Top Seniors at Each Position Heading into the 2025 College Football Season

Senior year is the last ride.

Although the NFL probably looked appealing, some of college football's best players decided to stick around for a final season. They've become the veterans of their respective rosters and will be leading the team in 2025.

For many, the lack of a conference and/or national title—or NFL draft profile that could use improvements—brought them back.

And a little NIL (name, image and likeness) money perhaps helped, too.

While the following selections are subjective, they are based on a mix of previous production, expected contributions in 2025 and early NFL perception.

After a disappointing year in 2023, Cade Klubnik took a massive step in his development during his junior campaign.

In addition to 3,679 passing yards and 36 touchdowns to six interceptions, he added 463 yards and seven scores on the ground. Klubnik guided Clemson to an ACC crown and appearance in the College Football Playoff.

No, he wasn't perfect. Klubnik must be more effective in the biggest games, an issue that plagued him in three SEC matchups, in particular.

Armed with a tremendous receiving corps around him, though, Klubnik has a great opportunity to compete for a Heisman Trophy in 2025.

Penn State is gearing up for an Ohio State-type run.

Last season, the Nittany Lions lost in a CFP semifinal. That setback played a role in the program retaining a bunch of veterans—including senior quarterback Drew Allar—with the intent of chasing a national title.

Penn State's offense mostly runs through the backfield of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen, however.

Allen is a standout himself, but Singleton lands this recognition because of his versatility. He rushed for nearly 1,100 yards at a strong 6.4 per carry, also catching 41 passes for 375 yards and totaling 17 touchdowns. Singleton has topped 1,000 scrimmage yards in all three seasons at Penn State.

This backfield is a critical piece of the Nittany Lions' offseason hype.

Georgia Tech saw speedy wideout Eric Singleton Jr. transfer to Auburn, but the program used the portal to bring in Eric Rivers.

Both would be better, sure, but landing Rivers softened the hit.

Last year, he collected 62 receptions for 1,172 yards and 12 touchdowns at Florida International. Most impressively, Rivers blended volume and explosiveness with a scorching 1.9 yards per catch—the highest mark in the nation among players who snagged at least four passes per game.

Rivers will quickly become the primary target for Georgia Tech, which has ACC title dreams with quarterback Haynes King returning.

Another transfer from a Group of Five program to a power-conference school, Tanner Koziol is set to make a splash in the Big Ten.

Koziol spent the last three seasons at Ball State, enjoying a prolific year in 2024. He amassed 94 receptions for 839 yards and eight touchdowns to land All-MAC recognition for the second time.

Now, he'll be a key option at Wisconsin.

Especially given how often the Badgers might employ two tight ends, Koziol is expected to play a major role in Madison.

Staying in the Midwest, we're making the short trip from Wisconsin to Iowa—a typical place to find a star offensive lineman.

The latest one is Gennings Dunker, a two-year starter at right tackle.

Last season, he garnered second-team All-Big Ten recognition from conference coaches. The two players ahead of him—Oregon's Josh Conerly Jr. and Minnesota's Aireontae Ersery are both headed to the NFL.

South Dakota State transfer Mark Gronowski should upgrade Iowa's passing game, but Dunker will be a cornerstone of the run-first offense.

How about Vanderbilt winning this battle?

When he entered the portal, Jordan White soon heard from any number of brand-name programs. Miami, Michigan and South Carolina all showed heavy interest in the transfer from Liberty.

Vandy managed to sway White, a second-team All-Conference USA pick as a center in 2023 and first-team choice at left guard in 2024.

White is clearly able to play either position at a high level, but it would be sensible for Vanderbilt to rely on the sixth-year player as the center.

Mikail Kamara followed his head coach from James Madison to Indiana, and the rise in competition only featured Kamara more.

Two years ago with JMU, he posted 18.5 tackles for loss (7.5 sacks) while garnering second-team All-Sun Belt honors. Kamara recorded 15.0 stops in the backfield (10.0 sacks) and secured third-team AP All-America honors.

Expectations, as you'd imagine, are enormous for Kamara.

While the Hoosiers attempt to back up their CFP-worthy surge, Kamara will be working to bolster his NFL draft profile.

Tyler Onyedim very quietly was a force at Iowa State.

After holding a rotational role in 2022, he earned a starting spot and clogged the middle of the Cyclones' line for two seasons. Onyedim registered a combined 75 tackles (9.0 for loss) and 13 hurries in 2023 and 2024.

Onyedim is versatile and may shift outside—something he did on occasion for Iowa State—so he's looking at multiple paths to snaps at A&M.

But at his best, Onyedim is a disruptive presence on the interior.

Heading into the 2024 campaign, we thought it would be the final ride for Old Dominion's tackling machine.

Jason Henderson spent last offseason working back from a knee injury, however, and he simply wasn't right. The linebacker played in the opener but missed the rest of the year, redshirting to save his eligibility for 2025.

Once healthy again, his impact will be impossible to miss.

Henderson paced the FBS with 186 tackles in 2022 and posted 170 more in 2023, finishing second in the country. He was an All-American both years.

And it sure wouldn't be surprising to see Henderson land a third in 2025.

If you're looking to hop aboard an Indiana-style bandwagon for next season, Illinois is worth your attention.

As the Illini only replace a handful of starters, they are noticeably strong on defense. The unit brings back All-Big Ten pass-rusher Gabe Jacas and cornerback Xavier Scott, a second-team all-league pick.

Scott notched 49 tackles, four interceptions—one he returned for a score—and six pass breakups last season. He yielded just 6.0 yards per target, according to Pro Football Focus, while aligning both in the slot and on the outside.

Between his performance and versatility, Scott is a pivotal part of the Illini defense and the team's not-so-secret CFP hopes.

No player will likely command more offseason praise than Arch Manning, but there's no shortage of stardom at Texas.

The defense is loaded on each level of the defense, yes, but the Longhorns specifically boast two returners—linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. and safety Michael Taaffe—who were second-team AP All-Americans last year.

Taaffe, a former walk-on, has ascended to a critical role. He notched 78 tackles with 5.5 for loss, two interceptions and 10 pass breakups last year.

While the offense will be the more popular unit, Taaffe will be a stabilizing presence on the back end of what should be another elite defense.