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ESPN reveals final update to preseason Top 25 college football rankings

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Saturday will mark one full week before the official return of college football, and sports fans everywhere are counting down the minutes. The 2025 college football season preseason ends and regular season formally begins at 12 pm ET, Aug. 23, from Dublin, Ireland, where No. 17 Kansas State will take on No. 22 Iowa State in a highly anticipated Top 25 showdown between potential Big 12 contenders on ESPN.

In the meantime, Ranking Season remains in full swing after the Associated Press released its 2025 Preseason Top 25 Poll on Monday, which formally crowned Texas as the nation’s consensus No. 1 team. The week before, USA Today’s Coaches Preseason Top 25 Poll also tabbed the Longhorns as the country’s top-rated college football program ahead of the 2025 season.

Of course, not all rankings are equal, and ESPN delivered an interesting one with Thursday’s release of its final 2025 Preseason SP+ Rankings, which is an analytically derived “tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency.” As ESPN’s Bill Connelly explains: “It is a predictive measure of the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football, not a resume ranking.”

With that in mind, check out ESPN’s final Preseason SP+ rankings ahead of the 2025 college football season:

The reigning College Football Playoff national champions hold down the No. 1 spot in ESPN’s SP+ rankings with an average projected win total of 10.0 and the expected No. 3 defense and No. 8 offense based on ESPN’s projections.

While this might be surprising to some, given all the Buckeyes lost off last year’s title-winning squad, Ohio State still returns the nation’s top offensive threat in sophomore WR Jeremiah Smith and arguably the best individual defender in junior safety Caleb Downs. If the Buckeyes can find themselves a reliable QB1 in either Julian Sayin or Lincoln Kienholz and adequately fill some other holes, the sky’s the limit in 2025.

Kalen DeBoer (Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Another interesting surprise as the Crimson Tide land at No. 2 in ESPN’s SP+ rankings despite last season’s struggles in Year 1 under Kalen DeBoer. The first year coach failed to lead Alabama to 10 wins in a season for the first time since 2007 — Nick Saban‘s inaugural season at the helm.

Part of that love is due to a projected 9.4 win total in 2025, thanks in large part to the country’s third-ranked offense that is projected to average 39.3 points per game against the 11th-best strength of schedule entering the season. And with multiple defensive stalwarts back, including fifth-year LBs Deontae Lawson and Justin Jefferson, Alabama is also expected to have the country’s No. 6 defense.

The reigning SEC champions slot into the No. 3 spot in the final SP+ rankings due to their projected win total of 9.3 against the 13th-best strength of schedule and the country’s No. 1-ranked special teams unit. That’s in addition to the fifth-best defense, allowing a projected average of 13.5 ppg.

The one area for concern could be offensively, where the Bulldogs turn their QB1 job over to junior Gunner Stockton after two-year starter Carson Beck transferred to Miami after suffering a UCL injury late last season. Stockton will have some new weapons in WR transfers Zachariah Branch and Noah Thomas, but how quickly they gel in Athens will determine whether Georgia repeats as SEC champs.

The Nittany Lions nearly beat out Texas for the No. 1 spot in the AP Preseason Poll, landing at No. 2 with just two fewer first-place votes and five fewer total points than the Longhorns. It’s the AP’s closest preseason vote differential between 1 and 2 since 1998.

Much like Ohio State, Penn State has a projected win total of 10.0 due in large part to the country’s fourth-best offense that is projected to average 38.8 ppg game behind college football’s top backfield featuring senior QB Drew Allar and RB tandem Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton. That’s in addition to the eighth-best defense and a Top 30 strength of schedule entering the season.

Arch Manning
Arch Manning (Will Gallagher-Inside Texas)

College football’s consensus No. 1 team, according to both the AP and USA Today, the Longhorns slide to No. 5 in the SP+ rankings due to the country’s 24th-best offense that will be turning the ball over to new QB1 Arch Manning, the former No. 1 overall recruit in 2023.

While Manning and the Texas offense will need to prove itself to ESPN’s analytics, the SP+ rankings love the Longhorns’ second-best defense that features senior LB Anthony Hill Jr. and sophomore pass rusher Colin Simmons, both of whom are expected to be first-round draft picks. Special teams might be an issue with SP+ projecting it among the nation’s worst units in 2025.

The defending national runner-ups land just outside the Top 5 despite ranking third overall with a projected win total of 9.8 regular-season wins. But it comes against what SP+ projects will be the nation’s 44th-best strength of schedule in 2025, which is the worst among the Top 10 by a wide margin.

Notre Dame is expected to have the country’s ninth-best defense, allowing a projected 14.8 ppg in Year 4 under head coach and former DC Marcus Freeman, as well as the 12th-best offense that will be led by powerhouse running back Jeremiyah Love. Of course, if whoever wins the Irish’s QB1 job keeps opposing teams from stacking the box, Notre Dame could once again find itself rolling into the Playoffs again.

The Ducks rolled through their inaugural season in the Big Ten as the country’s only undefeated program, securing the Big Ten championship with a win over the Nittany Lions. The SP+ analytics expect Oregon will certainly be in the mix once again with a projected win total of 9.6 in 2025.

But if Oregon is going to repeat last year’s success, it’ll be because of the nation’s fifth-best offense, which is projected to average 38.5 ppg behind former 5-star QB Dante Moore. That’s in addition to the country’s third-best special teams unit and No. 13 defense with junior pass rusher Matayo Uiagalelei, a projected first-round pick who is the Big Ten’s top returning sack leader with 10.5 last year.

Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore is entering his second season at the helm. Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
Sherrone Moore (Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images)

Despite a difficult first season under new head coach Sherrone Moore, ESPN’s SP+ rankings expect a bounce-back season in 2025 with a projected win total of 9.6 due to what the analytics expect will be the nation’s No. 1 defense, limiting opponents to 10.6 ppg.

The one area where the SP+ expects Michigan to take a dip is offensively, where 2025 Five-Star Plus+ QB and No. 1 overall recruit Bryce Underwood is the favorite to take over a unit that analytics project as the nation’s No. 37 offense, averaging 31.5 ppg against the 38th-best strength of schedule in 2025.

The Rebels were among three nine-loss SEC teams to barely miss out on last year’s College Football Playoff, and the SP+ expects a similar result with a projected win total of 9.0 this preseason, which is the lowest among the Top 10 based on ESPN’s analytics.

Ole Miss underwent a bit of a roster overhaul this season and will debut new QB1 Austin Simmons to lead what SP+ projects will be the nation’s No. 18 offense, averaging 35.2 ppg next season against the country’s 23rd-best strength of schedule. The Rebels’ defense may be their strength, with the seventh-best unit limiting opponents to just 14.5 ppg in 2025.

The reigning ACC champion Tigers are once again expected to not only compete for a conference title but a national championship in 2025 with a loaded and mostly-returning roster that helped lead Clemson to the Playoffs last season.

Much of the hype is focused on returning senior QB1 Cade Klubnik and a loaded WR room that is expected to lead the nation’s sixth-best offense that’s projected to average 38.4 ppg versus the 34th-ranked strength of schedule. ESPN’s analytics aren’t as high on Clemson’s 20th-best defense that returns likely Top 10 picks in pass rusher TJ Parker and DT Peter Woods.

ESPN SP+ 2025 Preseason Rankings, Nos. 11-25

Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
Garrett Nussmeier (Stephen Lew-Imagn Images)

11. LSU Tigers (20.1)
12. Tennessee Volunteers (19.4)
13. Texas A&M Aggies (18.3)
14. Miami Hurricanes (18.1)
15. Oklahoma Sooners (17.5)
16. Florida Gators (16.2)
17. South Carolina Gamecocks (16.0)
18. Kansas State Wildcats (15.3)
19. SMU Mustangs (14.6)
20. Missouri Tigers (14.0)
21. USC Trojans (13.2)
22. Auburn Tigers (13.1)
23. Indiana Hoosiers (12.5)
24. Louisville Cardinals (12.3)
25. Iowa Hawkeyes (12.1)



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Week 5 Results + Scorecards | Dana White’s Contender Series Season 9

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Strawweights Carol Foro and Shanelle Dyer kicked things off with a fight that brought Dana White into the Octagon to congratulate both athletes, with Foro coming away with the victory. From there, the finishes just started rolling, as Samuel Sanches stopped Chasen Blair and Freddy Vidal snatched a submission in the final minute of his fight with Felipe Franco before Lerryan Douglas detonated a left hook on the chin of Cam Teague. And then, to close out the night, Steven Asplund needed just 16 seconds to dispatch Anthony Guarascio to close out the evening.

After brief deliberations, White emerged to announce the new additions to the UFC roster, awarding contracts to both Foro and Dyer, Sanches, Douglas, and Asplund while also announcing that Vidal would get another opportunity to compete on the final episode of the season.





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Dead Body Found in Trunk of Tesla Registered to Singer D4vd

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Platinum-selling artist D4vd is “cooperating” with authorities after a horrible stench led police to a rotting corpse hidden in the trunk of a Tesla registered to the singer and impounded at a Los Angeles tow yard, sources tell Rolling Stone.

One source confirmed D4vd was aware of and coordinating with the police investigation, while a law enforcement official separately confirmed the Tesla with Texas license plates was registered to David Anthony Burke, which is the singer’s real name.

In a report posted online Tuesday night, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner said the victim was a female with wavy black hair who was “severely decomposed.” She had a distinct tattoo on her right index finger that read, “Shhh,” the report said.

“She appears to have been deceased inside the vehicle for an extended period of time before being found. We are unable to determine her age or race/ethnicity. The decedent was wearing a tube top and black leggings (size small),” the report said. She was wearing yellow metal stud earrings and a yellow metal chain bracelet.

Burke, who is currently on tour, performed in Madison, Wisconsin, on Sunday. He was still set to perform in Minneapolis on Tuesday night, Sept. 9. A representative for the Fillmore in Minneapolis told Rolling Stone the show “is happening.”

According to the Los Angeles police, the body was discovered Monday afternoon after officers responded to a call about a “foul odor coming from a vehicle” at the tow yard in Hollywood. “Detectives responded and located possible human remains,” an LAPD spokesman said. “It is currently a death investigation.” 

Police sources said the car had been abandoned for at least five days. It was towed from the upscale Bird Streets neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills. 

A source told the Los Angeles Times that the remains were a “head and torso” contained in a bag inside the trunk. KTLA first reported that the remains were so badly decomposed, investigators could not make out the person’s gender.

On Tuesday, the fashion companies Crocs and Hollister said they were pulling back on a campaign that featured D4vd modeling a “Dream Drop” collaboration between the popular brands. “We are aware of this developing story. With respect to the current situation, we have removed campaign content featuring D4vd while the investigation continues,” the brands said in a joint statement sent to Footwear News.

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Burke, as D4vd, released his debut album, Withered, back in April. He broke through in 2022 with singles “Romantic Homicide” and “Here With Me,” which garnered significant traction on TikTok. He released his debut EP, Petals to Thorns, in May 2023, then followed it up a few months later with The Lost Petals

Burked launched his current tour back in August. He has North American dates scheduled through the end of this month, with his last show currently slated for Sept. 20 in Los Angeles. A tour of Europe, the U.K., and Ireland is supposed to follow in October and November. 



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Judge blocks Trump effort to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook

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A federal judge late Tuesday blocked President Donald Trump’s unprecedented effort to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.

“President Trump has not identified anything related to Cook’s conduct or job performance as a Board member that would indicate that she is harming the Board or the public interest by executing her duties unfaithfully or ineffectively,” Judge Jia Cobb, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, wrote, as she granted Cook’s request to stop the attempted firing.

The decision comes just weeks month after Trump said he fired Cook — the first Fed governor ever to be fired by the president. The administration is expected to appeal Cobb’s preliminary injunction, which ensures the Federal Reserve must keep Cook on as a governor while the legal challenge plays out.

Cobb said on first look Cook’s claim that she was improperly fired is a valid one and that it violated her rights under the Fifth Amendment. At the same time, the judge, who sits on the federal bench in DC, said she believed the issue brings up new legal questions that need to be addressed over the long term.

“President Trump’s actions and Cook’s resulting legal challenge raise many serious questions of first impression that the Court believes will benefit from further briefing on a non-emergency timeline,” Cobb wrote. “However, at this preliminary stage, the Court finds that Cook has made a strong showing that her purported removal was done in violation of the Federal Reserve Act’s ‘for cause’ provision.”

Trump has attempted to fire Cook for cause, citing allegations of mortgage fraud, which the Justice Department is now investigating. But Cobb said Tuesday that the ability to fire people “for cause” is not absolute and limited to actions taken in office.

“The Court finds that permissible cause for removal of a Federal Reserve Governor extends only to concerns about the Board member’s ability to effectively and faithfully execute their statutory duties, in light of events that have occurred while they are in office,” the judge wrote.

Cook says that Trump’s use of “cause” is an attempt to get around a Supreme Court decision from earlier this year that appeared to limit the president’s ability to remove Federal Reserve governors.

Trump, Cook argued in court papers, wants to redefine the meaning of “cause” in a way that would allow him to fire any board member “with whom he disagrees about policy based on chalked up allegations.”

“President Trump does not have the power to unilaterally redefine ‘cause’ – completely unmoored to caselaw, history, and tradition – and conclude, without evidence, that he has found it,” Cook’s attorneys wrote.

In her ruling, the judge at one point said the Trump administration’s argument would lead to an “absurd result.”

“While admitting that the President cannot remove an official for policy disagreements, the Government claims … a removal on the grounds of a policy disagreement would nevertheless be unreviewable,” Cobb wrote.

“This cannot be the case,” she added. “Such a rule would provide no practical insulation for the members of the Board of Governors. It would mean that the President could, in practice, ‘remove a member … merely because he wanted his own appointees on the’ Board of Governors.”

Following the ruling, a lawyer for Cook said she would continue to carry out her duties as a Federal Reserve governor.

“This ruling recognizes and reaffirms the importance of safeguarding the independence of the Federal Reserve from illegal political interference,” attorney Abbe Lowell said in a statement Tuesday night. “Allowing the President to unlawfully remove Governor Cook on unsubstantiated and vague allegations would endanger the stability of our financial system and undermine the rule of law.”

The move to fire Cook was a significant escalation of the president’s battle against the Fed, which has generally been shielded from political influence for decades. Trump has blamed the Fed for taking too long to lower interest rates.

For months, Trump has unleashed an intense pressure campaign against the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates, arguing that his tariff policy will not push up inflation. But central bankers want to see how Trump’s trade war and other sweeping policy changes affect the US economy before resuming interest rate cuts.

During the spring, Trump frequently threatened to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell. But the president eventually backed off after his advisers privately warned that doing so would likely spark extreme volatility in financial markets.

The Fed is in the throes of a full-scale assault by the Trump administration. In addition to a barrage of attacks, Trump and his allies have blasted the Fed for its management of a $2.5 billion renovation of its headquarters in Washington, DC, which has grown more costly over the years. Some of Trump’s allies saw it as a potential opening to oust Powell.

Now, instead of trying to fire Powell, whose term ends in May 2026, the Trump administration is trying to reshape the Fed by cementing a majority on its Board of Governors. If Cook, a Biden appointee, is successfully removed, it would leave only two Fed governors appointed by a Democratic president on the seven-member board.

“We’ll have a majority very shortly,” Trump said during a recent Cabinet meeting. “So, that’ll be great. Once we have a majority, housing is going to swing, and it’s going to be great.”

Fed policymakers are set to convene for their two-day policy meeting starting on September 16, in which they are widely expected to deliver the first interest rate cut since December, according to Wall Street’s predictions.

This story has been updated with additional details.





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