Joel Klatt's post-spring Top 25 Rankings: Ohio State makes the cut while Michigan drops to 8

College football commentator Joel Klatt revealed his top 25 rankings after spring practices and games. Predicting how teams will finish and who will be the national champion is something many college football fans do during the offseason.

On Monday's episode of his show, Klatt disclosed his top 25 teams going into the season, and he has the Ohio State Buckeyes as his No. 1 ranked program. The other notable team is the reigning national champions, the Michigan Wolverines, ranked No. 8.

Klatt's top five are Ohio State, Georgia, Texas, Oregon and Ole Miss. The college football commentator does have Alabama and FSU taking steps back last season, as he has them ranked seventh and 12th, respectively.

One team that enters the top-25 that could be a bit of a surprise is Nebraska at 22. The Cornhuskers didn't even make a bowl game in 2023, but Klatt is expecting the team to have a big year this season.

Klatt's full top 25 is as follows:

1. Ohio State
2. Georgia
3. Texas
4. Oregon
5. Ole Miss
6. Utah
7. Alabama
8. Michigan
9. Penn State
10. Missouri
11. Notre Dame
12. FSU
13. Clemson
14. LSU
15. USC
16. Tennessee
17. Oklahoma
18. Miami
19. Oregon State
20. Kansas State
21. Arizona
22. Nebraska
23. Kansas
24. Iowa
25. Texas A&M

Joel Klatt explains why he has Ohio State ranked No. 1

After Joel Klatt revealed his top 25 college football teams, he said Ohio State's defense is a key reason for it being ranked No. 1.

"The offseason that Ohio State had and the roster that they're going to put on the field, to me, makes them No. 1," Klatt said, via Athlon Sports. "The defense for Ohio State is what makes them the No. 1 team in the country because they will be the best defense in the country.

"I think that Ohio State is going to have as good of a defense as we've seen in a long time, maybe all the way back to the 2021 Georgia team."

Along with the defense, Klatt praised the hiring of Chip Kelly to run the Buckeyes offense and Ole Miss transfer Quinshon Jenkins to strengthen the run game.

"They have not reached their potential in terms of a run game over the last couple of years... Chip Kelly will fix that," Klatt said. "They're going to be a better run team. He runs the ball effectively everywhere that he's been."

The Buckeyes will open their college football season on Aug. 31 at Akron.