The preseason polls are out, and the top of the college football rankings already has people arguing. Ohio State sits at No. 1 in both the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll, with Oregon right behind at No. 2 and Georgia at No.
- After that, though, the debate starts getting loud.
And if you’re looking for the teams getting squeezed, three top 10 programs stand out.
Ole Miss comes in at No. 9 in the AP poll and even lower at No. 10 in the Coaches Poll, which feels harsh for a team that finished 13-2, won two College Football Playoff games, and then dropped a close Fiesta Bowl game to national runner-up Miami. The Rebels also closed last season at No. 3 in the final AP poll and have posted double-digit wins in four of the last five seasons.
They’re bringing back Trinidad Chambliss and Kewan Lacy, but the biggest reason for the drop is obvious: Lane Kiffin is gone. Pete Golding is taking over, and while the 42-year-old has been at Ole Miss since 2023, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum expects some missteps in his first season.
Golding did win two CFP games in his first three games as a head coach, and before Ole Miss he was on Nick Saban’s staff at Alabama.
Miami checks in at No. 7, and that ranking has already drawn heat. ESPN’s Chris Canty said on Tuesday’s “Get Up,” “Miami is really being disrespected by being 7th in the preseason poll.”
He added, “There’s a lot of shade being thrown towards The U,” before pointing out that “The Maimi Hurricanes were just in the National Championship Game, and they got Darian Mensah in the transfer portal. And as a Virginia alum, I can tell you with the firsthand experience with the Darian Mensah experience, that this guy is a baller.”
Miami went 13-3 last season, lost some key defensive players to the NFL draft, and still returned enough talent to stay in the title conversation. The head-scratcher is how a team that was that close to the top ended up with just one first-place vote.
Then there’s Indiana at No. 6, which may be the biggest snub of the bunch. The Hoosiers drew the third-most first-place votes, but still landed behind Georgia, Notre Dame and Texas in both polls.
ESPN’s Evan Cohen pushed back on that ranking on the same episode of “Get Up,” saying, “This is not about football… It’s all about the perception that… we don’t believe that Indiana is a football power.” Indiana’s placement is being viewed through that lens, especially after what the Hoosiers accomplished in a season that should have changed the way voters see them.
Nick Saban’s Alabama teams were ranked in the top five in each of his final 11 seasons in Tuscaloosa. Curt Cignetti is not getting that same kind of preseason trust just yet.
In Other News...
Indiana Just Got A Preseason Wake-Up Call After Its Title Run
Indianas perfect run to a national title did not translate into a preseason berth in the AP Top 5, as Curt Cignettis team landed at No. 6 entering the new season. For a program coming off a 16-0 march and a championship, it is a small number with some real meaning, because preseason polls have a habit of setting the tone for how others view the defending winner before a snap is played.
There is still plenty in Indianas favor to suggest the Hoosiers are built to push past that kind of history. Cignetti brings back his entire coaching staff, and the roster remains strong, which gives Indiana a steadier foundation than many defending champions have had when the next season arrived. The challenge now is proving the rankings were more warning sign than verdict, and that last years breakthrough was not the start of a slide. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana's Josh Hoover Debate Really Comes Down To Curt Cignetti
Indianas quarterback conversation has already shifted from what Fernando Mendoza meant to the program to what comes next, and Josh Hoover is walking into a spot that guarantees scrutiny. Any new starter gets measured against the last one, but in this case the standard is even higher after Indianas first Heisman winner left behind a season that changed the way the program is viewed and raised expectations across the board.
The real question is not whether Hoover can avoid the comparisons right away, because those will come. It is whether Curt Cignetti can do what he has done before and bring along a quarterback quickly enough for Indiana to keep building on its recent success in a rugged Big Ten race, where a team cannot afford a long adjustment period at the games most important position. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Has A Big Chance With An Elite In-State 2029 Prospect
Curt Cignetti and Indiana have made no secret of wanting to build their recruiting board around the best high school talent in the state, and one of the earliest names to watch is Austin Phillips. The East Noble standout has already emerged as a freshman linebacker and running back with the kind of profile that gets attention quickly, and he is set to spend the fall taking in several major college programs while his recruitment starts to take shape.
For Indiana, the appeal is obvious. Landing a prospect like Phillips would reinforce the programs push to keep elite in-state players from leaving the region, especially as more heavy hitters enter the mix and the competition for his commitment intensifies. The Hoosiers have a legitimate opening here, but with visits on the calendar and momentum still building, this one figures to stay busy for a while. [Read more 🡒]