Predicting AP Top 25 After Coaches Poll Released for 2026 Preseason CFB Rankings

The race for the 2026 College Football Playoff is already starting to come into focus.

The first preseason coaches poll was released Tuesday ahead of the Aug. 27 start of the regular season.

Here are new predictions for the AP Top 25 now that the first coaches poll is out.

---

Preseason AP Top 25 Prediction

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

---

The initial coaches poll is generally a good bet at least to the top teams in the first AP Top 25.

There were no changes between the preseason coaches' rankings and the top seven AP teams ahead of the 2024 season.

There was a slight variation at the top of the 2025 preseason coaches poll and first AP rankings, although Texas was ranked No. 1 in both versions.

Ohio State is likely to similarly stick at No. 1 in the AP Top 25 rankings despite significant defensive turnover after Arvell Reese, Caleb Downs and Sonny Styles all heard their names called in the 2026 NFL draft.

An offense driven by returning stars Julian Sayin, Jeremiah Smith and Bo Jackson will be expected to make up for any growing pains experienced by Ryan Day's new defense.

The biggest challenger for Ohio State's top spot could be Oregon, which is looking to make a run for the first national FBS title in program history as quarterback Dante Moore returns to join a veteran Ducks defense.

Notre Dame could be set to climb in the preseason rankings despite coach Marcus Freeman losing star running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price this offseason.

One of the top transfer classes in the nation could stil help second-year quarterback CJ Carr lead his team back into the CFP picture after the program's disappointing miss last season.

Georgia could end up in a top-five spot as the Bulldogs return to compete for a third straight SEC title with one of the highest-rated defenses in college football.

Texas earning a top-five ranking after missing out on the playoff last winter will depend on whether voters feel quarterback Arch Manning Jr. can take a step forward in his second year as a full-time starter.

Indiana is expected to take a step back from last year's championship run after losing eight players, including quarterback Fernando Mendoza to the NFL draft, but could stay in the top 10 after adding TCU transfer Josh Hoover.

Like the 2025 season, in which Ohio State and Texas opened up the campaign, the results of Week 0 could result in some ranking shifts.

Some games to keep an eye on will be Clemson at LSU and Boise State at Oregon on Sept. 5 and Wisconsin at Notre Dame on Sept. 6.

LSU coach Lane Kiffin will be making his head coaching debut in the matchup against Clemson. That could kick off the season with a battle between two top-ranked teams, although Clemson is fighting to stay in the Top 25 after the program earned its lowest preseason coaches poll ranking in 15 years.

The Week 1 slate features some more matchups with AP ranking implications in Ohio State at Texas and Oklahoma at Michigan.

The first AP Top 25 poll is set to be released Aug. 17. The first regular-season coaches poll will drop Tuesday, Sept. 8 and be released every following Sunday throughout the season.