The 2025 college football season will kick off Aug. 23 with Week 0 games. Iowa State and Kansas State will open the 2025 campaign in Dublin, Ireland (noon EDT, ESPN).
Tennessee will kick off its season Aug. 30 versus Syracuse at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The season opener between the Vols and Orange is slated for noon EDT and will be televised by ABC.
Josh Heupel enters his fifth season as Tennessee’s head coach in 2025. In four seasons with the Vols, he has compiled a 37-15 (20-12 SEC) record, including a 2-1 record in bowl games. Heupel also guided the Vols to their first College Football Playoff appearance in program history last season.
Ahead of the 2025 campaign, ESPN SP+ released rankings for the best active FBS head coaches with a minimum of four years experience. ESPN SP+ ranks Heupel as the second best active FBS head coach in 2025. He ranks behind Ohio State head coach Ryan Day.
Kirby Smart (Georgia), James Franklin (Penn State), Dabo Swinney (Clemson), Dan Mullen (UNLV), Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss), Brian Kelly (LSU), Jeff Traylor (UTSA) and Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State) are the remaining head coaches ranked in the top 10.
2025 best active college football head coaches (FBS)
| Head coach | Rating |
| Ryan Day (Ohio State) | 15.8 |
| Josh Heupel (Tennessee) | 15.1 |
| Kirby Smart (Georgia) | 14.4 |
| James Franklin (Penn State) | 11.6 |
| Dabo Swinney (Clemson) | 11.2 |
| Dan Mullen (UNLV) | 10.7 |
| Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss) | 9.5 |
| Brian Kelly (LSU) | 9.3 |
| Jeff Traylor (UTSA) | 8.7 |
| Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State) | 8.3 |
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