Gus Martin (sports digital producer): Texas — The obvious and most likely team to win it all. With top-end talent at every level of its defense, a dynamic running back and Arch Manning, who's been waiting for his chance to take over the sport, the Longhorns seem poised to reclaim the CFP trophy for the SEC.

Texas opens at Ohio State in Week as a +2.5 point underdog and in October, the Longhorns do not play a home game. Texas goes to Florida, who is off a bye week, then to Dallas for the red river rivalry with Oklahoma, a trip to Kentucky who is off a bye, and to Mississippi State to end the month.

Ohio State will enter the 2025 college football season with high expectations, both internally and externally.

Bret Bielema has had plenty of players drafted into the NFL, with 14 picked in the draft since 2021. Twice, his teams have had four picked in a single year (2022 and 2023). The 2025 team will surpass all of Bielema's previous ones — and every Illini team since the draft went to seven rounds in 1994.

On one hand, the Nittany Lions will face all three Big Ten teams that made the CFP last season in Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana. But the Ducks and Hoosiers must travel to a juiced-up Beaver Stadium. Oregon gets the White Out on Sept. 27, while Indiana receives “Helmet Stripe” treatment on Nov. 8.

Texas isn't bringing famed live mascot Bevo, a 2,100-pound steer, to Ohio Stadium for its Aug. 30 opener against Buckeyes.

The SEC is moving from eight conferences games to nine. Here's what that means for the future of the College Football Playoff and for Ohio State.

The Ohio State Buckeyes and Texas Longhorns will open the upcoming college football season against one another on August 30. Texas comes into the game ranked as the top team in the country in the first Associated Press poll, while Ohio State, which won last season's national title, comes in at third.