Ohio State is already favored to win the next national championship.
The Buckeyes beat Notre Dame 34-23 on Monday night to win the first 12-team College Football Playoff. And even though we aren't totally sure how many players Ohio State will have back from that team, the Buckeyes are the early BetMGM favorites to win the title after the 2025 college football season at +450.
The Buckeyes went 10-2 in the regular season with a loss to Big Ten champion Oregon and a fourth consecutive defeat to Michigan that ended with a brawl. But Ohio State was the clear best team in the playoff as the Buckeyes rolled over both Tennessee and Oregon before beating Texas and Notre Dame by two possessions.
After bringing back so many players from a team that went 11-2 in 2023, Ohio State will have significant departures in players like QB Will Howard, DE Jack Sawyer, RB TreVeyon Henderson, WR Emeka Egbuka and many others. But WR Jeremiah Smith and DB Caleb Downs are back for another season and former five-star recruit Julian Sayin looks poised to take over at quarterback.
The Buckeyes also have the No. 3 high school recruiting class in the country according to Rivals. That group includes five-star QB Tavien St. Clair (an Ohio native), five-star defensive back Devin Sanchez and five-star linebacker Riley Pettijohn.
Texas and Georgia are the No. 2 favorites at +650. The Longhorns lost a lot of contributors to the 2025 NFL Draft, but will have Arch Manning as the starting QB after he spent two seasons backing up Quinn Ewers. Georgia will also have a new QB as Gunner Stockton will likely be the No. 1 QB after starting the Sugar Bowl for the injured Carson Beck.
Oregon is at +700 and Penn State is at +850. Former UCLA QB Dante Moore is in line to start at QB after backing up Dillon Gabriel in 2024 and the Ducks have bolstered their roster through the transfer portal again. And like Ohio State a season ago, Penn State has a lot of talent returning after a season-ending bowl loss. The Nittany Lions bring back QB Drew Allar and RBs Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton along with some key defensive contributors. Losing likely first-round picks in DE Abdul Carter and TE Tyler Warren is significant, but Penn State should start the season in the top five.
2025-26 national championship odds
Ohio State (+450)
Texas (+650)
Georgia (+650)
Oregon (+700)
Penn State (+850)
Notre Dame (+1200)
Alabama (+1600)
Tennessee (+2000)
Clemson (+2000)
LSU (+2000)
Ole Miss (+2500)
Texas A&M (+3000)
Michigan (+3500)
Miami (+4000)
South Carolina (+4000)
Florida (+5000)
Auburn (+5000)
Louisville (+6600)
Oklahoma (+6600)
SMU (+8000)
Arizona State (+9000)