Ohio State Makes College Football History Ahead of 2025 Season

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Nate Lunak | Last updated Aug 12, 2025 2:00 PM ET

The Ohio State Buckeyes capped off 2024, winning their ninth national championship in program history, and are looking to repeat that success in the 2025 season.

The hype for a repeat is real, and on Monday, the Buckeyes claimed the No. 3 spot on the Associated Press Top-25 preseason poll, earning 1,472 points and 11 first-place votes.

Ohio State Makes History

It's a good spot to start the season, and on Tuesday, the Big Ten's official X account revealed the Buckeyes made history, becoming the first team to appear 1,000 times in the AP Top 25, which started back in 1936.

Congrats, @OhioStateFB!

The Buckeyes are the first team to appear 1⃣,0⃣0⃣0⃣ times in the @AP_Top25. #B1GStats pic.twitter.com/EuT5Jn5wfv
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) August 12, 2025

It may be just a few years until Ohio State is not the only team with this distinction, though, with the Michigan Wolverines (928), the Oklahoma Sooners (906), the Alabama Crimson Tide (891) and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (891) all getting close.

The Buckeyes may soon also be just the second team to reach 1,000 program wins behind the Wolverines (1,012), currently sitting at 978. That means the 2026 season is a likely possibility, needing just 22 more wins.

Ohio State is Being Tested Early

In order to win it all in back-to-back years, the Buckeyes must prove they can beat college football's best teams. They're served with an opportunity to do just that in Week 1 against the No. 1 Texas Longhorns.

The biggest storyline will be whether Ohio State's defense, which last season ranked first in both points per game allowed (12.9) and total yards per game allowed (254.6), can stop the Longhorns' offense, being manned by quarterback Arch Manning.

Despite having the lower ranking in the AP poll, the Buckeyes currently sit as 2.5-point favorites, per ESPN BET. This marks the first time the nation's No. 1 team has been underdogs in Week 1, according to ESPN Research data.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: