Last hurrah: Pac-12 puts 5 schools in AP preseason college football rankings
Aug 14, 2023, 9:51 AM
Georgia quarterback Carson Beck (15) throws in the first half of Georgia's spring NCAA college football game, Saturday, April 16, 2022, in Athens, Ga. Coach Kirby Smart has made it clear that Carson Beck is the quarterback to beat. (AP Photo/Brett Davis, File)
(AP Photo/Brett Davis, File)
Georgia will begin its drive for an unprecedented college football championship three-peat as the No. 1 team in The Associated Press preseason top 25.
The Bulldogs received 60 of 63 first-place votes in the poll released Monday to easily outpoint No. 2 Michigan, which received two first-place votes and has its best preseason rankings since being No. 2 in 1991. The Wolverines’ Big Ten rival, Ohio State, is No. 3 with one first-place vote.
Two more Southeastern Conference teams join Georgia in the top five. Alabama is No. 4, the Crimson Tide’s lowest preseason ranking in more than a decade, and LSU starts at No. 5, its best preseason ranking since 2016.
The Bulldogs have won the last two national titles while going 29-2, but this will be only the second time in program history they have been preseason No. 1. The first was in 2008.
Five current Pac-12 schools are in the top 25: USC (6), Washington (10), Utah (14), Oregon (15) and Oregon State (18). Of those teams, only Oregon State will remain in the Pac-12 after realignment following this season.
Additionally, UCLA earned 66 points and is three spots outside the top 25.
Preseason college football AP top 25 by conference
SEC — 6 (Nos. 1, 4, 5, 12, 22, 23).
Big Ten — 5 (Nos. 2, 3, 7, 19, 25).
Pac-12 — 5 (Nos. 6, 10, 14, 15, 18).
Big 12 — 4 (Nos. 11, 16, 17, 20).
ACC — 3 (Nos. 8, 9, 21).
American Athletic — 1 (No. 24).
Independent — 1 (No. 13).
If sorted by next season’s conference alignment the breakdown looks like this:
SEC — 8 (Nos. 1, 4, 5, 11, 12, 20, 22, 23).
Big Ten — 8 (Nos. 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 15, 19, 25).
Big 12 — 3 (Nos. 14, 16, 17).
ACC — 3 (Nos. 8, 9, 21).
Pac-12 — 1 (No. 18 – counts Oregon State as a Pac-12 team).
American Athletic— 1 (No. 24)
Independent — 1 (No. 13).
Preseason college football AP top 25 rankings
| Rank | Team | Trend | This Week | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgia | – | vs. Tennessee-Martin | 1572 (60) |
| 2 | Michigan | ↑1 | vs. East Carolina | 1490 (2) |
| 3 | Ohio State | ↑1 | @ Indiana | 1400 (1) |
| 4 | Alabama | ↑1 | vs. Middle Tennessee | 1398 (0) |
| 5 | LSU | ↑11 | @ Florida State | 1276 (0) |
| 6 | USC | ↑6 | vs. San Jose State | 1245 (0) |
| 7 | Penn State | – | vs. West Virginia | 1177 (0) |
| 8 | Florida State | ↑3 | vs. LSU | 1147 (0) |
| 9 | Clemson | ↑4 | @ Duke | 1032 (0) |
| 10 | Washington | ↓2 | vs. Boise State | 977 (0) |
| 11 | Texas | ↑14 | vs. Rice | 882 (0) |
| 12 | Tennessee | ↓6 | vs. Virginia | 868 (0) |
| 13 | Notre Dame | ↑5 | vs. Navy | 863 (0) |
| 14 | Utah | ↓4 | vs. Florida | 811 (0) |
| 15 | Oregon | – | vs. Portland State | 732 (0) |
| 16 | Kansas State | ↓2 | vs. Southeast Missouri State | 501 (0) |
| 17 | TCU | ↓15 | vs. Colorado | 416 (0) |
| 18 | Oregon State | ↓1 | @ San Jose State | 406 (0) |
| 19 | Wisconsin | – | vs. Buffalo | 386 (0) |
| 20 | Oklahoma | – | vs. Arkansas State | 296 (0) |
| 21 | North Carolina | – | @ South Carolina | 292 (0) |
| 22 | Ole Miss | – | vs. Mercer | 281 (0) |
| 23 | Texas A&M | – | vs. New Mexico | 227 (0) |
| 24 | Tulane | ↓15 | vs. South Alabama | 224 (0) |
| 25 | Iowa | – | vs. Utah State | 131 (0) |
Others receiving votes: Texas Tech 101, South Carolina 73, UCLA 66, UTSA 64, Arkansas 22, Boise St. 17, Pittsburgh 16, Kentucky 14, Louisville 10, Troy 10, Kansas 10, Auburn 7, Minnesota 6, Toledo 4, Duke 4, Mississippi St. 4, Florida 4, Illinois 3, Baylor 3, Coastal Carolina 3, South Alabama 1, NC State 1, James Madison 1, Liberty 1.
