Miami football opens 2026 season below bitter rival in rankings

Miami football fans aren't going to like this. Or, considering how much they love proving the haters wrong, maybe their ranking in the preseason polls is perfect.

The Hurricanes will open the 2026 college football season ranked No. 7 in the US LBM Coaches Poll. It's their highest preseason ranking since 2004 and up three spots from their starting position last year, when Miami earned the last at-large berth in the College Football Playoff and went all the way to the national championship game. With seven players on the preseason All-ACC team, including preseason player of the year Darian Mensah, Miami is the heavy favorite to win the conference.

But there are questions about some of the teams ranked above Mario Cristobal's squad to kick off the season. No. 4 Texas is presumed to take another step forward with quarterback Arch Manning, but the Longhorns finished sixth in the SEC in 2025 with a worse regular-season record than Miami. And then there's No. 5 Notre Dame, whom the Canes edged out for the final CFP spot thanks to a statement-making 27-24 win to open the season.

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Miami will get a final say on the two rivals' rankings when they face off for the rematch in South Bend on Nov. 7, one of the most anticipated games on the college football schedule.

The Hurricanes have just one other ranked team on their schedule: No. 23 Clemson, who hosts Miami on Oct. 3. The two are two of only three ACC teams in the preseason poll, along with No. 20 SMU. Louisville enters the season as the team receiving the most votes without making the top 25.

Expectations are high in Coral Gables this season, though this team will be far different than last year's 13-3 bunch. The biggest changes come on the offensive line (Matthew McCoy is the only returning starter, though guard Samson Okunlola saw significant time and made the All-ACC preseason team) and the defense. Edge rushers Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor, along with defensive backs Keionte Scott and Jakobe Thomas, left for the NFL, leaving the No. 5 scoring defense needing to replace some of its biggest playmakers.

Fortunately, Cristobal remains one of the top recruiters in terms of both high school and transfer portal talent. The offense should look more like the one that made Cam Ward the No. 1 overall pick in 2024 with Mensah and his top target Cooper Barkate coming from Duke to join forces with star receiver Malachi Toney and punishing running back Mark Fletcher. Mensah was second in the nation with 3,973 passing yards as a sophomore with 34 touchdowns, tied for second behind only Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza.

Miami might not even have the biggest case of sour grapes regarding the preseason poll. Indiana, built into a juggernaut in just two seasons by Curt Cignetti, beat the Canes in January to complete an unprecedented 16-0 season and win the national championship. Yet the Hoosiers open the season No. 6 in the Coaches Poll and No. 3 in the Big Ten behind Ohio State and Oregon, the top two teams in the rankings.

Where Miami football ranks in preseason Coaches Poll

Here's the full US LBM preseason Coaches Poll released Aug. 4. Listed records are from the 2025-26 season. Included is each team's ranking in the final Coaches Poll of the 2025-26 season.

1. Ohio State (12-2) – 6
2. Oregon (13-2) – 4
3. Georgia (12-2) – 5
4. Texas (10-3) – 13
5. Notre Dame (10-2) – 11
6. Indiana (16-0) – 1
7. Miami (13-3) – 2
8. Texas A&M (11-2) – 8
9. Oklahoma (10-3) – 10
10. Ole Miss (13-2) – 3
11. Alabama (11-4) – 9
12. Texas Tech (12-2) – 8
13. LSU (7-6) – NR
14. Southern California (9-4) – 21
15. BYU (12-2) – 12
16. Michigan (9-4) – 22
17. Penn State (7-6) – NR
18. Tennessee (8-5) – NR
19. Washington (9-4) – NR
20. SMU (9-4) – NR
21. Utah (11-2) – 14
22. Iowa (9-4) – 17
23. Clemson (7-6) – NR
24. Houston (10-3) – 19
25. Missouri (8-5) – NR

Miami football schedule 2026

All times Eastern.

• Friday, Sept. 4: at Stanford* | 9 p.m. | ESPN
• Thursday, Sept. 10: vs. Florida A&M | 8 p.m. | ACC Network
• Friday, Sept. 18: at Wake Forest* | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN
• Saturday, Sept. 26: vs. Central Michigan | 6:30 p.m. | The CW
• Saturday, Oct. 3: at Clemson* | TBD
• Saturday, Oct. 10: Open
• Saturday, Oct. 17: vs. Florida State* | TBD
• Saturday, Oct. 24: vs. Pittsburgh* | TBD
• Saturday, Oct. 31: at North Carolina* | TBD
• Saturday, Nov. 7: at Notre Dame | 7:30 p.m. | NBC
• Saturday, Nov. 14: vs. Duke* | TBD
• Saturday, Nov. 21: vs. Virginia Tech* | TBD
• Saturday, Nov. 28: vs. Boston College* | TBD

*- ACC game

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami football opens 2026 season below bitter rival in rankings