Current poll: through games of August 17, 2026. The first in-season poll arrives after Week 1.
Ohio State opens the season at No. 1, but not unanimously — five different programs collected first-place votes, and the Buckeyes hold only 40 of the 62 available. Behind them the SEC placed nine teams in the poll to the Big Ten’s eight, though not one SEC program drew a single first-place vote.
There is also no No. 15 this year. BYU and USC finished dead level at 839 points.
| Rank | Team | 1st-place votes | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohio State | 40 | 1,672 |
| 2 | Oregon | 14 | 1,597 |
| 3 | Georgia | — | 1,513 |
| 4 | Notre Dame | 6 | 1,510 |
| 5 | Texas | — | 1,483 |
| 6 | Indiana | 8 | 1,440 |
| 7 | Miami (FL) | 1 | 1,379 |
| 8 | Texas A&M | — | 1,131 |
| 9 | Ole Miss | — | 1,102 |
| 10 | Oklahoma | — | 1,047 |
| 11 | LSU | — | 988 |
| 12 | Texas Tech | — | 983 |
| 13 | Alabama | — | 904 |
| T-14 | BYU | — | 839 |
| T-14 | USC | — | 839 |
| 16 | Michigan | — | 718 |
| 17 | Washington | — | 501 |
| 18 | Penn State | — | 482 |
| 19 | SMU | — | 434 |
| 20 | Tennessee | — | 394 |
| 21 | Utah | — | 304 |
| 22 | Iowa | — | 260 |
| 23 | Houston | — | 252 |
| 24 | Louisville | — | 194 |
| 25 | Missouri | — | 117 |
Ballots are cast by 62 sportswriters and broadcasters. A first-place vote is worth 25 points, a 25th-place vote one point.
Others Receiving Votes
Clemson 112, Florida 51, Boise State 43, Arizona 32, TCU 11, Navy 10, South Carolina 10, Illinois 9, Oklahoma State 8, Vanderbilt 8, Pittsburgh 7, Virginia Tech 6, Minnesota 5, UNLV 4, New Mexico 4, Georgia Tech 4, Louisiana 4, James Madison 3, Auburn 3, Memphis 2, California 2, Liberty 1, Western Michigan 1, Tulane 1, Virginia 1.
What the Poll Is Telling You
Clemson is the biggest name outside the rankings. The Tigers led all unranked teams with 112 points after a 7-6 season, and this is the first time they have missed the preseason AP poll since 2011. That is a genuinely long streak to end.
The defending champion is sixth. Indiana won the national title and opens behind both Ohio State and Oregon, which tells you how much voters weight roster turnover over what happened in January.
The SEC leads on volume, not at the top. Nine SEC teams made the poll, more than any conference, and seven of them landed in the top 13. Not one received a first-place vote. The Big Ten has eight teams and holds two of the top three spots.
Watch the unranked. Two teams that missed last year’s preseason poll made the College Football Playoff anyway — James Madison and Tulane, both from outside the power conferences. Boise State, Navy and UNLV are the Group of Six programs best placed to do it this year.
How the Poll Works
Sixty-two voters each submit a ballot ranking 25 teams. First place is worth 25 points, second 24, down to one point for 25th, and the totals set the order — which is how ties like BYU and USC at 839 happen. Polls are released weekly on Sundays through the regular season.
The AP poll is independent of the College Football Playoff selection committee and carries no official weight in choosing the field. For the differences, see our comparison of the AP poll, the coaches poll and the CFP rankings, and our explainer on how the AP Top 25 works. The official poll is published at NCAA.com.
The Bottom Line
Ohio State is No. 1 with 40 of 62 first-place votes, ahead of Oregon, Georgia, Notre Dame and Texas. Defending champion Indiana sits sixth. BYU and USC are tied at 14, so there is no No. 15 in this poll. Clemson is the highest-ranked team outside the top 25, missing the preseason poll for the first time since 2011.