Ohio State is ranked fifth in the final AP poll for the 2025 season.
The Buckeyes finished behind Indiana, Miami, Oregon and Ole Miss in the final AP Top 25 of the season, which was released Tuesday following Indiana’s win over Miami in the national championship game.
| Rank | Team (1st) | Record | Conference | Change | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indiana (66) | 16-0 | Big Ten | — | 1650 |
| 2 | Miami (FL) | 13-3 | Atlantic Coast | +8 | 1584 |
| 3 | Ole Miss | 13-2 | Southeastern | +3 | 1492 |
| 4 | Oregon | 13-2 | Big Ten | +1 | 1429 |
| 5 | Ohio State | 12-2 | Big Ten | -2 | 1378 |
| 6 | Georgia | 12-2 | Southeastern | -4 | 1364 |
| 7 | Texas Tech | 12-2 | Big 12 | -3 | 1232 |
| 8 | Texas A&M | 11-2 | Southeastern | -1 | 1157 |
| 9 | Alabama | 11-4 | Southeastern | +2 | 1065 |
| 10 | Notre Dame | 10-2 | IA Independents | -1 | 1049 |
| 11 | BYU | 12-2 | Big 12 | +1 | 961 |
| 12 | Texas | 10-3 | Southeastern | +2 | 952 |
| 13 | Oklahoma | 10-3 | Southeastern | -5 | 941 |
| 14 | Utah | 11-2 | Big 12 | +1 | 812 |
| 15 | Vanderbilt | 10-3 | Southeastern | -2 | 623 |
| 16 | Virginia | 11-3 | Atlantic Coast | +4 | 603 |
| 17 | Iowa | 9-4 | Big Ten | — | 430 |
| 18 | Tulane | 11-3 | American | -1 | 404 |
| 19 | James Madison | 12-2 | Sun Belt | — | 399 |
| 20 | USC | 9-4 | Big Ten | -4 | 378 |
| 21 | Michigan | 9-4 | Big Ten | -3 | 276 |
| 22 | Houston | 10-3 | Big 12 | — | 270 |
| 23 | Navy | 11-2 | American | -1 | 227 |
| 24 | North Texas | 12-2 | American | -1 | 191 |
| 25 | TCU | 9-4 | Big 12 | — | 125 |
It’s the 11th time in the last 12 years that the Buckeyes have finished the year ranked in the top six of the final AP poll. The only exception was two years ago, when Ohio State finished 10th in the year-end AP poll after ending the year with back-to-back losses to Michigan and Missouri.
| Year | Rank |
|---|---|
| 2014 | #1 |
| 2015 | #4 |
| 2016 | #6 |
| 2017 | #5 |
| 2018 | #3 |
| 2019 | #3 |
| 2020 | #2 |
| 2021 | #6 |
| 2022 | #4 |
| 2023 | #10 |
| 2024 | #1 |
| 2025 | #5 |
Ohio State is the only team to finish in the top 10 of the AP poll in all 12 seasons since the inaugural College Football Playoff in 2014.
Ohio State was ranked No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the entire regular season after its 14-7 win over Texas in Week 1, as the Buckeyes won all 12 of their regular-season games. They dropped to No. 3 in the AP poll, though they only fell to No. 2 in the CFP rankings, after losing to Indiana in the Big Ten Championship Game. Ohio State followed that up by losing to Miami, which climbed eight spots in the final rankings with its run to the national championship game, in the CFP quarterfinals, after receiving a first-round bye, to finish the season 12-2.
