All articles tagged with #preseason rankings
Judge George Wright granted Denzel Aberdeen a temporary injunction, allowing the Florida Gators guard to play a fifth season in 2026-27. The ruling overturns the NCAA's denial of his waiver, which excluded the 2022 high school class from the new '5-for-5' rule. Aberdeen, who transferred back from Kentucky, is now eligible to join a roster projected to open the season as the national No. 1 team.
Golf Channel released its preseason NCAA men’s golf rankings for 2026-27, with Florida at No. 1 and a top-30 list highlighting returning stars, new faces, and projected lineups across programs like Oklahoma State, Auburn, Arizona State, and Texas Tech. The piece includes in-depth team-by-team scouting, anticipated All-Americans and freshmen, and a look at the season’s schedule and key events.
The Athletic publishes a 138-team preseason ranking for 2026, noting North Dakota State and Sacramento State joining the FBS and the Pac-12 relaunching as an eight-team conference. Indiana is ranked No. 1, with Ohio State, Georgia, Oregon and Notre Dame in the top five, and the piece includes a brief write-up for every team highlighting players, coaching changes, and schedule considerations. Rankings are subjective and will shift as results come in, with head-to-head results used as a tiebreaker when teams are close.
CBS Sports' Chris Hummer reframes the preseason AP Top 25 as a tiered forecast for the College Football Playoff, grouping teams into S through F tiers. The seven-team S tier (Ohio State, Oregon, Georgia, Notre Dame, Texas, Indiana, Miami) are championship-caliber rosters with high upside, while the A and B tiers include programs like Ole Miss, Oklahoma, LSU, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Alabama, USC, Michigan and Tennessee—each with strong talent but notable roster or schedule questions. The C tier (BYU, Washington, Penn State, SMU) could win a playoff game; D includes Utah, Houston, Louisville; and F features Iowa and Missouri, underscoring how playoff viability narrows once you step outside the top cluster.
Georgia is No. 3 in the 2026 AP preseason Top 25, trailing Ohio State and Oregon while Notre Dame and Texas sit at Nos. 4 and 5; Indiana opens at No. 6 as the defending champion and nine SEC teams are in the Top 25. The Bulldogs lean on extensive returnees—especially on defense and quarterback Gunner Stockton, plus their top rushers—but must replace much of their pass-catching corps. Georgia also has Ole Miss (away) and Oklahoma (home) on the 2026 schedule.
Ohio State and Oregon are No. 1 and No. 2 in the AP preseason Top 25, giving the Big Ten the top two spots for the first time since 1961, while the SEC leads all conferences with nine ranked teams; Georgia, Notre Dame and Texas follow in the top five, and Indiana sits at No. 6.
Ohio State is preseason No. 1 and Oregon No. 2 in the AP Top 25, with Georgia, Notre Dame and Texas rounding out the top five; the SEC has no first-place votes, and the rankings offer an early snapshot ahead of Week 0, though preseason position doesn’t guarantee success.
CBS Sports projects the 2026 AP Top 25 preseason poll, with Ohio State at No. 1 and a Big Ten-heavy top five including Oregon, Texas, Indiana, and Notre Dame; Georgia is No. 6, as the piece outlines expected voter trends and momentum for the upcoming season.
SB Nation breaks down the 2026 college football landscape into four tiers—longshots, potential playoff teams, contenders on the door, and true title contenders—listing examples from Boise State and Tennessee to Miami, Oregon, Notre Dame, Texas, Georgia, and Ohio State, while noting that QB play, defense, and transfer portal moves will shape outcomes once the games begin and the conference landscape shifts.
CBS Sports released its preseason 138 rankings for the 2026 college football season, placing Ohio State No. 1 and Oregon No. 2 (with a spread of first-place votes among multiple teams), while Notre Dame, Texas, and Georgia follow in the top five; the list adds North Dakota State and Sacramento State this year and is compiled from CBS Sports and 247Sports ballots updated weekly. Notable movers include Florida jumping to No. 22 (+49), LSU up to No. 10 (+43), and Penn State up to No. 18 (+28), while several programs like Virginia and Vanderbilt slip; the rankings serve as a starting point before Week 1 action.
Sports Illustrated releases its 2026 preseason Top 25 with a bold prediction for every team, spanning Notre Dame’s path to a CFP title, Oregon breaking through to the title game, and standout takes across programs like Georgia, Ohio State, Indiana, SMU, and more.
Joel Klatt unveils a 2026 preseason Top 25 led by Oregon at No. 1, with Notre Dame second and Ohio State, Miami, and Indiana rounding out the top five. The piece lauds Oregon’s elite, returning roster and Dante Moore at quarterback, notes Notre Dame’s 15 returning starters and strong front, and surveys other contenders (OSU, Miami, Indiana, LSU, Texas, USC) with emphasis on roster depth, coaching stability, and schedule challenges driving the predictions.
USA TODAY's preseason US LBM Coaches Poll ranks Michigan as having the toughest 2026 schedule, followed by Texas, Missouri, Ohio State, Arkansas, Oklahoma, USC, Mississippi State, South Carolina and LSU, highlighting multiple top-10 opponents and challenging road trips that will test teams on the path to the playoff.
Ohio State is the preseason No. 1 in a notably wide-open 2026 Coaches Poll, with Oregon No. 2 and Georgia No. 3; the SEC leads the poll with nine teams, while Indiana sits at No. 6 as reigning national champion, followed by Texas and Notre Dame in the top five.
Ohio State is No. 1 in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll—the first time since 2015 the Buckeyes hold the top spot—followed by Oregon, Georgia, Texas and Notre Dame in the top five; Indiana sits No. 6 and Miami No. 7 as the SEC and Big Ten dominate the rankings, while Alabama slips to No. 11 for the first time since 2008. Overall nine SEC teams are ranked and eight are from the Big Ten, with only four teams since 1991 starting and finishing the season No. 1.