College basketball rankings: Winners and losers from preseason AP Top 25

Winner: Florida Atlantic Owls

Is this real life? Are the Florida Atlantic Owls really ranked among the Top 25 teams in all of college basketball? Not just the Top 25. FAU is ranked No. 10 in the college basketball preseason poll, and the Owls are looking to shock the world in 2023-24.

Now, to be clear, FAU isn't sneaking up on anybody this season. After making a miraculous run to the Final Four in 2023, head coach Dustin May will have his hands full after Florida Atlantic now joins the American Athletic Conference this season.

Many pundits throughout college basketball are making comparisons between this year's FAU squad and Wichita State's 2013-14 team. The Shockers, led by head coach Gregg Marshall, entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 2 in the country after going 34-0 during the regular season.

I don't know that the Owls are going undefeated in the regular season, especially after making the jump to the AAC. But perhaps that bump in competition will actually bode well for FAU and help to be more battle-tested once the tourney begins.

FAU deserves this ranking after returning so many players from last year's Final Four team. The difference this season is expectations have changed. The Owls got the recognition they deserved, now let's see if they can match the preseason hype.