Winning a national championship is hard enough, but going back-to-back? That's a whole different challenge.
Ohio State is coming off a run through the College Football Playoff, capped off by a 34-23 win over Notre Dame in the national championship. In a few months, the Buckeyes will be gearing up to defend their title, but the road to repeating is packed with tough competition.
With powerhouse programs reloading and hungry to knock the Buckeyes off their throne, the 2025 season won't be a walk in the park. Whether it's rising contenders or familiar foes looking for revenge, here's a look at the five teams with the best chance at knocking Ohio State off in 2025.
The 5 teams with the best chance at knocking Ohio State off their thrown
1. Texas Longhorns
Have you checked out the 2025 season schedule yet? If you have, one of the first things you'd probably notice is that we've got some big-time games to start open up the season, none perhaps as monumental as Texas at Ohio State.
Ohio State will be breaking in a new quarterback — with Julian Sayin likely taking over for Will Howard — and the Buckeyes will have a whole host of new starters taking over on the defensive side of the ball. Arch Manning will be entering his first season as the full-time starter at Texas, but this isn't just about the season-opener.
Regardless of what happens in this one, Texas is going to be one of the teams that is best built to compete and knock Ohio State out of the postseason.
2. Michigan Wolverines
Ryan Day's kryptonite thus far has been rival Michigan, and there are reasons to believe that the Wolverines will be much-improved in 2025. Michigan has spent a ton of money assembling a roster — sound familiar, Buckeye fans? And while money doesn't always mean success, that game at the end of the season could be a big one for Ohio State.
There is a chance that this one could serve as an elimination game for the College Football Playoff, and you've got to believe that Michigan would be salivating at that opportunity in front of their home crowd.
3. Penn State Nittany Lions
Drew Allar, Nick Singleton, and Kaytron Allen are all back. Penn State will have to replace Defensive Coordinator Tom Allen, but there are plenty of reasons to believe that the Nittany Lions still have the defensive talent — even without Abdul Carter on the roster — to be elite in 2025.
Penn State will have to travel to Ohio Stadium for this one, but there's no reason to believe that they can't compete and be one of the biggest threats to Ohio State next season.
4. Georgia Bulldogs
The first of two teams we've got on our list that will not have Ohio State on their schedule: The Georgia Bulldogs.
Georgia will have to replace some talent after several NFL Draft announcements and losses to the Transfer Portal, but Gunner Stockton could potentially activate that offense even more than Carson Beck did in 2024, and Kirby Smart will always have an elite defense.
Something tells us the team in Athens will be motivated to have a better showing in 2025, which could spell trouble for Ohio State's bid at back-to-back titles.
5. Clemson Tigers
This one might be a surprise to you. Clemson won't play Ohio State in the regular season, but this is the first time in more than a half-decade that Dabo Swinney's squad has the firepower to actually be a contender in the national picture.
Clemson and Ohio State were developing a bit of a rivalry with back-to-back games against one another in 2019 and 2020 — where they split — so it only makes sense that we finally get the rubber match at some point.
Cade Klubnik and the entire offense is back, and Clemson has hired Tom Allen from Penn State to be its Defensive Coordinator. It certainly sounds like Dabo Swinney is preparing to make a run in 2025.