NCAAF · 7 months ago

Best College Football Games of the 2025 Season: Week 1

TJ Inman

Host · Writer

5. Auburn at Baylor - Friday, August 29
The Auburn Tigers are traveling to Waco in Week 1. Huh? This is a bizarre game, and I’m not sure it was scheduled, but we can be glad that it was, as the Tigers and Bears square off on Friday night in a game full of narratives. Hugh Freeze has been pointing to this season since he was hired on The Plains and needs a big year to prove he’s the right man to lead Auburn football. Auburn has invested in the portal and on the high school recruiting trail and believes they have assembled a contending roster. Still, it has to come together immediately, with a tough road test against a Baylor team that returns a good quarterback and will be hungry to knock off an SEC foe.

Week 1: Auburn (-1.5) at Baylor

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1. Texas at Ohio State - Saturday, August 30
The best non-conference game for the 2025 season is a mammoth blockbuster in Week 1 and a rematch of one of last season’s College Football Playoff Semifinals. The Ohio State Buckeyes are the reigning national champs and begin the quest for a repeat with a home date against title contender Texas. Quarterback Arch Manning will be in the spotlight as he takes over the starting QB1 for the Longhorns, while Ohio State will likely start redshirt freshman Julian Sayin. Both teams have to replace a lot of production from last season, but expectations are, as always, sky-high for both programs. Ohio State won 24-7 the last time they traveled to Austin (2006).

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Week 1: Texas at Ohio State (-3)
2. LSU at Clemson - Saturday, August 30
Week 1's monster slate rolls on with a trip to the Upstate. Set aside the annoying “Battle of the Death Valleys” arguments and the silly “I bet the Tigers win this one” quips, and you are left with a fantastic ACC versus SEC blue-blood showdown between Clemson and LSU. Brian Kelly enters the 2025 season under pressure after a pair of underwhelming seasons in Baton Rouge, while Dabo Swinney has assembled the ACC favorite and a team that might contend for his third national championship. Garrett Nussmeier versus Cade Klubnik is the headliner at quarterback, with both players claiming to be the best in the country at the position. Clemson’s Death Valley will be rocking, and they rarely lose at home, but LSU will provide a very stiff test after a strong portal class to shore up the defense.

Week 1: LSU at Clemson (-2.5)
3. Notre Dame at Miami - Sunday, August 31
The first full weekend of the college football schedule in 2025 is loaded with several big games on Saturday and a standalone headliner on Sunday evening as the Miami Hurricanes host the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The "Catholics versus Convicts" trope is long gone, but this is still a rivalry. Miami came up just short of reaching the College Football Playoff last season. Still, Mario Cristobal continues to recruit at a high level, and the Hurricanes hope they have upgraded the overall roster and will get a healthy Carson Beck to avoid a huge drop-off at quarterback. Notre Dame will ask new starter CJ Carr to win on the road in Week 1 as they begin the journey back to the College Football Playoff. This is a very consequential early game, particularly for those doubting Cristobal’s ability to break through in Coral Gables.

Week 1: Notre Dame (-2.5) at Miami (FL)
4. Alabama at Florida State - Saturday, August 30
The renovations at Doak Campbell Stadium will be completed, and the facility will be unveiled to the public with a week one contest as the Florida State Seminoles try to erase the nightmarish 2024 season as they host the Alabama Crimson Tide. Mike Norvell is under pressure in Tallahassee, and this is not the ideal way to begin a new season. However, Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide face pressure of their own after missing the College Football Playoff in Year 1 of his tenure. Alabama will have a new starting quarterback while Florida State welcomes new offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn and transfer quarterback Thomas Castellanos to try to fix the broken offense for the Seminoles.

Week 1: Alabama (-11.5) at Florida State
5. Auburn at Baylor - Friday, August 29
The Auburn Tigers are traveling to Waco in Week 1. Huh? This is a bizarre game, and I’m not sure it was scheduled, but we can be glad that it was, as the Tigers and Bears square off on Friday night in a game full of narratives. Hugh Freeze has been pointing to this season since he was hired on The Plains and needs a big year to prove he’s the right man to lead Auburn football. Auburn has invested in the portal and on the high school recruiting trail and believes they have assembled a contending roster. Still, it has to come together immediately, with a tough road test against a Baylor team that returns a good quarterback and will be hungry to knock off an SEC foe.

Week 1: Auburn (-1.5) at Baylor

Stay ahead of the game and elevate your sports betting experience with SportsGrid.
1. Texas at Ohio State - Saturday, August 30
The best non-conference game for the 2025 season is a mammoth blockbuster in Week 1 and a rematch of one of last season’s College Football Playoff Semifinals. The Ohio State Buckeyes are the reigning national champs and begin the quest for a repeat with a home date against title contender Texas. Quarterback Arch Manning will be in the spotlight as he takes over the starting QB1 for the Longhorns, while Ohio State will likely start redshirt freshman Julian Sayin. Both teams have to replace a lot of production from last season, but expectations are, as always, sky-high for both programs. Ohio State won 24-7 the last time they traveled to Austin (2006).

Have all the intel you need? Free actionable info is one click away! Sign up for our daily newsletter, SportsGrid Daily.

Week 1: Texas at Ohio State (-3)

Best College Football Games of the 2025 Season: Week 1

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