The AP preseason top 25 always leaves somebody grumbling, and this year’s list gave plenty of teams reason to feel overlooked. A few programs with real momentum got left on the outside, even after showing enough over the past couple of seasons to make a case for a spot.
Clemson may be the biggest name to miss out. The Tigers were left off the preseason poll after a 7-6 season, and that ends a run that had stretched all the way back to 2011, when Dabo Swinney was in his third full season with the program.
Instead, ACC rivals SMU and Louisville found their way into the rankings. That leaves the Tigers in a familiar but uncomfortable spot: either this is another sign of the slide, or the poll is reading the situation too harshly.
Boise State is another team with plenty to point to. The Broncos went 9-5 last season, started 2025 ranked, and then dropped out after a Week 1 loss and never got back in.
Still, the broader picture matters too. Boise won 12 games in 2024, cracked the top 10, and reached the CFP.
This year’s roster brings back plenty of talent, including highly regarded QB Maddux Madsen. The Broncos are the Pac-12 favorites and could be in position to play spoiler again.
Vanderbilt’s omission comes with a familiar twist: no Diego Pavia, no ranking. The Commodores put together a 17-9 record over the past two seasons, opened both of those years unranked, and still climbed into the top 25 each time.
They also got as high as the top 10 in a 10-3 2025 season that ended just short of the CFP. Expectations are clearly lower this time, but Vandy has still won eight games over the past two years as an underdog.
With super frosh Jared Curtis at quarterback, some fans may be asking, “Diego Who?”
Arizona also has a case. The Wildcats won nine games last season after bouncing back from a 4-8 year, and Brent Brennan’s team looks like a serious contender in a Big 12 that feels wide open.
Veteran QB Noah Fifita is back with something to prove, and Arizona has a favorable path with Utah coming to town and BYU on the schedule early. Even so, the Wildcats were left behind while Big 12 teams Houston and Utah landed in the preseason top 25.
Navy rounds out the list, and maybe the Midshipmen have been the most consistently difficult team to dismiss. Over the last two seasons, they’ve gone 21-5 and have been a nightmare matchup for opponents.
Their run-first approach is the kind of thing most teams aren’t built to stop, and they’ve averaged more than five yards per carry in each of the last two seasons. Navy is expected to be one of the AAC’s best again, and a run to 11-1 is very much in play.
In Other News...
Clemson Suddenly Has A Real Question At Wide Receiver
Clemsons receiver room picked up an unexpected layer of uncertainty in the middle of fall camp when Cole Turner stopped practicing and stepped away from the program to attend to personal matters, according to team sources. Turner is still listed on the official roster, but his absence has already become part of the conversation as the Tigers sort out their depth and roles at wide receiver heading into the season.
For a position group that can shift quickly in August, losing a player who had been around the program since camp opened changes the feel of the room even if the door remains open for a later return. Clemson is treating the situation with patience for now, and there is still a chance Turner could come back before the season ends, but for the moment the Tigers are left planning without knowing when, or if, hell be back on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Clemson Still Has One Huge Offensive Line Question Before LSU
Less than three weeks before Clemson opens against LSU, the offensive line is still a work in progress after four starters moved on from last season. Senior center Harris Sewell and fifth-year guard Collin Sadler have emerged as the most settled pieces, giving the Tigers at least a foundation in the middle, but the rest of the unit is still being sorted out as camp continues.
The staff has kept moving players around at tackle and guard while looking for the right mix, which makes this one of the more important lingering questions on the roster. Clemson is also encouraged by senior running back Jarvis Green, who has shown promise in preseason scrimmages after coming back from a knee injury, and Dabo Swinney has pointed to the value of working through the summer heat as another part of the preparation. [Read more 🡒]
Clemsons Opener Just Became A Test Of Dabos Whole Message
Clemsons season opener against LSU has already carried the usual weight of a marquee matchup, but it has taken on a little extra edge after Dabo Swinneys recent bunch of nobodies remark drew heat from Paul Finebaum. Finebaums critique did not stop at the quote itself, either, as he framed it as part of a bigger question about where Clemson stands after last years disappointing 7-6 finish and whether the program can get back to its standard quickly enough to quiet the noise.
The stakes around this one are bigger than just a Week 1 result because it also lands right in the middle of the broader conversation about Swinneys future. Finebaum suggested another mediocre season could force Clemsons administration to at least think about moving on, even with the massive buyout that comes with such a decision. For now, the Tigers get LSU and a national stage, which is exactly the kind of setting that can either reinforce Swinneys message or make the criticism around it even louder. [Read more 🡒]