‘HORNS ARE NO. 1! | At least to start the season; Texas tops coaches preseason poll
If you’re a Texas fan, you’re either really, really happy that the Longhorns are ranked No. 1 in the preseason AFCA Coaches Poll, or you’re really, really ticked that you’re the hunted and not the hunter.
Depends on your disposition, I guess.
Coach Steve Sarkisian’s ‘Horns are the No. 1 team in all the land in the poll, released Monday, ranked one spot in front of the team that beat them in last year’s College Football Playoff – defending national champion Ohio State.
Texas received 28 first-place votes, and had 1,606 points overall in the poll, and unless there’s a secret of which we know nothing, they’ll be led by Sark at quarterback by Arch Manning, grandson of Archie, nephew of Peyton and Eli, son of Cooper.
The ‘Horns are seeking to make the CFP for a third straight year, all under Sarkisian, but still seeking their first national championship since 2006.
Not so for Ohio State. Coach Ryan Day’s Buckeyes won the title a year ago and have every intention of keeping it. They received 1,565 overall votes and 20 first-place votes.
Penn State, another Big Ten school, is ranked No. 3 in the preseason coaches poll. Georgia, Texas’s fellow Southeastern Conference power and another regular in the CFP, is ranked fourth.
Notre Dame is fifth, followed by Clemson at No. 6, Oregon at No. 7, Alabama at eight, LSU at nine and Miami at No. 10. In the top 10, the SEC has four, the Big Ten three, the ACC two (Clemson and Miami), and then the Irish the lone independent.
This year, that preseason poll 1-2 thing will be decided on the field, as Texas and Ohio State actually play. They’ll do so in Columbus at the Horseshoe on Aug. 30.
It’s Texas’s first time to open the season at No. 1 in the history of the coaches poll.
The Associated Press poll is still a week or so away from being released. Of course, the poll that actually MATTERS is the honest-to-goodness College Football Playoff committee poll, and that isn’t released until November. In reality, the coaches poll and the AP poll simply gives us something to talk about.
Texas A&M checks in at No. 21, and Texas Tech at 24. Other teams of local interest – Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Baylor – aren’t ranked in the top 25, but OU and Baylor did receive votes.
See the entire poll below.
AFCA 2025 preseason coaches poll
| Team | PTS |
|---|---|
| 1. Texas (28) | 1606 |
| 2. Ohio State (20) | 1565 |
| 3. Penn State (14) | 1525 |
| 4. Georgia (3) | 1466 |
| 5. Notre Dame | 1360 |
| 6. Clemson (2) | 1324 |
| 7. Oregon | 1307 |
| 8. Alabama | 1210 |
| 9. LSU | 1056 |
| 10. Miami | 823 |
| 11. Arizona State | 806 |
| 12. Illinois | 734 |
| 13. South Carolina | 665 |
| 14. Michigan | 580 |
| 15. Ole Miss | 573 |
| 16. SMU | 555 |
| 17. Florida | 498 |
| 18. Tennessee | 492 |
| 19. Indiana | 460 |
| 20. Kansas State | 438 |
| 21. Iowa State | 392 |
| 22. Texas A&M | 392 |
| 23. BYU | 287 |
| 24. Texas Tech | 261 |
| 25. Boise State | 246 |
Others receiving votes: Oklahoma 221, Missouri 142, Louisville 126, USC 116, Utah 86, Baylor 76, Auburn 50, Iowa 49, Memphis 34, Army 33, Tulane 31, Georgia Tech 27, TCU 24, Nebraska 19, Syracuse 16, Washington 15, Navy 14, Arkansas 14, Duke 12, Colorado 12, Minnesota 11, UNLV 8, Florida State 8, Kansas 6, Vanderbilt 3, Buffalo 1
