5 Most Overrated College Football Teams in the 2026 AP Preseason Top 25 Poll

Voters pushed two SEC teams with unsettled quarterback rooms into the top 13, and they don't have the juice to back that up.

Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide were ranked No. 11 in the preseason AP Top 25. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 2026 preseason AP Top 25 arrived Monday, and Ohio State opened at No. 1. Most of the poll matches what preseason prognosticators believed it should be. After all, the same writers who craft the college football narrative construct the AP Poll.

But in my estimation, voters pushed several teams higher than their rosters support. Five programs stand out as being overrated.

Two are SEC programs breaking in new quarterbacks. One is a Big 12 team that could not beat the one opponent that mattered last year. Another is a Big Ten team facing four of its last six games on the road. Here are the five most overrated teams in the poll.

No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs

Georgia won the SEC title last season. But the Bulldogs then lost to Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl quarterfinal. That is two straight one-and-done trips through the College Football Playoff. Gunner

Stockton returns for his second full season as the starter after throwing for 2,894 yards with 24 touchdowns and five interceptions.

Mississippi Rebels linebacker Suntarine Perkins (4) sacks Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Gunner Stockton (14) on a fourth-down conversion attempt. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Bulldogs had to replace most of their top pass catchers. The schedule got harder because the SEC moved to nine conference games this season.

Kirby Smart said in December that coaches around the league were concerned about the change. The Bulldogs' toughest matchups come against Oklahoma, plus Alabama and Ole Miss on the road.

It gives me no pleasure to float this idea, but Georgia may have peaked in 2021 and 2022, when they won those national titles. And perhaps they're now in the midst of a steady decline.

No. 11 LSU Tigers

LSU was 13th in my own preseason AP Top 25 projection, and that still feels generous. Lane Kiffin is in his first season in Baton Rouge after the school fired Brian Kelly.

The Tigers went 7-6 last year. Sam Leavitt will take over an offense rebuilt through the transfer portal, but the Arizona State transfer missed the back half of 2025 with a foot injury. He threw for just 1,628 yards in seven games.

LSU Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Leavitt also had a shortened spring, so he spent fall camp building timing with new receivers. The early schedule offers no cushion and will test LSU early.

Ranking the Tigers at No. 11 feels like their maximum potential and that feels like an overestimation for a program that's barely had time to work with its starting quarterback.

No. 13 Alabama Crimson Tide

Alabama was 15th in my AP projection, so only a slight bump up. But for what I consider to be the seventh-best SEC team, that's too high.

The Crimson Tide still don't have a starting quarterback. Austin Mack and Keelon Russell have competed since spring, and neither has more than 70 snaps of experience.

Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams (1) lines up for a play at Bryant-Denny Stadium during the Alabama A Day scrimmage. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said the first fall scrimmage on Aug. 13 would likely not settle it. Kalen DeBoer has to name someone before East Carolina visits Tuscaloosa on Sept. 5.

Last season ended badly for the Tuscaloosa program, with a loss to Georgia in the SEC Championship and a 38-3 loss to Indiana in the Rose Bowl.

It's difficult to parse out what to make of the SEC this year. It feels like any combination of the Tide, Georgia, Texas, Ole Miss, LSU, Texas A&M and Oklahoma could make up the league's top seven teams.

No. 14 BYU Cougars

BYU went 12-2 last season and reached the Big 12 championship game. But both losses came against Texas Tech, including the title game, and that kept the Cougars out of the Playoff.

Bear Bachmeier threw for 3,033 yards as a true freshman and set a school record with 11 rushing touchdowns. However, the sophomore ranked 107th nationally in yards per attempt on throws beyond 20 yards.

BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier and defensive lineman Keanu Tanuvasa speak with reporters during Big 12 Conference Football Media Days at The Star. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Running back LJ Martin had shoulder surgery and missed the Pop-Tarts Bowl.

Kalani Sitake has never won a Big 12 title or finished in the top 10 in Provo. The Cougars have to turn a corner against the Red Raiders this year. Despite having more negative headlines than positive this offseason, Texas Tech certainly won't be a pushover on the field.

No. 17 Washington Huskies

Washington was 21st in my AP projection, and the Huskies were up four spots in the AP Top 25.

Head coach Jedd Fisch went 9-4 in his second season in Seattle. Demond Williams Jr. returned after briefly weighing other options in January. The junior threw for 3,065 yards with 25 touchdowns and added 611 rushing yards.

Washington Huskies head coach Jedd Fisch during the game against the UCLA Bruins at the Rose Bowl. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

An eight-win season could be considered a success despite the elevated expectations entering 2026. If we assume Ohio State, Oregon and Indiana are in Tier 1 of the conference, where does that leave a team like Washington?

In a crowded Tier 2 of the Big Ten, the Huskies fit closer to the Nebraska side of the tier, while falling behind programs like USC, Penn State and Michigan.