Following week two of the 2025 college football season, ESPN’s Heather Dinich released a projected top-12 for the College Football Playoff.
LSU ranked third behind Ohio State and Miami. Dinich acknowledged the magnitude of its week one win over Clemson. However, Clemson’s close game against Troy and LSU’s lack of offensive prowess against Louisiana Tech contributed to its landing spot.
“LSU had its own issues offensively against Louisiana Tech, which was able to put pressure on quarterback Garrett Nussmeier throughout the game,” Dinich said. “LSU struggled to establish the run and push the ball downfield through the bulk of three quarters against Louisiana Tech. While LSU struggled, both Ohio State and Miami left no doubt they were the better team.”
Despite the shaky showing in Saturday’s win, LSU still has something the Buckeyes and Hurricanes don’t. That is a week one win at a ranked opponent, which Dinich lists as a reason for the Tigers. She also points out the CFP selection committee’s record strength metric as a strong point for LSU.
“The CFP selection committee this year is using a metric called ‘record strength’ to help determine how a team performed against its schedule,” Dinich said. “LSU entered Week 2 ranked No. 2 in ESPN’s strength of record metric, second only to Ohio State.”
Dinich has LSU winning the SEC and getting a first-round bye as the No. 3 seed. The Tigers would play the winner of No. 11 Iowa State and No. 6 Penn State in the quarterfinal.
This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: ESPN predicts LSU football’s playoff fate after Week 2 win
