UNSCRIPTED: It’s College Football Time!!

Unscripted By Keith Edmonds
FWIS Contributing Writer

Yes! It’s that time of the year again! What time of the year you ask? College Football 2025 Time! The time of the year when we all find our favorite sweater, hat, pendant, mug or whatever it is that we take out to support our favorite NCAA football team! The rankings have come out and many of the “old familiar” favorites are listed among the nation’s tops teams but there are a few surprises which always makes for good barbershop, or local pub debates! The “experts" have predicted that the Longhorns of Texas and the Nittany Lions of Penn State are the two teams that will meet in the national championship game in January but that’s just on paper. We’ll have to allow the season to mature first before we put these two on the pedestal of greatness! Georgia, Clemson, Ohio State (defending National Champions), and Notre Dame round out the Top 6 teams in the polls but again these are just predictions so a lot can happen between now and January! Now, when you look at which conferences have the most teams ranked in the top 25 then look no further than the SEC, who have 10 (yes 10!) teams listed in the Top 25. (Texas, Georgia, Alabama, LSU, South Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Ole Miss.) Then there’s the Big 10 who have 6 teams in the Top 25 Ohio State, Penn State, Illinois, (who?) Oregon, Michigan, and last year’s surprise Indiana! So, it’s going to be ON when this season starts!

Now, I’m going to admit, I’m a Notre Dame Fighting Irish fan and I’m not ashamed to say that! (lol). I like this team and their coach Marcus Freeman, but they are going to have to earn the nation’s respect (once again) as they don’t play in a traditional conference which upsets many and then they have the “audacity” to have their own television network (NBC) broadcasting ALL of their games! Talk about arrogance!!

So, who’s the big story this year in college football? What are the most intriguing games and who should we keep an eye on heading into this season? I’m glad that you asked those questions! If the season is anything like Week #1 matchups then it’s going to be one heck of a season! Let’s take a look...

First, if Texas and Ohio State are the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country, (like they are in the Coaches Poll), it will be the first regular season nonconference matchup between #1 and #2 since 2006 and the first time the defending national champion (Ohio State) has faced a top five opponent in its season opener since 1988! Now, if you add in the rest of the Week 1 games with #5 Notre Dame playing #10 Miami, and #6 Clemson hosting #9 LSU, then we are talking about the most loaded opening weekend since the 1940s! (Who’s making these schedules?!) Wow!

But back to what I feel is the most compelling story of college football in 2025... How about some teasers....

Is it Alabama getting back to what they feel is their rightful place as the #1 team in the country? No! How about Texas being listed as the #1 team for the first time in their illustrious history? No! How about Ohio State winning the national championship after losing to Michigan during the regular season? No! Then it’s got to be Indiana University being listed as a Top 25 team after a tremendous season last year for a school that nobody thought about as a football power? No! Okay enough guessing. The best story that I feel is most compelling in college football is.... Bill Belichick returning to college football after winning 6 Super Bowl titles in the NFL with the New England Patriots! Why in the world would he come back to coach at the collegiate level? They have a favorable schedule playing in the ACC but, but question marks are numerous when it comes to if, and how quickly a locker room of college players will have full buy-in to this approach of coaching. Belichick brought in a lot of big guys, but are they the right guys? He’s preaching physicality and toughness in fall camp, but does the team have the explosiveness to keep up in a modern college game that requires skill on the perimeter? He’s a Legendary coach but if they don’t win in Year 1 of Carolina football, those Super Bowl rings will start to become slightly less meaningful to the conversation as the season goes on! Just my takes on this season. Hope your team wins a lot of games, just not against the Irish!