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RotoBaller lists 10 sneaky contenders to make the 2025-26 College Football playoff. Who will make next year's NCAA playoff bracket?
Florida Gators
After a 4-5 start to the 2024 campaign, the Gators rattled off four consecutive victories to save head coach Billy Napier’s job. However, signs of improvement started showing when Florida took No. 8 Tennessee to overtime on the road in Game 6. From there, Florida stood toe-to-toe with Georgia and knocked off No. 22 LSU and No. 8 Ole Miss with a true freshman quarterback and running back leading the way.
Momentum is building in a big way, and if quarterback DJ Lagway can take a step forward heading into his sophomore campaign, the Gators could be in the CFP mix. Their 2025 schedule is loaded with difficult road trips to Miami, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, and LSU. However, if things break right, the Gators could be the first three-loss team to make the CFP as an at-large bid. 10 wins will guarantee a playoff berth, but they could get in with nine given the strength of schedule.
Texas A&M Aggies
In Year 1 under head coach Mike Elko, the Aggies were in the SEC Championship race up until the regular-season finale against Texas. That said, they weren’t too far off from making the CFP in 2024. Entering 2025, rising Sophomore Marcell Reed is the unquestioned starting quarterback after a promising freshman season that included 22 total touchdowns in just 8 games as the primary man under center.
Transfer portal additions such as wide receivers KC Concepcion (NC State) and Mario Craver (Mississippi State) give the Aggies more weapons outside to threaten defenses in space and down the field. Elko has a proven record of defensive excellence, so we should expect growth on that side of the ball, too. A road trip to Notre Dame and a daunting conference schedule stand in A&M’s path to the CFP, but 10 wins are in play in 2025.
Miami Hurricanes
Was Carson Beck overrated or underrated at Georiga? We could find this season as the Florida native heads to South Beach to lead the Hurricanes offense. Over the last two seasons in Athens, Beck threw for 7,426 yards, 52 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions en route to a 24-3 record as a starter, yet people were disappointed by his play in 2024.
With a fresh start in Miami, the sixth-year senior could be headed toward his first College Football Playoff appearance. The Canes do not have to face ACC favorite Clemson during the regular season and will likely be favored in 11 of their 12 contests. 11 wins with a seasoned quarterback in a struggling conference is not difficult to envision, so there’s a clear path to the postseason in 2025.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Georgia Tech is another ACC program with a sixth-year senior who transferred from an SEC school at quarterback. Haynes King has been excellent in two seasons in Atlanta, posting 62 total touchdowns in 24 games with the Yellow Jackets. This feels like a program that is set to ascend under head coach Brent Key, and beating everyone except Clemson and Georgia on their schedule could put them firmly in the playoff mix.
The Yellow Jackets lose some key players from last year’s squad, but a high-end quarterback who has seen everything can make up the difference in the loss of talent. With King, running back Jamal Haynes, and wide receiver Malik Rutherford back in 2025, the offense should have plenty of firepower. Georgia Tech’s new defensive coordinator, Blake Gideon, could be the missing piece to elevate the stop unit.
Auburn Tigers
It’s starting to be make-or-break time for Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze. After an 11-14 start to his Auburn career, the school and fanbase are ready to compete for a CFP spot. Auburn is bringing in a top-10 transfer portal class headlined by former Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold and former Georgia Tech wideout Eric Singleton Jr., so it’s time for the offense to take a big leap forward.
The Tigers are not lacking in the talent department and the program does not face Texas, Tennessee, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina, or Florida in 2025. That said, it avoids matchups with six of the top nine SEC teams based on last year’s conference standings. They do face arch-rivals Georgia and Alabama as always, but both meetings are at home. Otherwise, Auburn squares off with SEC bottom-feeders Arkansas, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and Oklahoma. The path is simple here.
Kansas State Wildcats
Under head coach Chris Klieman, who won four FCS National Championships with North Dakota State, the Wildcats have been Big 12 contenders over the last three seasons. Kansas State won the Big 12 in 2022 and would have made the CFP if it was expanded at that point, and he has posted 9-4 records in each of the last two seasons. Kansas State is knocking on the door of a Big 12 title or an automatic bid with rising sophomore quarterback Avery Johnson back in the fold in 2025.
Johnson’s 32 total touchdowns as a freshman was a great start to his starting career, and it would be somewhat surprising if Kansas State doesn’t win the conference during his tenure in Manhattan. K-State, along with Arizona State, are betting odds co-favorites to win the Big 12 title this season.
Illinois Illini
Illinois is fresh off a 10-3 campaign, and two of the three losses came against Penn State and Oregon. In 2025, the Illini have to face Ohio State at home, but they do not face Oregon, Michigan, or Penn State. That said, we expect Illinois to be favored in 11 of their 12 regular-season contests. With quarterback Luke Altmyer back at the helm for Year 3, Illinois could be this year’s Indiana and sneak into the CFP as an at-large bid.
Memphis Tigers
Memphis has won 21 games over the last two years and is poised to compete for the CFP as the “non-Power 4” participant in 2025. Head coach Ryan Silverfield has improved the team’s record in each of the last four seasons and looks to be building a consistent contender in the American Athletic Conference. Heading into 2025, Memphis has the No. 2 ranked transfer portal class among non-ACC, SEC, Big 12, and Big Ten schools.
Among 28 transfers coming in, notable signees include quarterback Brendon Lewis (Nevada), safety Kody Jones (Michigan), cornerback Myles Pollard (Michigan), running back Rashod Amos (Ole Miss), and wide receivers Jadon Thompson (Louisville) and CJ Smith (Purdue). Memphis will have the talent edge in most of its games. An 11-1 record with an AAC title would likely put them in the 12-team field.
Navy Midshipmen
Navy in the College Football Playoff? It sounds crazy, but both Army and Navy weren’t that far from making the 12-team field in 2024. Fresh off a 10-3 campaign, Navy returns quarterback/running back Blake Horvath threw for 1,353 yards and 13 touchdowns to go along with 1,254 rushing yards and 17 rushing touchdowns last season. Navy has evolved its offense to stop defenses from only having to stop the run and triple option, and it paid off big in Brian Newberry’s second season at the helm.
We expect the offense to be explosive and dangerous once again, but Newberry’s calling card is on defense, and the Midshipmen surrendered more than 21 points just three times last year against American Athletic Conference foes. Memphis and Navy could be battling for the G5 spot in next year’s dance.
UNLV Rebels
Barry Odom left UNLV this offseason for the head coaching gig at Purdue, so let’s welcome Dan Mullen back to college football! The former Mississippi State and Florida head coach walks into the program with a 103-61 record, so don’t be surprised if he quickly finds success in the Mountain West. It might be a year too early for UNLV to dominate the Mountain West after the program lost 10 all-conference performers, but Mullen is one of the most underrated coaches in the sport, and the Rebels are welcoming a whopping 33 transfers to the 2025 team.
Of the 33 transfers, 22 come from Power 4 programs. Talent won’t be a significant issue, but continuity could become one. UNLV will have to get past defending Mountain West Champion Boise State, but that will be easier after the Broncos lost all-world running back Ashton Jeanty.
