What’s the best part of college football? Some will say it’s the passionate intense rivalries, others say the unique school spirit or the raw talent. Well whatever element it is, millions of people from across the country were drawn in to tune in for the 2025 College Football National Championship between 8th seed Ohio State and 7th seed Notre Dame. The year’s championship was recognized for being the first year with a 12 team playoff format as well as being a historic year for coaching as well. Overall the game ended with a 34-23 score leaving Ohio State, the underdogs victorious.
Unlike prior years where the top 4 teams of the league compete in a semi-final then championship, the NCAA has unveiled an all new 12 team format. This new format will resemble an NFL style bracket level game. Upon being announced many differing opinions and criticisms formed about the drawn out season, and the importance of conference games. This year’s champion date was Jan 20th which is 2 weeks later than the typical date in the 2nd week of January. The delay causes clashes with the NFL playoff schedule and less attention toward the NCAA players. Another criticism from the new format is the lack of weight in winning the conference game since so many teams are able to make the cut without it. However some new pros to the format is the similarity to the NFL and the opportunity for teams without top seeds to still make the playoffs. The efficiency of this format is effident being that the finalists were both lower ranked teams (7th & 8th).
Another historical moment was that the Norte Dame Coach is the first African American and Asian American coach to lead his team to a national title. He is also one of two coaches to lead a team to the CFP, his trailblazing and impactful coaching style has led him to the history books even without a win against Ohio.
Ohio State was favored to take all despite their lower seed at the 8th place. This is due to their aggressive, yet coordinated gameplay style and hyper experienced coaching. While the Irish put up a good fight, the Buckeyes ultimately took the cake and claimed victory over the 2025 season.
