The AP Preseason Top 25 is finally out, and that means the countdown to college football is officially on. Illinois still isn’t in the rankings, but the Illini did pick up some votes, which at least keeps the door cracked for a spot later this season. As things stand now, Illinois appears headed for just three ranked opponents on the schedule, and that number doesn’t look likely to rise.
So the real question is simple: when these teams actually line up against Illinois, where will they be in the rankings? Here’s a look at the most likely landing spots.
UAB comes first in Week 1, and there’s not much mystery there. The Blazers weren’t ranked in the preseason, and since neither team plays in Week 0, nothing is going to change before that matchup. Even looking all the way to the end of the year, the expectation is still that UAB will be unranked.
Duke shows up in Week 2, and the Blue Devils don’t project to be any more dangerous in the rankings. They were hit hard by Miami in the offseason, especially after losing Darian Mensah, and even if they get a decent Week 1 result against Tulane, there’s no path to the Top 25 by the time they face Illinois. No preseason votes only makes that harder.
Southern Illinois arrives in Week 3, and while the Salukis should bring a 2-0 record into Champaign, that won’t be enough to push them into the conversation. They don’t face another Power Four opponent before Illinois, but even a spotless start would still leave them outside the rankings picture.
The first ranked team on Illinois’ schedule comes in Week 4 at Ohio State, and the Buckeyes enter the season at No. 1.
That top spot may not last long, though, because Ohio State has No. 5 Texas before the Illini come to town.
A loss there could knock the Buckeyes down, but probably only one spot, which would put them at No. 2 when Illinois arrives.
Purdue is next in Week 5, and the Boilermakers are another clear unranked pick. Their recent track record hasn’t exactly inspired confidence, and a stretch that includes Wake Forest, UCLA, and Notre Dame in three of their first four games makes a ranking look even less likely.
Michigan State comes in Week 6, and the same logic applies. Pat Fitzgerald could eventually get the Spartans moving in the right direction, but Year 1 would have to be something special for that to happen quickly. With Notre Dame and Nebraska on the slate before Illinois, Michigan State is projected to be unranked by the time the Illini show up.
Illinois then waits until Week 8 for another ranked matchup, and Oregon is the next heavy hitter. The Ducks open at No. 2, but they have a path to the top spot if Ohio State stumbles. With a lighter early schedule, Oregon is the team most likely to slide into No. 1 by the time it meets Illinois.
Maryland in Week 9 doesn’t project as a ranked team either. The Terrapins have a schedule that includes Ohio State, UCLA, Virginia Tech, and Nebraska before they get to Illinois, but that doesn’t look like enough to build a Top 25 resume. The prediction here is that Maryland stays out.
Nebraska is up in Week 10, and even with a change at quarterback - from former five-star Dylan Raiola to UNLV transfer Anthony Colandrea - the Cornhuskers still don’t look like a ranking team. They do have chances for notable wins against Indiana and Oregon before facing Illinois, but Nebraska hasn’t beaten a ranked opponent since 2016, and that streak is expected to continue.
UCLA is the interesting one in Week 11. Under former James Madison head coach Bob Chesney, the Bruins are the wild card on the schedule.
A game against Oregon could help define them, and enough steady wins elsewhere could put them on the receiving votes list by the time Illinois gets there. That’s the one matchup where the projection is not fully unranked, but rather receiving votes.
Iowa comes to Champaign in Week 12 ranked No. 22, but that’s not expected to last. The Hawkeyes always seem to open in the preseason Top 25, and the defense usually does the heavy lifting, not the offense. Still, by late November, they’re not projected to be hanging around in the rankings.
Northwestern closes the regular-season slate in Week 13, and the Wildcats look like another team that will have a hard time staying relevant in the rankings. Like several other Big Ten opponents on Illinois’ schedule, they’re expected to spend most of the year as a target for better teams rather than a team anyone is talking about in the Top 25.
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CBS Sports projected AP Top 25 for the upcoming 2026 college football season left Illinois out, a reminder that the Illini still have a lot to prove in the eyes of the national media. That kind of snub is hard to ignore after a recent run that has already started to change the way the program is viewed, even as the roster takes another turn under center with Luke Altmyer gone and transfer quarterback Katin Houser now in place.
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Now comes the familiar task of turning that momentum into an actual spot in the poll. Illinois has built enough recent credibility through its coaching and recruiting work to stay in the conversation, but the opening week omission also keeps the pressure on to prove the early optimism is justified and to climb quickly into the top 25 picture once the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]