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Sure, it’s May, but is it ever too early to start thinking about college football season? No, it’s not. The highly anticipated Texas–Ohio State matchup in Columbus on Aug. 30 will air on FOX as the “Big Noon Kickoff” game of the week for Week 1, the network announced at its upfront on Monday. The annual rivalry game between Ohio State and Michigan will also air on FOX on Nov. 29.
The battle between the Longhorns and Buckeyes, who will likely both be preseason top-five teams, will be the juiciest showdown in Week 1. It’s also the first battle in a home-and-home series, with the second game taking place in Austin in 2026.
There will be other big-time program matchups in Week 1 — Alabama plays at Florida State, Notre Dame goes to Miami (Fla.), and TCU faces North Carolina in Bill Belichick’s Tar Heel debut — but none will have the same intrigue as Texas-Ohio State.
It’s the reigning national champs vs. the aspiring champs. A rematch of last year’s College Football Playoff semifinal. And while both teams lost a chunk of talent to the NFL, this game will have plenty of Heisman Trophy chatter with Arch Manning, Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs on the field.
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There’s no question that Texas-Ohio State will be the most talked-about game to start the season. So, here are five storylines to watch for when the teams meet at The Horseshoe in Week 1:
College Football Playoff semifinal rematch
The last time these teams met was on Jan. 10, when Ohio State beat Texas 28-14 in the CFP semifinal at the Cotton Bowl. The Longhorns trailed just 21-14 with under seven minutes remaining when the Buckeyes turned a goal–line stand into a scoop-and-score and a 14-point swing.
The Buckeyes advanced to the national championship game, where they defeated Notre Dame to win the program’s third title since 2002.
Texas players were distraught after the game — it was an eerily similar feeling to the year before when the Horns lost to Washington on the final play of that CFP semifinal.
Now, there’s a chance for revenge a mere seven months later.
The Arch Manning era officially begins
The highly anticipated Arch Manning era is finally here.
After waiting patiently behind Quinn Ewers for two years, which is incredibly rare in college football these days, Texas is Manning’s team now.
The 21-year-old has already appeared in 12 games for Texas with two starts. He has a different skill set from his predecessor, Ewers. And as far as his famous relatives go, coach Steve Sarkisian has said Arch plays more like his grandfather, Archie, than his uncles, Peyton and Eli. Manning’s ability to run will open up the playbook and give Sarkisian more to work with offensively.
Depending on who you ask, there’s either too much or just the right amount of hype surrounding Manning as he enters the pressure cooker of being the starting quarterback in Austin. The season hasn’t even started and the expectations have already surged into hyper-speed with Heisman, national championship and NFL Draft predictions all hinging on Manning’s success.
Caleb Downs & Arch Manning in Klatt’s way-too-early top prospects in 2026 NFL Draft
Ohio State’s QB conundrum
Meanwhile, Ohio State enters the 2025 season less certain at quarterback. The battle between Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz could last up until Week 1, depending on how secretive Ryan Day wants to be in publicly naming his starter.
During the spring game, Sayin, a redshirt freshman who transferred from Alabama when Nick Saban retired, completed 17 of 24 passes for 175 yards and one touchdown. Kienholz, a third-year sophomore, went 12-of-18 passing for 158 yards with two touchdowns. Then there’s also former five-star prospect and true freshman Tavien St. Clair, who completed 11 of 15 passes for 116 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.
Word out of Columbus is that Sayin is the leader in the clubhouse. He’s shown flashes that have impressed coaches, but has also been a bit uneven. Of course, there will be growing pains, but that’s expected for a young player who hasn’t gotten the reps yet.
“I think the thing for Julian is he’s realized he’s had some good days, he’s had some days he’s learning from,” Day told reporters after the spring game. “But a big trait of great quarterbacks is they’re resilient. They keep coming back and they keep learning. If they keep making the same mistake over and over again — not good. But I think all the guys have been [resilient] in the spring. It was good to see him respond the way he did and rebound from a couple [rougher] practices early on.”
Replacing stars
The Buckeyes had 14 players taken in April’s NFL Draft — wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, guard Donovan Jackson, defensive tackle Tyleik Williams and offensive tackle Josh Simmons were all selected in the first round. Other draftees of note were stout defensive players JT Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer, quarterback Will Howard, and running backs Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson.
Ohio State also lost defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to Big Ten rival Penn State, which is a season storyline all on its own, and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly returned to the NFL. In other words, this team will look a lot different this season.
Day has tried to reload. He’s added key defensive pieces through the transfer portal and hired Matt Patricia as the new DC. But replacing this much talent isn’t easy.
However, there are still a lot of positives to this roster. The most important being that OSU still has the nation’s best offensive and defensive players in Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs, respectively. OSU probably has the most gifted WR room in the nation, highlighted by Smith and Carnell Tate, which can only benefit a first-year starting QB no matter who it is.
Texas, meanwhile, had a program-record 12 players drafted. All-American left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., Thorpe Award winner Jahdae Barron and wide receiver Matthew Golden were among those taken in the first round. Other notable losses included veteran tight end Gunnar Helm and Ewers.
Texas & Ohio State in Joel Klatt’s Post-Spring top 5 teams
But the Longhorns are probably in a better spot than Ohio State with what they have returning. First of all, there’s Manning. Texas will have to replace four of five starting offensive linemen, but the good thing for Manning is his new offensive line starters got reps last year given how many injuries that group endured. Running back CJ Baxter, who was supposed to be the Horns’ No. 1 running back before tearing his ACL, is back.
Texas lost its top three pass catchers from last season (Golden, Helm and Isaiah Bond), but Manning will still have options in guys like Ryan Wingo and DeAndre Moore Jr.
All-American linebacker Anthony Hill Jr., freshman All-American edge rusher Colin Simmons and the team’s most vocal leader, safety Michael Taaffe, all return to a defense that was one of the best in the country last year. Sarkisian has also enhanced that unit through the portal, adding freshman All-American lineman Maraad Watson from Syracuse.
Who needs this win more? Day or Sark?
A year ago, the answer would be Day, no question. But he has mostly made up for Ohio State’s four straight losses to Michigan by winning a national championship.
Texas hasn’t won a national championship since Vince Young in the 2005-06 season, but entering Year 5, Sarkisian has the team closer than it’s been in a while. The roster, which reportedly cost between $35-40 million, is deep on both sides of the ball, Manning is under center and there’s continuity in the coaching staff. Sarkisian has had the same offensive (Kyle Flood), defensive (Pete Kwiatkowski) and special teams (Jeff Banks) coordinators since he took over the program in 2021.
College Football Futures: Heisman, Win Totals, Arch Manning
Sarkisian has won big games at Texas, including on the road at Alabama and Michigan, as well as a Big 12 championship. The Longhorns went to consecutive CFP semifinals and made it to the SEC title game as a league debutant in 2024. They beat a Clemson team in the first round of last year’s playoff that had plenty of returning starters and is a contender this year. It would seem that at this point, all that’s left is to win a national championship.
While Texas could lose to Ohio State and still go on to win a title in this new CFP format, beating the defending champions on the road would set the tone for the rest of the season.
Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of “Strong Like a Woman,” published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her at @LakenLitman.
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