Predicting the college football 2026 preseason AP Top 25 rankings

The college football preseason AP Top 25 arrives in mid-August, and it sets the pecking order before anyone plays a down. A national panel of media voters ranks teams 1 through 25, with points awarded on a descending scale. The final 2025 poll used 66 voters, and of course, Indiana swept all 66 first-place votes after finishing 16-0. 

The preseason ballot matters because it shapes early Playoff talk and decides which teams get the benefit of the doubt in September. This projection blends the summer media polls from the power conferences with returning production and roster talent to predict how the first poll will look.