Kirk Herbstreit Names The Best College Football Roster He's Ever Seen

ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit recently joined the "Pat McAfee Show," where he shared his thoughts on the best college football roster he's ever seen.

McAfee and Herbstreit were talking about the Ohio State Buckeyes heading into the 2024-25 college football season, when Herbstreit mentioned that he isn't as high on OSU as many other people this season.

Ohio State is heading into the season as the No. 2 team in the AP Preseason Poll. While Herbstreit mentioned some of the added talent they got in the offseason like safety Caleb Downs and quarterback Will Howard, he doesn't believe the Buckeyes are fielding anything special or out of the norm.

He thinks OSU has always had great rosters, but they've been holding themselves back the past couple of years.

Herbstreit pointed to Ohio State's 2015 lineup as the best roster he had ever seen. The only thing holding that team back was an upset loss to the Michigan State Spartans, ultimately finishing the season with a 12-1 record.

"Look back at Ohio State's roster," Herbstreit said. "Go back to 2015. They won it in '14. They came back with the Bosa brothers or Joey Bosa, look at that roster in 2015. That was the year they played Michigan State at home. Everybody got bad they didn't give the ball to Zeke Elliot. They ended up getting upset by a backup quarterback at Michigan State. That team was maybe the best roster I've ever seen in 2015."

The last time the Ohio State Buckeyes were crowned the National Champions was 2014. Despite having superstars like Justin Fields, CJ Stroud, and Marvin Harrison Jr. run through the program, the Buckeyes haven't gotten back on the podium.

There's a lot of hype around OSU, given their deep roster at nearly every position group, but Herbstreit wants fans to halt on the expectations before they see the official product on the field.

Some of the Buckeyes' biggest stars heading into the season are running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, as well as wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka.

The Buckeyes will begin the season on Aug. 31 against Akron at 3:30 ET.

Their biggest tests of the 2024-25 season will be a road matchup against the No. 3 Oregon Ducks on Oct. 12 and another matchup away from Columbus on Nov. 2 against No. 8 Penn State.

They'll also be hosting the No. 9 Michigan Wolverines on Nov. 30, ending the season with one of college football's biggest rivalries.

Related: Kirk Herbstreit's Response To Florida State's Loss Is Going Viral

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