ESPN uses a ranking system called the Football Power Index, or FPI for short. It is used to measure the strengths and weaknesses of each College Football Team. It looks at all 3 phases of the game: offense, defense, and special teams. Then it runs data in all 3 phases, and it gives each team a number, and that is how the FPI rankings College Football Teams. Below are the top 25 teams according to ESPN's FPI rankings and whether those teams deserve the ranking.
NEW: ESPN’s computer-generated FPI has updated for the 2025 College Football season👀https://t.co/ZQxmtKVmx9 pic.twitter.com/jsmFgvjnTX
— On3 (@On3sports) June 3, 2025
The Elite Teams: (Texas, Georgia, Alabama, Ohio State, & Penn State)
You could easily make a case for 4 out of the 5 teams to be ranked in the top 5. The outlier in this group is Alabama as, under 2nd year Head Coach Kalen DeBoer, they're facing an uphill battle.
Texas deserves the top spot because they are one of the favorites to win the National Title. Led by quarterback Arch Manning, they will have a great chance to win and compete for a National Title.
The Almost Elite Teams: (Oregon, Notre Dame, Texas A&M, Miami, and Tennessee)
Not many complaints here. All 5 teams you could make an argument for being ranked from 6th to 10th in the nation. Texas A&M, I would move slightly back, and with Tennessee losing quarterback Nico Iamaleava puts them further down the list, but I could see the justification of them being ranked where they are.
#Clemson really has had a pretty dang good run of QBs under Dabo Swinney https://t.co/gcanbqwcXd
— Scott Kennedy (@ScoutKennedy) June 16, 2025
The talented, but has some flaws teams: (Clemson, LSU, Ole Miss, Auburn, and South Carolina)
Clemson, to me, should be ranked higher. I have them in the top 10. This is Dabo Swinney’s best team since his National Championship in 2018. The other 4 teams are all ranked perfectly. I'm probably a believer in LSU more than most, but I could see the skepticism in not having Brian Kelly's team ranked higher.
Can I get over the top teams?: (Oklahoma, Michigan, Florida, USC, and SMU
4 of the 5 teams deserve this ranking, but USC does not. Nothing has shown me from the end of last season until now that Lincoln Riley has a top 25 team. The other 4 teams make sense.
Oklahoma and Michigan face week 2, so that will be a fun matchup to see who wins that game.
The questionable group: (Kansas State, Arkansas, Missouri, Arizona State, and Nebraska)
4 of the 5 teams I could easily make a case with, but Arkansas, I am not a believer in as a top 25 team.
Missouri could be moved up to another tier because they won 10 games last year and did well in the transfer portal.