Predicting the college football 2026 preseason AP Top 25 rankings

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The college football preseason AP Top 25 arrives in mid-August, and it sets the pecking order before anyone plays a down. A national panel of media voters ranks teams 1 through 25, with points awarded on a descending scale. The final 2025 poll used 66 voters, and of course, Indiana swept all 66 first-place votes after finishing 16-0. 

The preseason ballot matters because it shapes early Playoff talk and decides which teams get the benefit of the doubt in September. This projection blends the summer media polls from the power conferences with returning production and roster talent to predict how the first poll will look. 

The defending-champion Hoosiers, a loaded Ohio State roster, and an Oregon team that got its quarterback back all have a case for No. 1.

MORE: Preseason Big Ten championship odds ahead of 2026 college football season

Nos. 25 to 21: Houston, Iowa, Clemson, Louisville, Washington

Houston grabs the last spot after going 10-3 and beating LSU in the Texas Bowl. Quarterback Conner Weigman returns for Willie Fritz’s third season after throwing for 2,705 yards and 25 touchdowns while rushing for 700 yards and 11 more scores.

Iowa lands at No. 24 on the strength of another Kirk Ferentz defense, though the Hawkeyes open camp with an unsettled quarterback battle between Hank Brown and Jeremy Hecklinski. Voters have rewarded Iowa’s floor for two decades and will do so again with a Top 25 placement.

Clemson checks in at No. 23 after a 7-6 season, the program’s worst since 2010, which pushed Dabo Swinney into his heaviest transfer portal cycle yet. Nine defensive transfers arrive for coordinator Tom Allen alongside returning linebacker Sammy Brown, who made 106 tackles last season.

Louisville sits at No. 22 because running back Isaac Brown turned down the portal and came back. Brown led the FBS in yards per carry in 2025 and has 2,057 rushing yards in two seasons for Jeff Brohm.

Washington rounds out the group at No. 21 with quarterback Demond Williams back after a contract standoff that nearly sent him elsewhere. Williams threw for 3,065 yards and 25 touchdowns and added 611 rushing yards in a 9-4 season for Jedd Fisch.

Nos. 20 to 16: Tennessee, Utah, SMU, Penn State, Michigan

Tennessee opens the tier at No. 20 with running back DeSean Bishop back after leading the Vols with 1,076 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. Josh Heupel hired veteran coordinator Jim Knowles to fix the defense and added four Penn State transfers while breaking in a new starting quarterback.

Utah sits at No. 19 in its first season under Morgan Scalley, who was promoted from defensive coordinator after Kyle Whittingham stepped down following a 21-year run. The Utes went 11-2 last season and closed with a 44-22 win over Nebraska in the Las Vegas Bowl.

SMU takes No. 18 with Kevin Jennings entering his third year as the starter after throwing for nearly 7,000 yards over the past two seasons. Rhett Lashlee has to replace his top two rushers and four of his top five receivers, and Cal transfer running back Kendrick Raphael arrives after rushing for 943 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Penn State lands at No. 17 as Matt Campbell begins his first season after 10 years at Iowa State, bringing 24 former Cyclones with him. Quarterback Rocco Becht is the biggest name in that group, and the redshirt senior enters his fourth season as a college starter with 9,274 career passing yards.

Michigan closes the tier at No. 16 in year one under Whittingham, who left Utah to replace the fired Sherrone Moore. Sophomore quarterback Bryce Underwood, the top recruit in the 2025 class, returns after winning nine games as a true freshman.

Nos. 15 to 11: Alabama, BYU, LSU, Texas Tech, USC

Alabama starts the tier at No. 15 while breaking in a new quarterback, with Austin Mack and Keelon Russell competing to replace Ty Simpson after he left for the NFL. The secondary is the strength for Kalen DeBoer, with cornerback Zabien Brown and safeties Keon Sabb and Bray Hubbard all back.

BYU takes No. 14 after Big 12 coaches picked the Cougars to win the conference. Sophomore quarterback Bear Bachmeier returns after throwing for 3,033 yards and rushing for a school-record 11 touchdowns, and running back LJ Martin was voted the league’s preseason offensive player of the year.

LSU checks in at No. 13 as Lane Kiffin begins his first season in Baton Rouge after replacing the fired Brian Kelly. Arizona State transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt headlines the rebuilt offense, and sophomore running back Harlem Berry is back after a strong finish to his freshman year.

Texas Tech lands at No. 12 after winning the Big 12 and reaching the Playoff, though Joey McGuire lost quarterback Brendan Sorsby following a gambling investigation. Will Hammond takes over after beating Utah on the road as a freshman last season, and the Red Raiders won all 11 of their 2025 regular-season games by at least 20 points.

USC rounds out the group at No. 11 with Jayden Maiava back for his second full season as the starter under Lincoln Riley. Maiava threw for 3,431 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2025, and the Trojans pair a heavy group of returning starters with the top-ranked recruiting class in the country.

Nos. 10 to 6: Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Miami, Indiana

Oklahoma opens the top ten behind a defense that allowed 15.5 points per game last season and carried the Sooners to the Playoff. Linebacker Kip Lewis returns after a team-high 76 tackles, defensive tackle David Stone is a Walter Camp preseason All-American, and quarterback John Mateer is back healthy after thumb surgery split his 2025 season in half. Brent Venables has the pieces for another Playoff run if the offense catches up.

Ole Miss sits at No. 9 after promoting Pete Golding from defensive coordinator when Lane Kiffin left for LSU, then reaching the Playoff semifinals under its new head coach. Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss turned down Kiffin’s pursuit and returned after throwing for 3,937 yards with 22 touchdowns and three interceptions, and running back Kewan Lacy is back too. The Rebels also signed the nation’s second-ranked transfer portal class.

Texas A&M steps in at No. 8 with Marcel Reed entering his third season as the starter after an 11-win year. Reed was one of three SEC quarterbacks to throw for at least 3,000 yards and rush for at least 550, and Mike Elko returns running back Rueben Owens II and first-team preseason All-SEC receiver Mario Craver around him.

Miami takes No. 7 after falling 27-21 to Indiana in the national championship game. Mario Cristobal landed his third straight big-name transfer quarterback, signing Darian Mensah away from ACC rival Duke after Mensah threw 34 touchdowns against six interceptions and led the Blue Devils to their first outright conference title since 1962. Mensah was voted the preseason ACC Player of the Year.

Indiana holds No. 6 as the defending national champion after a 16-0 season, the best record in major college football since 1894. Curt Cignetti must replace Heisman winner and No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, and he went back to the portal for TCU’s Josh Hoover, who threw for 3,472 yards and 29 touchdowns last season. Cignetti is 27-2 in two years in Bloomington.

Nos 5 to 1: Texas, Notre Dame, Oregon, Georgia, Ohio State

Texas opens the top five with Arch Manning back for his second season as the starter. Manning threw for 2,942 yards with 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions in the regular season, then closed with a 41-27 Citrus Bowl win over Michigan, and he enters the fall with the second-best Heisman odds. Steve Sarkisian also added Auburn transfer receiver Cam Coleman to the group around him.

Notre Dame sits at No. 4 a year after the Playoff committee left a 10-2 team out of the field, and Marcus Freeman has built the season around that snub. Quarterback CJ Carr returns as the preseason Heisman favorite after throwing for 2,741 yards with 24 touchdowns and six interceptions as a first-year starter, and he is the first returning starting quarterback of the Freeman era. The Irish must replace the running back tandem of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price.

Oregon takes No. 3 because Dante Moore passed up a projected top-five draft slot to return. Moore led the nation in touchdown passes on throws of 20 or more yards last season and now adds a healthy Evan Stewart at receiver plus Nebraska transfer quarterback Dylan Raiola behind him on the depth chart. Dan Lanning’s team went 13-2 and reached the Playoff semifinals.

Georgia holds No. 2 with Gunner Stockton entering his second full season as the starter and eight starters back from a defense some consider the best in the country. Running back Nate Frazier returns behind an experienced offensive line, and Kirby Smart’s roster rates among the SEC’s deepest. The Bulldogs have won two straight SEC titles but have gone one-and-done in consecutive Playoffs.

Ohio State claims the No. 1 spot behind the sport’s best returning passing combination. Julian Sayin won National Freshman of the Year and Big Ten Freshman of the Year in his first season as the starter, while Jeremiah Smith enters the fall within reach of all three of the program’s career receiving records. The Buckeyes went 12-2 with losses to Indiana and Miami, and new coordinator Arthur Smith takes over an offense returning four starters on the line.

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