Preseason College Football Rankings 2023: Predictions for Initial AP NCAA Top 25
The 2023 college football season is right around the corner, as the first games will get underway Aug. 26. Before that can happen, though, the AP Top 25 preseason poll still needs to be released, setting the order for the top teams in the country to open the campaign.
That will happen Monday at noon ET, and while the AP poll could look a bit similar to the coaches poll (which was released one week ago), there could be some notable differences. The AP poll is voted on by members of the media, as opposed to the sport's coaches.
Georgia will enter the season as the two-time defending national champion, and it's the No. 1 ranked team in the coaches poll. Will the Bulldogs also be No. 1 in the AP poll? We'll find out soon enough.
Before that happens, though, here's a prediction for how the AP poll could look, along with a breakdown of the expected top teams.
1. Georgia
2. Michigan
3. Ohio State
4. Alabama
5. LSU
6. USC
7. Penn State
8. Clemson
9. Tennessee
10. Florida State
11. Texas
12. Washington
13. Notre Dame
14. Oregon
15. TCU
16. Utah
17. Kansas State
18. Oklahoma
19. Iowa
20. North Carolina
21. Kentucky
22. Wisconsin
23. Ole Miss
24. South Carolina
25. Tulane
Even though Georgia has lost plenty of the key contributors who powered the school to national titles each of the past two seasons, the Bulldogs still have plenty of talent. That's why they'll be the consensus No. 1 team heading into the 2023 campaign.
There hasn't been a team to win three consecutive national championships since Minnesota from 1934-36. So Georgia is going to have an opportunity to try to accomplish a rare feat.
But the Bulldogs will need to decide which of their quarterbacks is best to lead them to that type of success. Stetson Bennett is gone, and the front-runner to succeed him is redshirt junior Carson Beck.
Whomever is under center for Georgia will have plenty of talented players around him on offense. That group includes junior tight end Brock Bowers, who appears poised for an impressive season.
It's obvious why expectations are high for Michigan again this year. Not only does it return quarterback J.J. McCarthy, but the dynamic two-headed rushing attack of Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards is back to power the Wolverines' offense.
Corum (1,463 rushing yards and 19 total touchdowns) and Edwards (991 rushing yards and nine TDs) were a strong duo last season. With another year of experience under their belts, they should be capable of leading Michigan to more success.
The Wolverines have reached the College Football Playoff each of the past two seasons. However, they lost in the semifinals both times.
Perhaps this will be the year Michigan takes the next step and gets to the CFP National Championship Game for the first time in the Playoff era. Expect the Wolverines to at least be a contender to get back to the College Football Playoff for a third straight year.
Michigan may not be the only Big Ten team in the top three of the AP poll. Although Ohio State was No. 4 in the coaches poll (directly behind Alabama), it could be ranked a spot higher by the members of the media.
The Buckeyes will have one of the best receiving corps in the nation leading their offense, a group headlined by redshirt sophomore Marvin Harrison Jr. But it isn't yet known who will be throwing the ball to them, as junior Kyle McCord and redshirt freshman Devin Brown are battling for the starting QB job.
Either way, Ohio State has enough talent to be successful again. It reached the CFP last season, but it hasn't won a Playoff game since the 2020 campaign, so it will be looking to extend its year a bit longer this time.
Although the Buckeyes and the Crimson Tide are both formidable teams, the former seems a bit stronger on paper at this point. That could be reflected by the rankings in the AP poll.
