Unveiled: The Elite 12 College Football Blue Bloods That Define the Sport’s Legacy!

College football’s “blue bloods” — a phrase that conjures images of dynasties, legends, and stadiums where history oozes from every corner. But here’s the kicker: in 2025, how many of these elite programs truly deserve that crown? Unlike college basketball, where Duke and Kansas pretty much own the conversation, football’s landscape has morphed dramatically. Conference shuffles, playoff tweaks — the game’s changed, and so has the pecking order. Andy Staples, a guy who’s seen the sport inside and out, put on his thinking cap and boiled it down to 12 teams that meet his strict, win-and-title-based criteria. Some old guard left sitting on the sidelines — Nebraska, Florida, Penn State — while programs like Tennessee still make the cut. It’s a list that’s bound to ruffle feathers, spark debates, and maybe even start a bar argument or two about what really defines a blue blood. So, who made the cut and who got the cold shoulder? Dive into the drama and decide for yourself. LEARN MORE

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How many blue bloods really exist in college football these days?

In college basketball, it’s probably an easier argument. Duke, North Carolina, Kansas and Kentucky are obvious picks. UCLA and Indiana are considered by some, given their history, though they haven’t been nationally relevant as much as the other four in modern times. If you’re going on just the past 25 years or so, UConn is obviously deserving of a spot. Gonzaga might be, too.

But in college football, it’s harder. A lot has changed in college football over the past 10 to 20 years, thanks to conference realignment, postseason changes and more.

So, who are really the college football “blue bloods” in 2025? Here’s the official list, according to On3’s Andy Staples.

TUSCALOOSA, AL – SEPTEMBER 20: The Florida Gators cheerleaders perform during the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 20, 2014 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Staples, who previously covered college football for Sports Illustrated and The Athletic, came up with some specific criteria:

Top 15 in program win percentage (Minimum 750 games)
At least one national title in two of three eras (AP or Coaches poll in the two poll eras, winner of the final game in the Bowl Championship Series/College Football Playoff era)

With that criteria outlined, he came up with a list of 12 programs, in no particular order. There were some notable snubs:

Alabama
Florida State
Georgia
LSU
Michigan
Oklahoma
Miami
Notre Dame
Texas
Ohio State
Tennessee
USC

The notable snubs: Nebraska, Florida, Penn State.

Many will likely argue that if teams like Tennessee and Miami are on the list, so too should programs like Nebraska and Florida and Penn State.

But it’s Staples’ list.

“Last year I made a vibes-only list of college football bluebloods that made a lot of people mad. They said I needed more objective criteria, and they were correct. So I made criteria that made sense. Some of you might be even more mad now,” he wrote.

Last year I made a vibes-only list of college football bluebloods that made a lot of people mad. They said I needed more objective criteria, and they were correct.

So I made criteria that made sense.

Some of you might be even more mad now.https://t.co/cvBHytkgtI pic.twitter.com/1jzX3JmDUB

— Andy Staples (@Andy_Staples) August 11, 2025