The 2025 college football season is barrelling toward its climax, with the National Championship game just around the corner. But to say that the soon-to-conclude campaign has been unpredictable would be an almighty understatement.
Heading into 2025, all of the talk was about Texas quarterback Arch Manning, the heir to the Manning throne previously occupied by uncles Peyton and Eli, both Super Bowl Champions. The sophomore was supposed to lead the Longhorns back into contention this season after a heartbreaking semifinal defeat to the eventual champion Ohio State last term, with many outlets installing him as the consensus preseason favorite both for the Heisman and for 2026's number one overall NFL draft pick.
He was backed by his elite pedigree, five-star recruiting hype, and flashes of brilliance in limited prior action. Yet a slew of inconsistent performances triggered disastrous losses to the likes of Ohio State, Georgia, and unranked Florida, causing Texas to shockingly miss the playoffs altogether and plummet Manning down the boards, so much so that he has opted to remain in college in 2026.
Fernando Mendoza's Stunning Arrival
But while the golden boy has endured an almighty fall from grace, Fernando Mendoza has emerged from obscurity to captivate the nation. An unheralded transfer previously overlooked on draft radars, the 22-year-old junior orchestrated Indiana’s improbable undefeated regular season, leading the Hoosiers to the brink of a first-ever national championship, winning the Heisman in the process.
And it isn't just the Natty that online betting sites make the electric quarterback favorite to win. Websites allowing one to bet on sports with Bitcoin currently position Mendoza as the 2/1 to be selected first overall in the 2026 NFL Draft, a position currently held by the Las Vegas Raiders.
But the Indiana superstar isn't the only one who has emerged out of nowhere to climb the draft boards throughout a gripping 2025 CFB season. Here are three others who are poised for a starring role in April's annual extravaganza.
David Bailey
David Bailey was never a total nobody. Heading into 2025, he'd already piled up 111 tackles, 22.5 TFLs, and 14.5 sacks across three years at Stanford. But even still, he was thought of as just another solid Day 2 guy, and a jump to Texas Tech via the portal wasn't going to change that perception. Outlets hyped the senior as the Red Raiders’ big get, comparing his upside to some of last year’s top edges like number three overall Abdul Carter. But let’s be real: without a monster postseason in the Pac-12 graveyard, he wasn’t turning heads nationally.
Then all of a sudden, boom. Bailey immediately set about proving right those columnists bigging up his move to Jones AT&T Stadium, turning into a one-man wrecking crew. Throughout the course of the 2025 season, he racked up 13.5 sacks and 20.5 TFLs to lead the Big 12, almost blowing past his entire prior career in a single season. His blend of speed, power, bend, and versatile pass-rush moves made him a constant quarterback nightmare, and Texas Tech has reaped the rewards.
The Red Raiders, much like Bailey himself, were considered an afterthought heading into the campaign. Fast forward to now, and Texas Tech is the Big 12 champion, albeit somewhat reeling after a stunning playoff exit at the hands of Oregon. Still, the young linebacker hovers around number 11 on big boards, a late-first or top-20 lock. The Dallas Cowboys seem to be a perfect fit, with America's Team desperate for that twitchy power in their zone, something Bailey provides in spades.
Arvell Reese
Arvell who? That’s what most draftniks muttered preseason. Sure, the junior linebacker had some TFLs at Ohio State, but with only 0.5 sacks and a rotational role in the run to the 2024-25 national championship, he was barely a blip on the radar of NFL scouts. Hybrid edge/LB potential? Maybe, but top-five overall potential? No chance.
Or so we thought. Reese balled out throughout the 2025 campaign, amassing 61 tackles, 6.5 sacks, and 18 pressures over 651 snaps—a 74.7 PFF leap that screams Micah Parsons 2.0. Week in, week out, he’d explode off the line, stack and shed, or drop into coverage like it was nothing. Penn State? 12 tackles, 2.5 TFLs, a sack. Ohio State’s top-ranked D steamrolled to the playoffs, and Reese was the heartbeat.
PFF has him No. 2 overall now, and Reese is a top-five staple in mocks everywhere. Either the Cardinals or Jets could feast; their flexible schemes would let him terrorize from anywhere. How he flew under the radar for so long is anyone's guess.
Sonny Styles
Sonny Styles sat at No. 62 in preseason, fresh off a rock-solid 2024 (100 tackles, 10.5 TFLs, 6 sacks). At 6-4, the tools were always there—athleticism off the charts—but nagging issues with angles and wrap-up tackling kept him from elite status. Ohio State fans knew he had it; the rest of us were waiting for proof.
2025? He duly irons it out: 45 solo stops, a fumble forced, a pick, and those Championship Week fireworks against Indiana, where he was everywhere, shedding blocks and flying sideline to sideline. No. 21 in playoff player rankings, anchoring the Buckeyes’ machine of a defense even as its offense sputtered out of contention.
Mid-first or early second in April's draft now seems to be the consensus opinion. Vikings or Eagles, take your pick; their coverage-heavy looks would unlock that Swiss Army knife range. Styles is a coach’s dream, and his rookie year in the NFL will prove exactly that.
