Analysis
Last year's preseason AP poll was a miss
The ballot ranked reputation rather than improvement, and missed the eventual national champion by nineteen spots.
Updated all day
Latest
The realignment map keeps moving into 2026
What changed, who moved, and which leagues are still negotiating the next round.
Another Ohio State decision with the Michigan game in mind
Stephen Means on how the season's final week is already shaping the choices being made in August.
The Standard and the Strangers: Can Curt Cignetti, Indiana win big again with 17 newcomers?
The Hoosiers won a title with players who followed their coach from James Madison. This roster is almost entirely new.
Athlon names its top ten contenders for the 2026 Heisman
A preseason field heavy on quarterbacks, with a handful of two way players in the mix.
Jayden Daniels wants his Heisman Trophy back from LSU
The dispute between the quarterback and his old school is now about who keeps the statue.
Where the national championship futures sit before Week 0
The board opens with a familiar top tier and a wider middle than last preseason.
ESPN's final preseason projections put Clemson atop the ACC
The model likes the Tigers' returning front seven and a schedule that keeps them home in October.
Ranking every SEC helmet, from the classics down
LSU, Texas, and Alabama all place, though not where their fans would put them.
Transfer portal tracker: every move for the 2026 cycle
A running list of entries, commitments, and where each player lands.
Every team, every week
Schedules
B1G
Big Ten
Coast to coast, eighteen schools, one trophy
18 teams
Schedules
SEC
SEC
Sixteen programs, no soft Saturdays
16 teams
Schedules
ACC
ACC
Atlantic to Pacific, seventeen deep
17 teams
Schedules
XII
Big 12
Sixteen teams, four time zones
16 teams
Schedules
IND
Independents
No conference, no bye from anybody
2 teams
Schedules
Released weekly
Polls
TD Strike Poll
TD Strike desk
- 1 Ohio State
- 2 Oregon
- 3 Texas
- 4 Indiana
- 5 Notre Dame
- 6 Georgia
- 7 Miami
- 8 Texas A&M
- 9 Texas Tech
- 10 Oklahoma
Our own ballot.
See the full top 25AP Top 25
Associated Press / 69 ballots
- 1 Ohio State 40 first place
- 2 Oregon 14 first place
- 3 Georgia
- 4 Notre Dame 6 first place
- 5 Texas
- 6 Indiana 8 first place
- 7 Miami 1 first place
- 8 Texas A&M
- 9 Ole Miss
- 10 Oklahoma
Published preseason release.
See the full top 25Coaches Poll
AFCA Coaches / 72 ballots
- 1 Ohio State 38 first place 1,741
- 2 Oregon 6 first place 1,637
- 3 Georgia 7 first place 1,591
- 4 Texas 2 first place 1,544
- 5 Notre Dame 5 first place 1,524
- 6 Indiana 14 first place 1,522
- 7 Miami 1,409
- 8 Texas A&M 1,174
- 9 Oklahoma 1,104
- 10 Ole Miss 1,096
Published preseason release.
See the full top 25