Unless the current seeding process is changed, each of these four teams will most likely get a first-round bye in the 2025 playoff and play their first-round game in the quarterfinals. That might not necessarily be good for them as Oregon knows after having to play an Ohio State team that fell to the eighth seed after a stunning regular-season finale loss to Michigan. On the flip side, these teams will have one loss game to win on the road to the national championship. Of course that didn’t matter either this past season as the Buckeyes got hot and steamrolled their way to the title. Let’s see who we’re predicting anyway.
2025 Power 4 Conference Champions Predictions
Southeastern Conference
Texas Longhorns
With arguably the best quarterback in the nation with Arch Manning, Texas looks to go past last year’s semifinal appearance and walk away with the whole thing this year.
They open on the road in Columbus against Ohio State in a rematch of the semifinal game played at Jerry’s World. The Longhorns will have a significant advantage at quarterback as the Buckeyes will be breaking in a new one. Even if Texas loses this one and we don’t think they will, it will have no bearing on their conference aspirations.
It doesn’t look like anyone else in the SEC is good enough especially week to week to take the conference championship from their grasp.
Big Ten
Michigan Wolverines
Sometimes we like to raise a few eyebrows and perhaps we will. But this team plays very good defense and head coach Sharrone Moore is a defensive guy. Just look at what they did to Alabama in the bowl game even with a ton of opt-outs.
On offense, quarterback Bryce Underwood comes to town with his accolades and 11 million dollars. He will undoubtedly be far superior to anyone the Maize and Blue had under center last season.
The Wolverines avoid Penn State on the schedule although they might wish they didn’t given recent history. An opening road tilt at Oklahoma will be revealing as the Sooners can play a little defense of their own. The Buckeyes come to Ann Arbor this season trying not to be victims of a “five peat”.
Michigan will hardly have a cakewalk to the conference championship and will have much stiffer competition than we expect Texas to have in the SEC.
Big 12
Iowa State Cyclones
Last season a conference championship seemed to be well within their grasp. Then a couple of late-season losses took their mojo away and then they were embarrassed by Arizona State in the conference championship game.
Quarterback Rocco Becht returns and the defense is always tough under head coach Matt Campbell.
From a scheduling standpoint, both BYU and Arizona State have to travel to Ames which is always a tough place for visiting teams.
The Cyclones open against Kansas State in Dublin, Ireland which is of course a conference game so they want to get off on the right foot. The season finale is at TCU which could also be tricky especially if they need a win to make the conference championship game. We’re predicting this is the year they get over the hump and make the playoff.
ACC
Clemson Tigers
Will North Carolina under new coach Bill Belichick rain on the Tigers parade? Maybe but just not this year. SMU will be good again but unless their defense improves a lot they probably can’t overtake Clemson in a conference championship game if that’s the matchup.
Overall the conference is down. Miami will probably take a step back with Cam Ward gone. Carson Beck transfers to Miami from Georgia but he’s no Ward.
With “Mr. Under the Radar “ quarterback Cade Klubnik leading the way, the Tigers are in a good position to be one of the few teams that will make a return appearance in the playoff. Klubnik should have gotten more consideration for the Heisman last season and he likely will be one of the favorites heading into 2025.
That’s our prediction for the winners of the top four conferences who will most likely earn a first-round bye in the playoff unless Boise State, UNLV, or another team out of nowhere steals a top-four spot.
Now all we can do is wait.
Main Image: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
