COLLEGE FOOTBALL 2025 PREDICTIONS 

SPONSORED BY FADETHEPUBLIC

Value Investors,  

If you put money on logic last season, you probably lost your shirt. Welcome to college football, where history repeats, hype trains derail, and preseason Top 10s are just a hit list for humiliation. 

Ohio State, for the fourth year in a row, lost to Michigan. You’d think a $100 million athletic department could figure out one rivalry game. But nope. The Buckeyes made the CFP anyway and somehow ran the table after that, finally hoisting the trophy after years of emotional trauma. Ryan Day lives to coach another season (until The Game 2026).  

Texas, meanwhile, swaggered into every game like they were defending national champs… and still couldn’t beat a top-10 team to save their lives. Every year it’s the same: horns up in August, heads down by November. You could hand them a win, and they’d probably decline it just to fumble the cover.  

Texas A&M? Imploded like a crypto startup. A&M paid more money for coaching buyouts than they earned in conference pride. The program has five-star facilities and five-star athletes, and a three-star results chart. Tough to see them start 7-1 and miss making the playoffs.  

Florida State had all the talent, all the hype… and went 0–8 in the ACC. That’s not rebuilding, that’s reverse engineering success and losing the blueprint. Whatever momentum they had from 2023 got buried under bad play calling and worse luck.  

Oklahoma joined the SEC and immediately got hazed like a freshman pledge. They went 6–7, forgot how to play offense, and ended their season with a bowl loss to Navy. This wasn’t “Boomer Sooner”, this was “Boomer Sunk.”  

Notre Dame had playoff dreams, a Heisman hopeful QB, and the easiest schedule this side of Conference USA. So naturally, they lost the title game to Ohio State after leƫting their defense become a turnstile. Every time you believe in the Irish, they remind you why Vegas doesn’t.  

Penn State did their annual “look really good until we play someone real” routine. Beat the MAC? Check. Dominate Rutgers? Of course. Show up against Michigan or Ohio State? Absolutely not. It’s Groundhog Day in Happy Valley.  

Alabama looked… mortal? Saban gone. Kalen DeBoer in. And while there were flashes of brilliance, Bama fans are still adjusting to life with less than 11 wins. Sad times in Tuscaloosa with only our thoughts and prayers. 

Georgia still won, obviously. They’re on autopilot at this point. They could start a punter at QB and still win 10 games. The only team that can beat Georgia is Georgia (or a CFP officiating crew). 

LSU? You never know what you’re geƫting. One week it’s a 400-yard passing game, the next it’s a turnover festival hosted by Brian Kelly. Beƫting LSU is like playing roulette with a rigged wheel, sometimes fun, mostly painful. 

USC spent the year proving defense is optional. Oregon flirted with greatness but ghosted bettors at the worst moments. Washington took a nap after the 2023 title run. Utah kept punching people in the mouth. And Colorado? Let’s just say Coach Prime is better at media than managing second-half leads. 

So now we dust ourselves off, refill the bankroll, and dive into 2026. The goal? Fade the Public… 

*Side note, this document is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be personal financial advice, and there's an inherent risk involved with financial decisions and the document owner will not be held liable for decisions others make. 

**If you attend and/or host a fall Saturday wedding, you are not eligible to watch any college football weekend ever again.

SEC Picks:

Alabama 9.5 – Over, they should have one of the best defenses in the league. Season depends on their QB play and I trust Kalen DeBoer to get the job done. Milroe was horrible at the end of the season in ’24.  

Georgia 9.5 – Over, too much talent to not take the over and it hits every year, like the SPY…  

Texas 9.5 – this one is tough. Anthony Hill, Collin Simmons and their other defense ends are superior. They lost a lot of their receivers and oline to the NFL but have the depth pieces to perform well. I am fading the Arch Manning hype and believe they lose to Ohio State and Georgia, with another loss to Florida or Oklahoma.  

LSU 8.5 – Under, this is one of the toughest O/Us on the board. They play Clemson week 1. They lost majority of their offensive line and it is tough to trust Brian Kelly in big games. Garrett Nussmeier is a favorite for the Heisman but will need to lower his turnover ratio to stay in the race. 

Ole Miss 8.5 – Under, they had Jaxson Dart and a top defense and still lost three games last season. Austin Simmons should be a solid replacement for Dart, however, their defensive line depth is lacking and lost a lot of talent to the NFL.  

Tennessee 8.5 – Under, I think they finish 8-4 due to losing Nico at QB and Sampson at RB. Their schedule is favorable, and the defense is still strong on the front, but I anticipate a pullback from their prior year playoff berth.  

Auburn 7.5 – Under, Hugh Freeze is too worried about his golf game. Word on the street is that Hugh told the defense to take it easy on Jackson Arnold (former Sooner qb). That is never a good sign. Best receiving core in  college and a solid oline, but always fade Hugh and Jackson Arnold.  

Florida 7.5 – Over, this all rides on DJ Lagway’s health. He appears to be banged up right now and missed a few games last year. Their Oline has a great deal of experience and get to know Jaden Baugh’s name.  

Missouri 7.5 – Under, the sole reason is due to uncertainty at the QB position. Their defense should still be strong and Hardy may be the best rb in the league. Another year of a favorable schedule, so this is a tough one to pick.  

South Carolina 7.5 – Over, I love me some LaNorris Sellers. I’d say he has the most upside out of any QB in cfb. Also, Dylan Stewart is the best edge in the game, so will be interesting if the team can win 8 games without Rocket Sanders and a few other defensive linemen that are no longer on the team. I’ll take the over due to the 2 former names.  

Texas A&M 7.5 - Over, Mike Elko had his team 7-1 last year, before losing 3 of their last 4 games. The offensive line is mainly back and they should be a run first team. One of my favorite bets of the season.  

Oklahoma 6.5 – Over, one of my favorite bets this year. John Mateer and the OC have experience at Washington State the past two years. Cole Cubelic says they have the best dline in the SEC and brought in one of the best rb’s in the portal. Tough schedule but should hit 7 wins with a competent offense.  

Arkansas 5.5 – Over, really like Talen Green, one of the most talented QBs in the SEC. I think they upset Notre Dame at home if it is a night game in hogville.  

Kentucky 4.5 – Under, talent is lacking and Mark Stoops time in Lexington is dwindling.  

Vanderbilt 4.5 – Take Over 5.5, Diego Pavia is HIM and Clark Lea is a hell of a football coach. They bring back  majority of their defense and won 6 games last year. 

Mississippi State 3.5 – Under, they will be underdogs in over 9 games and play Arizona State. 

Overall, I believe the SEC will beat up on each other and majority of the teams will be in the range of 7-9 wins. You can always hedge your bet the last week of the year if you prefer playing it safe with the long-term investment. 

Other Favorable Team Win Totals:

• Georgia Tech Over 7.5 wins – Haynes King is back at QB and their offense is a machine. Could be a sleeper to win the ACC. 
• Miami Under 9.5 wins – lost majority of their receiver core and do not trust Carson Beck to take that next step. With Cam Ward last year, they had a few miraculous comebacks that I do not see happening this year.
• Nebraska Over 7.5 wins – Matt Rhule’s third year and Dylan Raiola continues to improve YoY. 
• Illinois Over 7.5 wins – my favorite bet of the year. Most returning starters in the big 10. Their schedule shapes up well (no Michigan/Ohio State/Oregon) and plays Duke on the road at 11am. Get your butt to travel to Indiana to lock in the bet.  
• Clemson Over 10.5 wins – my favorite to win the title this year. Five projected first round draft picks. I believe their dline will be too much for LSU to handle in the first game of the year.  
• California Under 5.5 wins – lots of talent left during the spring portal (top two rb’s and several receivers) and two new coordinators.  
• Iowa Over 7.5 wins – they do not play Ohio State or Michigan and have Penn State/Oregon at home. 

Heisman Hype:

• John Mateer  
• DJ Lagway  
• LaNorris Sellers  
• Drew Allar  
• Jermiah Smith  
• Cade Klubnik  

Playoff Predictions:

1. Clemson  

2. Penn State  

3. Alabama  

4. Ohio State  

5. Georgia  

6. Notre Dame  

7. Texas A&M  

8. Illinois  

9. Florida  

10. Baylor  

11. South Carolina  

12. UNLV  

Just missing: Texas, Oregon, Arizona State, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Miami