Predicting college football award winners: Massive accolade haul expected for Ohio State, Clemson stars
College football's offseason is the best time for speculating. Spring practice is over, the transfer portal is closed and -- unless you really care about recruiting or the potential impact of the House vs. NCAA settlement and its implications on revenue sharing -- there's not a whole lot of news to dissect between now and August.
So it's always a fun exercise to look ahead. Here at CBS Sports, we've got you covered in nearly every conceivable way with top 25 rankings, power rankings for each Power Four conference and even a list of the top 150 players for the 2025 season.
There's always the potential to go beyond, though. Individual awards don't headline college football, but it's always fun to see which players are honored with trophies at the end of the season. With plenty of intel from spring practice, some top options are emerging, which includes the vaunted Heisman Trophy.
So let's take a stab at identifying the winner of each of college football's major awards in 2025. The Maxwell and Walter Camp Awards -- granted annually to the top player in college football -- were excluded. No disrespect intended, it's just that they tend to overlap with the Heisman.
Prediction: Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State
Smith's already the best player in college football and he's only been in the sport for just over a full year. Though the Heisman rarely goes to a wide receiver, Smith has the aura, media recognition and talent befitting college football's top award. It's not hard to see him collecting at least 1,500 yards receiving and 20 touchdowns for the Buckeyes in 2025, especially with fellow top option Emeka Egbuka off to the NFL. And it's not like defenses can key in on Smith alone; Ohio State's wide receiver room is packed to the gills with talent. He's an unstoppable force and -- so long as he meets expectations -- he'll be in New York by year's end. Smith is the smartest bet to win the Maxwell and Walter Camp Awards, as well. A +1400 bet to win the award according to FanDuel Sportsbook, Smith is behind three quarterbacks in Texas' Arch Manning (+700), LSU's Garrett Nussmeier (+900) and Clemson's Cade Klubnik (+900). That adds even more value to an already smart preseason bet.
Prediction: Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State
Let's go ahead and get this entry out of the way, as well. If Smith wins the Heisman, there's no question he'll add the Biletnikoff to his trophy case. Even if Smith somehow falls out of Heisman contention, he's the clear favorite for his position-specific award.
Prediction: Cade Klubnik, QB, Clemson
There's plenty of great quarterbacks to choose from in 2025, but Klubnik has some distinct advantages. He's more mobile than other veterans like LSU's Garrett Nussmeier -- adding another avenue of production. He's also more experienced than young guns like Texas' Arch Manning, Florida's DJ Lagway or South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers. Klubnik also benefits from an excellent supporting class, highlighted by the ACC's top returning receiver in Antonio Williams, and it seems like he's really clicking with offensive coordinator Garrett Riley, who can engineer an explosive passing attack.
Prediction: Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame
Penn State's Nicholas Singleton is another solid candidate, but he'll be splitting carries with Kaytron Allen. Love will be a legitimate workhorse for the Fighting Irish, especially since they'll be breaking in a brand new starting quarterback in either CJ Carr or Kenny Minchey. Neither Carr nor Minchey have played meaningful snaps, so Notre Dame will lean on Love early in the year to keep the offense in rhythm. No matter the time of year, though, he'll be the top offensive option for a Notre Dame team eyeing a return to the College Football Playoff National Championship.
Prediction: Eli Stowers, TE, Vanderbilt
Not there's a dearth of talented tight ends in 2025, but there aren't as many big names at the position as there were a year ago. Stowers is a prime breakout candidate. The former Texas A&M and New Mexico State quarterback flourished in his first year as a pass-catcher with the Commodores. He led the team in receiving and was named a 2024 first-team All-SEC selection after tallying 49 catches for 638 yards and five touchdowns. Stowers is a plus athlete and, unlike other candidates like Ohio State's Max Klare, he's the unquestioned top option in Vanderbilt's passing attack.
Prediction: Jake Slaughter, OL, Florida
Slaughter would likely have been the first center off the board if he declared for the 2025 NFL Draft, but he elected to run it back for another year with what looks like a promising Florida team. He's long been an anchor in the middle of the Gators' offensive line, and he's coming off a 2024 season in which he earned second-team CBS Sports All-American and first-team All-SEC honors. Slaughter took 402 pass-block snaps last year and only allowed one sack, according to Pro Football Focus. That type of dominance at a key position should net him some hardware.
Prediction: Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State
If you haven't noticed, there's a glut of talent in Columbus. Downs doesn't boast the counting stats one would expect from a player with so much hype -- he finished the 2024 season with 48 tackles and two interceptions -- but that's because opposing offenses know not to test him. Given all that Ohio State has to replace defensively 2025, Downs should be more of a leader and focal point. That also means he'll put up some big numbers while running all over the field for the Buckeyes.
Prediction: Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State
As with Smith, so with Downs. If Downs is going to win one of the awards given to college football's top defender, he'll be more than worthy for the honor bestowed upon defensive backs at the end of the year.
Prediction: T.J. Parker, EDGE, Clemson
The decision to include two awards honoring the top defensive player in college football came down to two factors: defenders rarely win the Heisman and the Bednarik and Nagurski voters have shown a willingness to go in different directions in recent seasons. For instance, the Nagurski award often goes to players along the defensive front. Few are better there than Parker -- the nation's top returning sack artist after getting to the quarterback 12 times last season. He could face some stiff competition from young studs like South Carolina's Dylan Stewart and Texas' Colin Simmons, but Parker's proven production gives him the edge (pun intended) at this point.
Prediction: Peter Woods, DL, Clemson
It helps Parker's case that he'll have a star like Woods playing alongside him. Woods is the type of defensive tackle that routinely commands double teams, freeing up other players on the defense to wreak havoc in the backfield. But Woods has plenty of upside of his own thanks to his freakish athleticism, burst and movement skills from the interior.. He tallied 8.5 tackles for loss and three sacks last season.
Prediction: Anthony Hill Jr., LB, Texas
Hill is one of the most versatile defenders in college football. The 6-foot-3, 237-pounder has the requisite size to rush off the edge but his speed means that he's also comfortable playing off the ball, where Texas employs him the most. No matter where he is on the field, he flourishes. He started all 16 games for the Longhorns in 2024 and finished the year with 113 total tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, one interception, two pass deflections and four forced fumbles.
Prediction: Dominic Zvada, K, Michigan
It's not an exaggeration to say that Zvada was Michigan's Offensive MVP last season. He was a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award and a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection after hitting 21 of his 22 field goal attempts, including a perfect 7 for 7 mark on kicks of at least 50 yards.
Prediction: Rhys Dakin, P, Iowa
Iowa is a punting factory. The Hawkeyes have another really good one in Dakin, who averaged 44.1 yards per boot as a true freshman last season while totaling 2,822 yards with his leg, ranking eighth nationally. He also led the Big Ten with 29 punts downed inside the 20-yard line.
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