the 20-year title drought. There is NFL-caliber talent all over this roster, including two CBS Sports first-team preseason All-Americans in defensive end Colin Simmons and linebacker Anthony Hill. The schedule is challenging — three road games Ohio State, Florida and Georgia are rough — and there could be some bumps along the way, but like Ohio State a year ago, as long as the Longhorns can make the playoff, they’ll have the talent to make a run. Texas has been knocking on the door for years now under Steve Sarkisian, falling just short in the last two CFP semifinals, but this is the year they crash through like the Kool-Aid Man. — Talty (also Johnson, Crawford)
Penn State (+700): Penn State has a proven quarterback in Drew Allar, returns a pair of 1,000-yard rushers in Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen and will field one of the nation’s top offensive lines. The Nittany Lions also hired Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, who will have plenty of high-end talent at his disposal. The Buckeyes and Oregon each have significantly more to replace, which flings the door open for this program to win its first Big Ten title since 2016. After taking Notre Dame down to the wire in a CFP semifinal game last season, Penn State has the talent, experience and coaching needed to win playoff games. This is an all-in season for the Nittany Lions, and they have all the ingredients needed to be the last team standing. — Cobb (also Patterson, Marcello)
LSU (+1300): We’re truly blessed as college football fans because we enter the season with so many teams that can realistically win a national title. One of the primary reasons for this is the amount of question marks surrounding so many of the teams usually battling at the top. That’s why I’m leaning more toward one of the teams who has a top quarterback returning, studs at the skill positions and a (defense that should improve. Yes, there are questions, but everybody has them. Also, while Penn State’s a popular pick for having so much returning talent, that returning talent didn’t beat a top-10 team last season. I need to see Penn State do it before I pick Penn State to do it. But LSU? I’ve seen LSU do it multiple times with different quarterbacks and different head coaches. — Fornelli (also Jeyarajah)
Clemson (+1200): Clemson never left the national stage, but it felt like the top-end of college football left the Tigers behind the last half decade. NIL and the transfer portal took over the sport, and Dabo Swinney refused to go along with the changes. But things look different entering 2025. Revenue sharing has evened the money playing field for Clemson, and the Tigers maintain depth better than anyone thanks to their roster philosophy. Throw in some key transfer additions for the Tigers, and they have everything they need to win a national championship again. That includes a Heisman-caliber QB (Cade Klubnik), blossoming skill talent and good to great line play. Throw in an easy path to the playoff, and the Tigers are set to make a run. There’s no hole on the roster. They have the QB and d-line everyone else wants. Clemson gets it done for the first time since 2018. — Hummer
CBS Sports Preseason All-America team: College football’s best and brightest entering the 2025 season
CBS Sports Staff
Coach of the Year
James Franklin: In an approach mirroring Ohio State’s run to a national title in 2024, Franklin jumps off the schneid by winning a national championship and garnering coach of the year honors. Penn State is the epitome of a program on the cusp, entering last season as one of the winningest schools to have never reached the playoff or a BCS championship. The Nittany Lions broke through last season, but the head coach’s legacy is still at stake. He’s 1-18 in his career against top-five teams (get ready to hear that on repeat), the second-worst record in FBS history. Franklin built this cast of veterans, one of the most experienced rosters in the country and hired the best coaching staff in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions will live up to the expectations with a title, and Franklin will cement his name in Penn State’s pantheon. — Marcello (also Patterson, Cobb)
Brian Kelly: The trend with coach of the year awards is they rarely go to the coach who is consistently great, or even expected to be. To this point, Brian Kelly’s tenure at LSU has been underwhelming. He left Notre Dame to compete for national titles and is yet to reach the playoff in Baton Rouge, while Notre Dame played for a title just last season. But if LSU reaches its ceiling in 2025, wins the SEC and competes for a national title (as I have them doing), Kelly will be a runaway winner for coach of the year awards. — Fornelli
Steve Sarkisian: College football’s only coach to make consecutive semifinal appearances, Sarkisian will earn national accolades this season after bringing Texas its first national crown in two decades. His roster is as good as — if not better than — other elite teams nationally, and his play-calling acumen on game days will be showcased during multiple wins this fall over top-10 competition in the regular season and throughout the playoff. He has taken Arch Manning under his wing in Austin and convinced him to be a two-year bench sitter on the Forty Acres for this very moment. The Longhorns coach will get his due. — Crawford
Kyle Whittingham: We all love a good comeback story, and if Utah does what I think its capable of doing in winning the Big 12 title, Whittingham will be a popular Coach of the Year pick. Coming off a disappointing 5-7 season that Whittingham called the most difficult of his coaching career, the Utes should be much more potent behind a new offensive scheme and what could be the nation’s best offensive line. With retirement rumors continuing to linger over Whittingham — DC Morgan Scalley has already been tabbed head-coach-in-waiting — I think the voters will reward him in a big way if Utah is a playoff team in 2025. — Talty (also Johnson)
Dabo Swinney: Reports of Dabo’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. After a few years of rebuilding, Clemson is back at full power. The Tigers boast the best defensive line in college football and the type of stacked receiver group that characterized its championship teams. Even if it stumbles against LSU, Clemson will burn through the ACC and give themselves a serious chance to enter the postseason as the No. 1 overall seed. It’s taken some patience and adjustment, but Swinney has done enough to reestablish himself as a clear-cut top-three coach in college football — and maybe better. — Jeyarajah (also Hummer)
Heisman Trophy winner
Arch Manning (+700): He was the No. 1-ranked prospect from the Class of 2023 for a reason. Manning has the arm of his uncles, the legs of his grandfather and the mind of a third-generation football scion who was practically built in a lab. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian is a schematic guru who will maximize Manning’s immense abilities and build the statistical profile of a Heisman contender. Games at Ohio State, at Florida and at Georgia present opportunities for “Heisman moments.” Rivalry showdowns against Oklahoma and Texas A&M could do the same. The name, the ability, the scheme and the spotlight all align to make Manning a promising Heisman pick. — Cobb (also Marcello, Talty, Johnson)
Jeremiah Smith (+1200): We had just one player finish as a unanimous first team All-America selection in our preseason balloting at CBS Sports, and it was Smith. As one of the last remaining stars from Ohio State’s all-time title run in 2024-25, Smith starts the year as one of the most recognizable individuals in the sport, and he’s poised for another wildly productive season that should see him as one of the most outstanding skill players in the country. The issue, admittedly, is the idea that Heisman voters would choose Smith ahead of a quarterback one year after breaking trend with Travis Hunter as the winner and Ashton Jeanty as the runner-up. To that I’d argue that our Heisman electorate has seen a shift in tastes where being able to “stand out” in 2025 doesn’t require the obscene stats a quarterback can accumulate but rather a collection of moments for our highlight-wired brains. Smith can certainly deliver those in bunches, and if he does, I think he becomes the first Buckeye to win the award since Troy Smith in 2006. — Patterson (also Jeyarajah)
Cade Klubnik (+900): The Heisman is largely a quarterback award. It’s also a trophy that almost always goes to someone on a national title contender. Check and check for Klubnik. Clemson’s schedule positions the Tigers to go 11-1 or better in the regular season, and much of that credit will go to a QB who promises to rank among the.top passing leaders in the country. Klubnik is clutch, too. if you go back to his play from last year. The recipe is there: Great team + elite QB = Heisman. — Hummer (also Crawford)
Jeremiyah Love (+3000): If we count Travis Hunter (and we should), two wide receivers have won the Heisman in the last five years. A running back hasn’t won the award since Alabama’s Derrick Henry in 2015. I think that changes this year. Love will be the featured player on what should be an outstanding Notre Dame offense. Not only will Love likely see a larger share of carries this season, but he won’t have to deal with Riley Leonard stealing touchdowns from him (both Love and Leonard rushed for 17 last year). In the end, Love conquers all and takes the trophy. — Fornelli
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