What College Football Teams Have the Most AP Top 25 Preseason Rankings

For the 10th straight year, Ohio State debuted as a top-five team in the AP top 25 preseason college football rankings, but it marked the first time since 2015 that the Buckeyes emerged as the No. 1 team in the country.

As ever, it was a laundry list of college football’s most esteemed programs that earned consideration from the AP top 25 pollsters, including several prominent SEC and Big Ten schools all with national championship ambitions in 2026.

What schools have earned the most preseason attention over the decades? These are the most successful college football teams to appear in the initial rankings.

What College Football Teams Have the Most AP Top 25 Preseason Rankings

T-10. Georgia

College Football Teams With Most AP Top 25 Preseason Rankings Appearances — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Appearances: 45

Georgia has appeared in more than 58 percent of the AP preseason polls going back to the beginning, and average out at roughly the No. 10 team in the summer. This time around, the Bulldogs are the No. 3 team in the country, which historically is a good place to start out to win a championship.

T-10. LSU

Appearances: 45

Like their SEC counterparts, LSU has 45 appearances in the preseason rankings over the decades, accounting for about 58 percent of the total number of polls, and with an average position around the top 10, similar to their No. 11 debut in the 2026 rankings with Lane Kiffin now at the helm.

T-9. Tennessee

Appearances: 46

Another SEC powerhouse that has traditionally dominated the preseason prediction industry, the Volunteers have appeared in 60 percent of the initial polls over the last three-quarters of a century and routinely feature around the top dozen. This year, Big Orange debuted at No. 20 in the nation.

T-9. Nebraska

Appearances: 46

Historically one of college football’s most successful programs, as reflected in their 46 preseason poll appearances with an average position of No. 8 nationally, the Cornhuskers have fallen off recently, giving AP voters no such faith this year, earning no votes on the 2026 ballot after coming off a 7-6 effort and losing quarterback Dylan Raiola to Oregon.

8. Penn State

Appearances: 52

This time last year, the Nittany Lions were considered the No. 2 team in college football before a long and ignominious fall that resulted in a 7-6 record and James Franklin getting canned. Now, the Nittany Lions – who have appeared in 67 percent of all early rankings since 1950 – are the No. 18 preseason team and looking for a comeback with Matt Campbell at the helm.

7. Michigan

Appearances: 55

College football’s winningest program and the first to win 1,000 total games, the Wolverines have featured in more than 71 percent of preseason polls and average out at No. 7 over that time, but now Kyle Whittingham inherits a roster that sits at No. 16 in this summer’s first ranking with a mandate to get back to beating Ohio State.

6. Texas

Appearances: 59

Last preseason marked the first time we saw the Longhorns emerge as the No. 1 team in college football, a ranking that quickly vanished after a sluggish start. Pollsters are still confident in this team, though, giving them a strong No. 5 position with Arch Manning taking over this offense again and looking at an SEC championship run.

5. Alabama

Appearances: 60

Bama has been voted into more than 78 percent of all preseason polls with an average starting position at No. 7, and is second all-time with nine No. 1 debuts, but voters are sounding a note of caution this year as Kalen DeBoer begins his third season as head coach, naming the Tide the No. 13 team in the country, its lowest position since 2008 (No. 24).

4. Notre Dame

Appearances: 63

One of four programs on this list to crack the 80 percent mark historically, the Fighting Irish were the first ever preseason No. 1 team back in 1950, but last received that honor back in 1971. This year finds Notre Dame the No. 4 team and facing an easy schedule as they pursue a return to the College Football Playoff.

3. USC

Appearances: 64

A consistent presence around the preseason top 10, the Trojans have made more than 83 percent of early rankings, with very different results. On one hand, USC is one of two teams to start at No. 1 and win a national title in this century, in 2004; on the other, its 2012 team started at the top and finished unranked. In 2026, the Men of Troy debuted at No. 14.

2. Oklahoma

Appearances: 68

No other college football team has debuted at No. 1 in the preseason more often than the Sooners, who have 10 initial appearances atop the poll. Four of those teams – 1956, 1974, 1975, 1985 – finished No. 1, and all but one, 2011, finished in the top 10. OU opens as the No. 10 team in the 2026 poll.

1. Ohio State

Appearances: 73

The only program to cross the 90 percent threshold in these rankings, the Buckeyes have appeared in more than 95 percent of preseason polls, and this year tied Alabama by earning its ninth No. 1 position. History shows those teams don’t often win the national championship, but at least six of Ohio State’s top-ranked hopefuls finished in the top 10.

Where to start? Where Recent National Champions Begin in the Preseason College Football Rankings

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