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College Football AP Preseason Poll 2016 is finally out

By Josh Hill

Jan 11, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2016 CFP National Championship at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 11, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2016 CFP National Championship at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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The AP Preseason Poll is finally out, which means college football is right around the corner from starting — but who is No. 1?

We’re just days away from the start of the college football season, and that means finding out who is ranked where when things kick off. Things are going o change throughout the season — probably as soon as the first week of the season — but we all have to start the road to the College Football Playoffs somewhere.

Last year, Alabama and Clemson were clearly the two best teams in the country, and that’s the way things start in 2016. Both the Crimson Tide and the Tigers are atop the preseason Top 25 poll released by the Associated Press on Sunday morning.

There were some surprises though, as it appears the AP Poll is way higher on teams like UCLA and Oregon than others have been prior to the release of this poll. It’s also interesting to note that LSU is ranked higher than Ohio State and Michigan — furthering the narrative from the offseason of the Big Ten still being a little brother conference to their SEC counterparts.

It’s also hard to ignore Baylor. They were the embarrassment of the offseason for the entire NCAA,  and despite firing Art Briles as head coach still managed to land in the Top 25.

Here’s the full AP top 25.

  1. Alabama
  2. Clemson
  3. Oklahoma
  4. Florida State
  5. LSU
  6. Ohio State
  7. Michigan
  8. Stanford
  9. Tennessee
  10. Notre Dame
  11. Ole Miss
  12. Michigan State
  13. TCU
  14. Washington
  15. Houston
  16. UCLA
  17. Iowa
  18. Georgia
  19. Louisville
  20. USC
  21. Oklahoma State
  22. UNC
  23. Baylor
  24. Oregon
  25. Florida

Things are going to change after the first week of the season, and that’s unavoidable. With a handful of Top 25 matchups lined up the Top 25 isn’t going to look the same in Week 2. But that’s never a bad thing and really nothing truly matters until we get halfway through the season and start watching teams battle for the Top 4 spots in the College Football Playoffs.

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