Ohio State is the No. 1 team in college football heading into the 2026 season, and Oregon sits right behind at No. 2 in the AP preseason Top 25. It marks only the second time in the poll's history that the Big Ten has occupied the top two spots in the preseason rankings.
Georgia checks in at No. 3, Notre Dame at No. 4 and Texas at No. 5 to round out the top five. Indiana comes in at No. 6, followed by Miami (FL) at No. 7, Texas A&M at No. 8, Ole Miss at No. 9 and Oklahoma at No. 10.
Ohio State already held the No. 1 spot in the preseason Coaches Poll released two weeks ago, with Oregon, Georgia, Texas and Notre Dame filling out the top five of that poll. The Buckeyes sit atop both major preseason polls entering a season where expectations are high.
The SEC leads all conferences with nine ranked teams in the AP preseason poll. The Big Ten follows with eight. The Big Ten can claim the very top of the rankings despite the SEC's numerical advantage.
Oregon quarterback Dante Moore played in the Peach Bowl playoff semifinal on Jan. 9, 2026, in Atlanta, giving the Ducks proven postseason experience at the position heading into the new season. Ohio State defensive end Caden Curry, linebacker Sonny Styles and wide receiver Brennen Schramm were among the players celebrating after the Buckeyes beat Michigan on Nov. 29, 2025, in Ann Arbor. Georgia running back Nate Frazier scored a touchdown against Mississippi on Oct. 18, 2025, in Athens.
Boise State is the highest-ranked Group of Six program and the top vote-getter outside the power conferences, though the Broncos did not crack the Top 25. Boise State has moved from the Mountain West to the new Pac-12, adding to the intrigue around where the program lands once the season gets underway.
No non-power conference teams made the preseason Top 25 this year. That absence follows a stretch where Group of Six programs rarely broke through: only Tulane in 2023 and Boise State in 2025 started a season inside the Top 25 after two non-power teams—Tulane and James Madison—made the College Football Playoff in the 2025 season.
Teams receiving votes but landing outside the Top 25 include Louisville with 153 points, Florida with 147, TCU with 63, Illinois with 62, South Carolina with 50 and Arizona with 50. Virginia received 40 votes, Vanderbilt 37, Auburn 29 and Georgia Tech 26. Further down, Boise State received 24 votes, Oklahoma State 22, UNLV 17, NC State 13 and Florida State 13. Virginia Tech, Nebraska, Memphis, Arizona State, James Madison, Duke, Pittsburgh, New Mexico, Western Michigan, Navy, San Diego State, Kansas State, Hawai'i, Jacksonville State and California also received at least one vote.
The preseason No. 1 spot carries real weight but also real risk. Ohio State enters the season as the team everyone is chasing. The Buckeyes have the personnel—Curry and Styles anchoring the defense, proven skill players at receiver—to back up the ranking, but a single early loss to a top-ten opponent reshuffles everything.
Oregon's placement at No. 2 is fair given Moore's experience in a playoff semifinal. The Ducks went 13-2 in 2025 and reached the Peach Bowl. The question for Oregon is whether Moore can carry them past the Buckeyes if the two programs meet later in the Big Ten schedule or deeper in the playoff.
Georgia at No. 3 represents the SEC's strongest preseason case. The Bulldogs went 12-2 in 2025 and return Frazier, who was a scoring threat against top-tier SEC competition. Notre Dame at No. 4 gives the ACC its highest-ranked program. Texas at No. 5 keeps the Longhorns in the national conversation after finishing in the top group of the Coaches Poll as well.
