Kirk Herbstreit’s Son Predicts Winner of College Football Playoff Ahead of 2025 Season originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
With the 2025 college football season kicking off near the end of August, predictions for how the season will unfold are beginning to fly in.
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Among those to submit a prediction regarding the 2025 season is one of On3’s latest hires, Zak Herbstreit, the third-oldest son of beloved ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit.
The younger Herbstreit was a tight end at his father’s alma mater, Ohio State, before being forced to medically retire due to a heart condition. Still, he remained with the program on its championship run as a student coach, and now has a show with On3 called “Off Script.”
Although he has his Buckeyes making a deep run in the playoffs, he has them losing to his projected No. 1 seed, the Georgia Bulldogs, in the semifinal. He then has the Bulldogs meeting up with his projected No. 2 seed, the Penn State Nittany Lions.
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Zak Herbstreit Predicts College Football Playoff Champion
Ohio State Buckeyes tight end Zak Herbstreit listens as his dad, Kirk Herbstreit, does an interview.Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
“In the natty we have the Georgia Bulldogs versus the Penn State Nittany Lions,” Herbstreit said. “I do feel like this will be an absolute grudge match, but like I said and have been saying the entire video, I feel like this is Penn State’s year. I feel like James Franklin will get it done. He has the weapons, he has the defense. I’m excited to see what he can do this year and for that reason I have the Penn State Nittany Lions winning the national championship.”
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Can Penn State Get Over the Hump Against Top-Ranked Teams?
Although Penn State seems to be a popular pick this offseason as it returns star quarterback Drew Allar and running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen and added a trio of top transfer wide receivers to go with a stout defense, recent history does not work in the Nittany Lions’ favor.
Since James Franklin took over as head coach in 2014, they have gone 4-20 against AP top 10 teams. The frequent criticism is that Franklin’s squad cannot win big games, which means if they were to win it all, they’d have to put that notion to bed.
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Which Top Teams Does Penn State Play in 2025?
While the AP rankings have yet to be released, we can go off the preseason coaches poll. According to the poll, Penn State has two top 10 teams on the docket ahead of the season.
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Vs. No. 7 Oregon (Week 5)
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@ No. 2 Ohio State (Week 10)
Realistically, Penn State can lose both and still win out and make the College Football Playoff, but considering its history, winning at least one may silence the critics. Only time will tell if Franklin and company can end their drought, but if not this year, then when?
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The Nittany Lions open the season at home against the Nevada Wolf Pack at 3:30 p.m. ET Aug. 30.
Related: Kirk Herbstreit Sends Strong Message to Lee Corso Ahead of 2025 Season
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
