COLUMBUS, Ohio — College football season comes and goes, but top-25 season never ends.
Ohio State is often a fixture in the rankings, whether it be the preseason, the final or the way-too-early polls. The post-spring polls are no exception, though the Big Ten has a new trendy pick for No. 1.
With spring practice complete — a session which, for Ohio State, included a quarterback battle between Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz — various outlets have released the latest versions of their respective top 25 rankings.
These are often aimed to take into account what was learned during spring practice while also factoring in movement from the latest transfer portal window.
Here’s where Ohio State sits in those rankings.
Is Ohio State still the No. 1 team?
Ohio State lost plenty from its 2024 roster, which led the Buckeyes to the ninth national title in program history.
The turnover doesn’t faze Brandon Marcello whose post-spring rankings for CBS Sports featured Ohio State at No. 1.
Ohio State is the betting favorite to repeat as national champs — something the Buckeyes have never done. But Marcello isn’t deterred because OSU returns arguably the two best players in college football: Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs.
Ohio State hasn’t been the preseason No. 1-ranked team in the AP Top 25 since 2015.
Is there a new Big Ten team eyeing the top spot?
Oregon made noise last season in its first year as a Big Ten school. The Ducks spent most of the season as the top-ranked team, and they were the lone undefeated team to make the College Football Playoff.
This year, Penn State is generating buzz as the top in-conference threat to Ohio State.
The Nittany Lions return quarterback Drew Allar along with other key contributors from the 2024 season. They also made notable transfer portal additions, including former Syracuse receiver Trebor Pena.
With those moves in mind, Ari Wasserman of On3 and Mark Schlabach of ESPN have Penn State as the No. 1 team. PSU isn’t the only team ahead of Ohio State in their eyes.
Wasserman has the Buckeyes at No. 4 in his post-spring rankings, sitting behind Penn State, Texas (OSU’s Week 1 opponent) and Clemson.
Schlabach has Ohio State at No. 5 behind Penn State, Clemson, Texas and Georgia.
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