Joel Klatt Reveals Post-Spring College Football Top 25 Rankings
In the latest episode of The Joel Klatt Show, the FOX Sports college football guru revealed his "way-too-early" top 25 rankings for the upcoming season.
Since spring practices and the transfer portal window have passed, some may be surprised to learn that there are only about three more months until the start of the 2025 college football calendar. Klatt's top 25 features three Big 10 teams among the top four teams overall.
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The 43-year-old host prefaced his rankings by outlining that this year's margins between the top teams have never been smaller.
"Here's what, first and foremost, I'm most excited for: I don't think we have a real dominant team. As opposed to last year ... you could say, "Yeah, Ohio State will be a really good football team. Georgia is going to be really good.' We knew who the best teams are. We know that again this year, but I'm just telling you the margin is reducing every year between all of these teams."
Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar.Jordan Prather-Imagn
Joel Klatt's post-spring top 25 college football rankings
Penn State Nittany Lions
Texas Longhorns
Ohio State Buckeyes
Oregon Ducks
Clemson Tigers
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
LSU Tigers
Georgia Bulldogs
Alabama Crimson Tide
Illinois Fighting Illini
South Carolina Gamecocks
Michigan Wolverines
Florida Gators
BYU Cougars
Arizona State Sun Devils
Kansas State Wildcats
Iowa State Cyclones
Miami Hurricanes
Texas A&M Aggies
Ole Miss Rebels
Indiana Hoosiers
Auburn Tigers
Iowa Hawkeyes
Baylor Bears
Oklahoma Sooners
It may surprise some that Ohio State is ranked No. 3 in Klatt's rankings, as they are often ranked first in early release lists. However, most analysts have some combination of OSU, Penn State or Texas in their top-three.
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The Hurricanes are also a touch low ranking at No. 18, and Klatt viewed his opinion of Miami as "cautiously optimistic." He also noted concerns about quarterback Carson Beck not being ready yet as he recovers from the elbow injury that cut short his season last year.
Illinois is receiving good placement in rankings this spring; however, Klatt describes the Fighting Illini as a "sneaky, sneaky, good team," placing them at No. 10 in his list.
Red Raiders HC Joey McGuire vs. Longhorns© Annie Rice/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
Several commenters to the video pointed out that Klatt should have had the Texas Tech Red Raiders somewhere in this list. The program had a huge haul in the transfer portal and is the betting favorite to win the Big 12.
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When discussing his No. 1 team, Penn State, Klatt believes the Nittany Lions are following the blueprint of what past national champions have done.
"You look at what Michigan did in 2023. You look at what Ohio State did in 2024. Both of those teams had a core group of veteran players stay. They stayed and won a championship. Both of those teams had veterans at quarterback.
"They had veterans on both sides of the ball. They were excellent at the line of scrimmage. They had chips on their shoulders from the way that they were bounced from the postseason in years prior. All of that is true about Penn State."
The 2025 college football season will begin on August 23 with a four-game slate. The vast majority of teams will begin their seasons on August 30.
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Related: Former No. 1 Linebacker Announces Transfer Destination on Friday
Related: NCAA Reveals Punishment For College Football Staffers Who Placed Over $100K In Bets
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