The preseason AP Top 25 Poll has been released with the college football season just around the corner. Of course, there’s plenty of controversy that has immediately come with that.
While some may doubt the value of polls, particularly preseason polls, they do a few important things. For one, these are a snapshot of what writers who follow the sport closely think at a given moment in time, even if that’s liable to change quickly. It can also help to set the narrative, especially early in the season.
So, keeping that in mind, here are a few notable takeaways from the AP Top 25 Poll, which is headlined by No. 1 Ohio State.
The Big Ten dominates the SEC at the top
One of the major debates in college football has always been which conference is best. For a while, it seemed the SEC was undisputed. Now, after three years of the Big Ten winning the national championship in a row, that’s up for more debate.
The SEC would still argue it’s deeper than the Big Ten. With nine ranked teams in the AP preseason Top 25 Poll and another four receiving votes (the Big Ten has eight and two, respectively), that’s a real argument.
However, the Big Ten dominates at the top. Ohio State and Oregon take the top two spots while the Big Ten has three of the top six spots. On top of that, three Big Ten teams received first-place votes while the SEC didn’t have a single team to get a first-place vote.
Texas Tech has competition in the Big 12
There is no doubt that conventional wisdom has Texas Tech repeating as Big 12 champions in 2026. However, if the AP Poll is to be believed, that’s not such a sure thing, and there will be competition at the top of the conference.
In particular, No. 12 Texas Tech will have to deal with No. 14 BYU in 2026. The Cougars were right there in 2025 as well, and with more experience at quarterback, they could be ready to make a move. Also ranked in the Big 12 are Utah and Houston, though this is a parity-driven conference and anything could happen.
National champion Indiana is getting no respect
Indiana has been a powerhouse under Curt Cignetti, going 27-2 overall, including an unbeaten national championship season in 2025. Sure, there is some roster turnover, but that type of team generally gets more benefit of the doubt than being No. 6 in the preseason poll.
Notably, No. 6 is the lowest preseason AP Poll ranking for a defending national champion since Michigan was No. 9 going into 2024, but that came with a coaching change. Without a coaching change, it’s been since LSU in 2020, which was also ranked No. 6.
Several teams are ranked because of their logo
This is a problem that tends to come up in preseason polls. In particular, rosters are harder to assess in preseason with the number of transfers. Voters go back to reliable standbys, like No. 18 Penn State or No. 20 Tennessee.
The truth is Penn State and Tennessee, along with arguably Missouri, Iowa and Utah, are all teams facing major questions and, in several cases, coming off bad seasons. They end up filling in the back of the Top 25 on reputation, and because they feel like a safer bet than another program. In short, it’s safe.
The Group of Six is missing
The opposite end of that coin is that the Group of Six, also known as the American Conference, C-USA, Sun Belt, MAC, Mountain West and Pac-12, are completely missing from the preseason Top 25.
This comes, similarly to overranking name-brand teams, from the turnover created by the transfer portal. It’s harder to judge these schools. So, rather than come in confidently that a school like James Madison will repeat 2025 with a turnover roster, it’s easier to leave them off entirely and make them prove it over the course of the season.