Ohio State Buckeyes Receive Strong 2025 Take from Notable Analyst

The Ohio State Buckeyes have received a strong take for the 2025 season from a notable analyst.

Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the CFP National Championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes are fresh off of winning a National Championship, but the focus is already shifting to 2025.

Every team gets about a week to truly enjoy a championship. After that, it's time to start preparing to try and defend the title and win back-to-back championships.

A lot is going to change for Ohio State from the 2024 to the 2025 season. Quite a few players are going to be gone, whether by leaving for the NFL Draft or the transfer portal. However, there will be more than enough talent left for the Buckeyes to make some noise.

With that being said, one notable analyst expects Ohio State to be right back in the mix.

FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt took a look at his way-too-early Top 10 rankings for 2025. When it came to the Buckeyes, he had them ranked at No. 3. Ohio State was behind both Penn State and Texas.

He provided a bold take about the Buckeyes.

“The national champs will look a lot different next year, there’s no doubt," Klatt wrote. "But they’re still going to be an elite team, and they’ve still got two players specifically that I think could be the two best players on each side of the ball in the sport. … Hard to take a huge step back when you’ve got the best player in the sport on each side of the ball.”

Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs are obviously the two players that he is referring to.

One major change will come at the quarterback position. Will Howard is graduating, which leaves the starting job likely to Julian Sayin. There are question marks about Sayin, but the massive talent is there.

Ohio State is also losing both TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins out of the backfield. They will need someone to step up and replace the production that those two star running backs brought to the field.

Despite all of the players leaving, Day has done a good job of utilizing his recruiting skills and the transfer portal to replace talent. Assuming the young players can step up and play to their potential, the Buckeyes should be just fine.

It will be interesting to see how Ohio State looks to open up the 2025 season. The season will open up on Aug. 30 with a massive home matchup against the Texas Longhorns.