For what is believed to be the first time ever, the top-two teams in the preseason NCFA Coaches Poll are set to meet on the field for a Week 1 contest.
The unanimous No. 1 team in the country according to the coaches poll, Ohio State will travel to Fairfax, Va. to take on No. 2 George Mason, a meeting between two teams that are no stranger to one another.
The two teams have not met since 2022, but met three times in two seasons across 2021 and 2022, with two of the matchups coming in the postseason. The Buckeyes and Patriots met in the 2021 regular season with Ohio State squeaking out a 29-28 victory thanks to a clutch field goal from then-freshman kicker David Rive. The two teams would meet again that same season in the 2021 NCFA National Championship Game, where the Buckeyes jumped out to a 28-0 lead before ultimately capturing the title, 42-27.
Ohio State and George Mason would meet again in the 2022 NCFA Semifinals, hosted by the Patriots on their home field. Despite both teams scoring on their opening possessions, the Buckeyes pulled away quickly, scoring 56 unanswered points in the first half to take a 63-6 lead that also ended up serving as the final score.
Both Ohio State and George Mason won their conference titles and advanced to the NCFA Semifinals again in 2024, where the Buckeyes coasted to a 52-0 win over Coppin State while George Mason’s season ended 63-20 against Clayton State.
The Patriots enter a new era under head coach Orvin Weatherly, who is looking to give the program some stability as George Mason has employed four different head coaches in the last five seasons. Weatherly has been on the Patriots staff since 2021 as both the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator.
George Mason is led by a number of NCFA Preseason All-Americans including WR Theo Assan, RB Frederick Stokes, DE Nasir Williams, and LBs Darion El and Justin Jones. The Patriots are expected to feature a pair of quarterbacks as veteran Demetrio Hernandez and freshman Mohamed Shuaib have competed throughout camp. Hernandez battled through injuries last season, completing 59% of his passes for 362 yards and four touchdowns to four interceptions in four games played. Shuaib comes to Fairfax after completing just over 50% of his passes for 1,524 yards and six touchdowns to five interceptions in 10 games as a senior at South Lakes High School in Reston, Va. Both QBs are expected to see time in the highly anticipated opener.
On the visitors side, Ohio State returns little production offensively from the wide receiver position. Only four players who caught a pass for the Buckeyes last year are returning in 2025. However, the Buckeyes are excited about their new crop of receivers, including Desean Bonte, Ricardo Washington, Charlie Harlow and others. Tight end Tommy Delaney has been impressive in fall camp and is expected to play a role in the offense that is led by quarterback Niko Pappas who returns to the starting lineup after missing the second half of last season due to injury.
At the time of his injury in Week 8 of the NCFA season, Pappas led the NCFA in most passing and rushing categories and finished the year with 16 total touchdowns and 1,170 total yards in just over five games played. He is playing behind an offensive line that returns three starters, Daniel Sankiewicz, Cam Fries and Daniel Zirkle. Liam Logan, Liam Feeley and Nathan Chavarria-Byrne are all expected to play starting roles as well along Ohio State’s offensive line.
Defensively, Ohio State returns a plethora of starters in the front seven from a season ago. Reigning NCFA Defensive MVP Matt Humphreys returns as the leader in the defensive line room with 66 career total tackles, 14.5 sacks and three forced fumbles over two seasons. Adding to the depth on the defensive line is veteran Trey Jones who enters his senior season with 18 career sacks, just 4.5 away from the program record of 22.5. Jones posted nine sacks and 35 tackles a season ago, with 6.5 of those sacks coming in the last two games against Coppin State and Clayton State. Joining Humphreys and Jones at defensive end is Elijah Lowden, who posted a stellar freshman campaign in 2024 in which he posted 42 total tackles and four sacks to go along with a forced fumble.
At linebacker, Tyler Beckman is the unquestioned leader of the back seven. The current team president, Beckman has accumulated 117 total tackles in his first two seasons with Ohio State, leading the team as a freshman in 2023. In the secondary, Joshua Clemons is the lone returning starter, however veterans Keegan Lynch, Christian Wright and others are expected to play important roles.
Kickoff between the two NCFA powerhouses is set for Saturday, Sept. 20 at 1 p.m. at RAC Field in Fairfax, Va. Admission is free and there is expected to be a livestream available on George Mason’s YouTube channel on the day of the game.
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