Revisiting The Preseason AP Top 25 Poll

[volfan2024]

Beat UGA or Bama lose no more than two games we are in imo.

 

[GRRN7MAXIMS]

Beat UGA or Bama lose no more than two games we are in imo.

So beat Bama and drop one more to an Oklahoma or lose to Bama and beat OU… Are we in either way the above plays out?

 

[KTrain]

Goes to show how useless most reporters are too.

As Finebaum says let me get a experts opinion as he turns to the AP voters.

 

[VFL-82-JP]

I dont know people get so wrapped up in football period. But here we are.

If we didn't have polls, someone would have to invent polls. Humanity demands a measuring stick.

Go Vols!

 

[Mid Tenn Vol]

They shouldn’t rank anybody until after 4 weeks !

 

[RockyTop140]

Who honestly thought UCLA was going to beat Penn State though? If anyone says they did, they are lying. UCLA had never led in a game until yesterday.

If I’m on the Tennessee staff I use that as an example for the Arkansas game. Sometimes a staff getting fired can motivate a team.

 

[BearBryant]

Going into the 2025 season Texas was ranked 1st, Penn State 2nd, and Clemson 4th. All three are now unranked. It just goes to show how useless preseason ranking are.

It also shows the bias, which carries over to the CFP selection committee.

 

[FlyFishnVol]

Going into the 2025 season Texas was ranked 1st, Penn State 2nd, and Clemson 4th. All three are now unranked. It just goes to show how useless preseason ranking are.

AP and Coaches are putting more stock on brand vs. capability. Who would have thought Arch Manning would struggle?

 

[Hunerwadel]

Going into the 2025 season Texas was ranked 1st, Penn State 2nd, and Clemson 4th. All three are now unranked. It just goes to show how useless preseason ranking are.

Wait, they're not useless if they demonstrate their uselessness.

 

[LWSVOL]

Going into the 2025 season Texas was ranked 1st, Penn State 2nd, and Clemson 4th. All three are now unranked. It just goes to show how useless preseason ranking are.

its early..

13 of the top 25 in the 2024 preseason AP poll, were not ranked in the top 25 after the season:

2024 pre Finished
1 Georgia 6th
2 Ohio St 1st
3 Oregon 3rd
4 Texas 4th
5 Alabama 17th
6 Ole Miss 11th
7 Notre Dame 2nd
8 Penn St 5th
9 Michigan NR
10 Florida St NR
11 Missouri 22nd
12 Utah NR
13 LSU NR
14 Clemson 14th
15 Tennessee 9th
16 Oklahoma NR
17 Oklahoma St NR
18 Kansas St NR
19 Miami 18th
20 Texas A&M NR
21 Arizona NR
22 Kansas NR
23 USC NR
24 NC State NR
25 Iowa NR

 

[Power_Sweep_Vol]

So beat Bama and drop one more to an Oklahoma or lose to Bama and beat OU… Are we in either way the above plays out?

almost 100%

 

[Tman44]

 

[#1fulmerite]

Though I understand your point OP, I think’04 Auburn would disagree. Had they not started the season unranked, they would have played in the NC. However, none of that is of any relevance now with the CFP.

 

[Power_Sweep_Vol]

Though I understand your point OP, I think’04 Auburn would disagree. Had they not started the season unranked, they would have played in the NC. However, none of that is of any relevance now with the CFP.

I disagree...where you start has almost no impact on where you finish. It probably has an impact on mid season rankings but we don't decide anything on mid season rankings so who cares? The way you know there's not much impact of the preseason polls is to compare the objective - or computer - rankings at the end of the year vs the AP Poll. You won't find a benefit to being highly ranked in the preseason. If there were an advantage to being highly ranked in preseason you'd see those teams OVER ranked relative to objective rankings at the end of the year and teams that weren't ranked preseason would be similarly UNDER ranked. You don't see that.

The reason that Auburn didn't play in the Nat'l Title game is that there was a consensus amongst objective AND subjective rankings that OU and USC were better. The reason they claimed the People's Championship with some silly online poll was that no objective rankings had them at the top. They just went undefeated in the wrong year, same as Utah.

 

[unfrozencvmanvol]

Going into the 2025 season Texas was ranked 1st, Penn State 2nd, and Clemson 4th. All three are now unranked. It just goes to show how useless preseason ranking are.

I say this every year in the preseason when people are ranting about the preseason polls, but on average only like 10-12 teams in the AP preseason poll end up in the final poll. The preseason poll is for entertainment purposes mainly.

 

[whobethis16]

Though I understand your point OP, I think’04 Auburn would disagree. Had they not started the season unranked, they would have played in the NC. However, none of that is of any relevance now with the CFP.

Auburn was #17 in the preseason AP poll that year. The reason they did not play for the title is because they screwed themselves by playing I-AA The Citadel instead of a lowly I-A team and the BCS math kept them out. All they had to do was play Washington, Duke, Indiana State, any number of terrible I-A teams and they would've been in, and probably won it.

 

[LegionnaireOfTheMiserable]

If I’m on the Tennessee staff I use that as an example for the Arkansas game. Sometimes a staff getting fired can motivate a team.

If I’m on the Tennessee staff, I use the last Tennessee-Arkansas game as all the motivation we should need

 

[dduncan4163]

I dont think anyone was. Even the announcers talked about what a weird game that was. Im just glad they won't finish the year winless........still don't think Callahan is the answer.

Agree, I thought there was a good chance we'd go winless this season. We've looked really bad. Great to see Ward turn it there at the end.

 

[BearBryant]

It also shows the bias, which carries over to the CFP selection committee.

One other point, Money Money and Money are now completely in control of College Football. What ever teams ESPN/ABC believe will draw the most TV coverage will get preference over others. This means of course TV coverage, instant replay bias, and likely obvious stripped-shirt blunders.

 

[camp_steveo]

By the way, Oklahoma is going to dog walk Texas

 

[VOLINVONORE]

Going into the 2025 season Texas was ranked 1st, Penn State 2nd, and Clemson 4th. All three are now unranked. It just goes to show how useless preseason ranking are.

What it really shows is, sport’s media doesn’t know very much about college football. There is no reason why their evaluations should ever be considered as a guide for ant rankings.

 

[landscapingvol]

By the way, Oklahoma is going to dog walk Texas

Texas will rebound, not saying they win but it will be a much closer game

 

[dduncan4163]

They shouldn’t rank anybody until after 4 weeks !

This is my thinking as well

 

[dduncan4163]

Though I understand your point OP, I think’04 Auburn would disagree. Had they not started the season unranked, they would have played in the NC. However, none of that is of any relevance now with the CFP.

Great point.

 

[Power_Sweep_Vol]

By the way, Oklahoma is going to dog walk Texas

with Hawkins at QB or a guy that had hand surgery a few wks ago? I don't know...maybe but I wouldn't be confident in that.