Breaking Down the Preseason AP Top 25 Poll, Gators Ranked 13th

Say hello to the 13th-ranked Florida Gators. That’s where they’ll start the 2021 college football season, as the AP preseason poll dropped this week.

This is the same ranking Florida finished at last year, following a three-game skid to end the year. Miami is the only other ranked school in the state of Florida one stop behind the Gators. UCF is unranked but received votes.

The Poll Breakdown

Two of the Gators’ final two losses of the season, Alabama and Oklahoma, are ranked first and second respectively. Clemson, Ohio State and Georgia round out the top five. Each team in the top five received at least one first-place vote.

The SEC, Big Ten and Pac-12 are all tied for most represented teams in the Top 25 at five each. The ACC and Big 12 tie with three each for second place. While the AP website lists Notre Dame still as part of the ACC, its football team is resuming independent play this year, following its one-year stint in the ACC.

Lastly, the Sun Belt is the only Group of Five conferences to have multiple ranked teams. The American has one. Nineteen other teams received votes in the preseason poll, including Auburn, Ole Miss, Michigan and BYU.

Top-Ranked Matchups For Week One

Some of these ranked teams will be up against each other out of the gate. Some of these are neutral site games.

The reigning national champions, Alabama, faces Miami (FL) in Atlanta at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Fourth-ranked Georgia travels to North Carolina to face third-ranked Clemson at Bank of America Stadium.

For the ranked games with actual home field advantage, 12th-ranked Wisconsin is set to host 19th-ranked Penn State, 21st-ranked Texas will host 23rd-ranked Lousiana and 18th-ranked Iowa will host 17th-ranked Indiana.

The Complete Top 25

1. Alabama
2. Oklahoma
3. Clemson
4. Ohio State
5. Georgia
6. Texas A&M
7. Iowa State
8. Cincinnati
9. Notre Dame
10. North Carolina
11. Oregon
12. Wisconsin
13. Florida
14. Miami
15. USC
16. LSU
17. Indiana
18. Iowa
19. Penn State
20. Washington
21. Texas
22. Coastal Carolina
23. Lousiana-Lafayette
24. Utah
25. Arizona State