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Rece Davis Reveals His Week 3 AP Top 25 Ballot For 2025 Season

ESPN College GameDay host Rece Davis put LSU at No. 1.
Patrick Previty|
Rece Davis
Rece Davis | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

ESPN College GameDay host Rece Davis put LSU at No. 1 on his Week 3 AP Top 25 ballot, slotting Ohio State second and rounding out his top five with Miami, Oregon and Penn State. His ballot diverges from Sunday’s AP consensus, which kept Ohio State, Penn State and LSU as the top three and moved Oregon to No. 4 and Miami to No. 5.

Davis’ full Top 25 goes as follows:

  1. LSU
  2. Ohio State
  3. Miami
  4. Oregon
  5. Penn State
  6. Texas
  7. Notre Dame
  8. Clemson
  9. Georgia
  10. Iowa State
  11. Florida State
  12. South Florida
  13. Oklahoma
  14. Illinois
  15. Texas Tech
  16. South Carolina
  17. Indiana
  18. Texas A&M
  19. Tennessee
  20. Michigan
  21. Auburn
  22. TCU
  23. Utah
  24. Mississippi State
  25. Missouri

Davis keeps faith in LSU’s ceiling after two weeks, elevating the Tigers over an Ohio State team that still holds the AP’s No. 1 spot. He also rewards big September wins for some teams. USF at No. 12 on his ballot is a sizable bump relative to the AP poll (No. 18) after the Bulls followed a Boise State win by upsetting Florida in Gainesville. USF has a chance to move up even further as they go on the road to play No. 5 Miami this week (No.3 on Davis' ballot).

Davis also left Alabama off his ballot for a second straight week after the Crimson Tide’s opening loss to Florida State. The Tide are No. 19 in the AP poll released Sunday. Davis has been very open about being low on the Crimson Tide so it came as no shock that their 73-0 win over UL Monroe wouldn't move the needle. Davis is also a graduate from the University of Alabama.

Davis’ ordering also differs from the consensus in several spots inside the top 15. He puts Georgia ninth (the Bulldogs are sixth in the AP poll), nudges Iowa State into the top 10, and places Illinois at No. 14 and Texas Tech at No. 15 — all slightly higher than the AP Poll. Meanwhile, Florida State sits one spot lower at 11th on his ballot, compared with 10th in the AP. Relative to some irregularities by other AP voters, Davis' ballot is fair.

Rece Davis
Rece Davis | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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Patrick Previty
PATRICK PREVITY

In addition to writing for On SI, Patrick is also a site expert for Canes Warning and has previously written for outlets such as Betsided, Orlando Magic Daily and Southbound and Down. He serves as a sideline reporter for ESPN+, covering UCF athletics and the Big 12 Conference. In 2024, he hosted a live, on-site UCF football pregame show that aired on ESPN+. Patrick has interviewed numerous figures in the college sports world, ranging from players to UCF’s athletic director. Recently, he traveled to Mobile, Ala., to cover the 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl, where he spoke with multiple NFL Draft prospects. Patrick also hosts coverage of the Orlando Magic for Digest Media on YouTube and has become one of the leading voices on the team in the region. Patrick also helps run the social media department for The Voice of College Football Network, focusing on breaking news and digital storytelling. Patrick previously spent time at CNN in the sports department, where he assisted with CNN’s World Sport show and Bleacher Report updates for morning programming. Hailing from the Tampa Bay Area, Patrick is a lifelong fan of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tampa Bay Rays, Tampa Bay Lightning, Orlando Magic and UCF Knights.

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