Pre-season polls aren’t necessarily reliable predictors of a particular team’s success. Rather, they should be viewed more as general perceptions about the state of programs. Naturally, these perceptions will change as the college football season unfolds, but the arrival of the early rankings always helps fuel anticipation for games to come.
It is in this spirit of anticipation that we present the USA TODAY Sports Pre-Season AFCA Coaches Poll. It’s no surprise that some household names are at the top of the 2022 season.
Perennial playoff contender Alabama will open as the No. 1 team. The Crimson Tide, which received 54 of 66 votes for first place, enters the season as the highest-ranked team for seventh. times in 13 years. This could be bad news for ‘Bama fans, however, as the Crimson Tide have finished as national champions in just one of those previous six seasons when they opened at No.1.
Ohio State will open with the No. 2 seed. The Buckeyes received five first-place votes and finished just ahead of defending champion Georgia. The Bulldogs earned six No. 1 votes after their long-awaited national title, but will start third this year. Clemson and Notre Dame round out the top five. The Tigers, hoping to rebound from a 10-3 record last season, earned their lowest ranking in the preseason poll since 2017.
TOP 25:The Complete USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll Preseason
OUTLOOK:A closer look at every team in college football’s preseason survey
SNUBS:Five teams that should have been included in the pre-season poll
OVERRATED:Five teams in the pre-season poll that were picked too high
Michigan, the defending Big Ten champion and a playoff contender last season, will start at No. 6, followed by fellow SEC challenger Texas A&M.
Utah, coming off its historic Pac-12 title campaign, starts at No. 8, its highest starting spot on record. The Big 12 claim the next three positions, though Oklahoma’s No. 9 preseason ranking is its lowest since 2015, and No. 10 Baylor is its highest since 2014. Oklahoma completes the Big 12 trio by checking in at No. 11.
The SEC’s three top-10 contenders are joined by No. 21 Kentucky, No. 23 Arkansas and No. 24 Mississippi to give the conference six total ranked members to lead the poll. The Wildcats, best known for their prowess in another sport, have their highest preseason ranking in program history. Regular contender LSU, meanwhile, will open the campaign outside the Top 25 for the first time since 2000.
The ACC is next with five seeded teams, with No. 13 North Carolina State and No. 19 Wake Forest claiming their best preseason rankings and defending league champion Pittsburgh getting their highest starting position at No. 16 since 2010.
The Big Ten and Big 12 each have four ranked teams. The Pac-12 has three, and the American has a pair with No. 22 Cincinnati joined by No. 25 Houston. Notre Dame is the only ranked independent as Brigham Young finishes fourth among others to receive votes.
