Oregon is heading into the 2026 college football season with a program-best preseason AP ranking, landing at No. 2 in the Associated Press Top 25 released Monday.
That spot matches the Ducks’ No. 2 ranking in the preseason USA Today Coaches Poll and puts them squarely among the early national championship favorites as Dan Lanning enters his fifth season in Eugene.
Ohio State claimed the No. 1 position with 1,672 points and 40 first-place votes. Oregon followed with 1,597 points and 14 first-place votes from the media panel.
The rest of the top five features Georgia at No. 3 with 1,513 points, Notre Dame at No. 4 with 1,510 points and six first-place votes, and Texas at No. 5. Indiana, the defending national champion, opens at No. 6 with eight first-place votes, while Miami sits at No. 7 and picked up the final first-place vote.
Oregon and Ohio State sitting atop the poll also gives the Big Ten a notable milestone: it’s the first time in 65 years the conference has owned the top two preseason spots in the AP poll.
Texas A&M, Ole Miss and Oklahoma complete the preseason top 10.
For Oregon, the ranking is backed by a schedule loaded with chances to prove it. The Ducks open Big Ten play on Sept. 26 at No.
14 USC, which finished tied with BYU at 839 points. Their biggest regular-season test comes Nov. 7, when they head to Columbus to face preseason No.
1 Ohio State.
From there, Oregon returns home to play No. 16 Michigan on Nov. 14 and finishes the regular season against No.
17 Washington in Autzen Stadium on Nov. 28.
There are more ranked or near-ranked opponents sprinkled in as well. Boise State, Oregon’s season-opening opponent, received 43 votes.
The Ducks host Boise State on Sept. 5, then go to Oklahoma State the following week; the Cowboys got eight votes, while Illinois earned nine. Oregon visits Illinois on Oct.
Penn State checks in at No. 18 even though it is not on Oregon’s 2026 schedule. The Ducks beat the Nittany Lions in overtime in Happy Valley last season.
Iowa, another team Oregon ran into during its 2025 College Football Playoff run, opens at No. 22.
The preseason respect continues a strong run for Oregon under Lanning. The Ducks finished the 2025 regular season in the College Football Playoff, reached the national semifinals and lost to eventual national champion Indiana.
With the ranking comes the same expectation that has followed Oregon into this era: a run at the Big Ten title and another shot at the playoff.
2026 Preseason AP Top 10
Ohio State - 1,672 points (40 first-place votes)
Oregon - 1,597 (14)
Georgia - 1,513
Notre Dame - 1,510 (6)
Texas - 1,483
Indiana - 1,440 (8)
Miami - 1,379 (1)
Texas A&M - 1,131
Ole Miss - 1,102
Oklahoma - 1,047
In Other News...
Oregon May Have Found An Unexpected Linebacker Answer
Bleu Dantzler arrived in Eugene as an unusual addition to Oregons linebacker room this offseason, bringing a cross-rival transfer story that already makes him one of the more interesting names in camp. A former Oregon State linebacker, Dantzler has spent the summer trying to carve out a place on a defense that is still sorting through its depth, and he has apparently made a strong impression on the coaches watching him every day.
Dan Lanning and defensive ends coach Kamran Araghi have both pointed to Dantzlers work ethic and the progress he has made during fall camp, a good sign for a player looking to turn an opportunity into a role. For Oregon, the appeal is obvious: if Dantzler keeps developing, he could become a useful piece in the front seven as the Ducks get closer to the season. [Read more 🡒]
Dan Lanning Likes What He Sees From Oregon But Two Concerns Remain
After Oregons first fall camp scrimmage, Dan Lanning came away encouraged by what he saw on both sides of the ball, especially the way the Ducks carried themselves physically and defended with intent. The session was closed to the media and public, but Lanning still had enough to point to a group that looks like it has spent its summer doing the work needed to arrive ready for camp.
Even so, the review was not a clean sweep. Lanning flagged ball security and special teams as areas that still need attention, a reminder that August evaluations are as much about identifying leaks as they are celebrating progress. Oregon will keep pushing through practice, with media access coming later in the week, and those next sessions should offer a better sense of how quickly the Ducks can tighten up the details that matter most. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Quarterback Room Gives The Ducks A Rare Edge In 2026
The quarterback room has become one of Oregons most intriguing strengths heading into 2026, with PFF ranking it as the deepest in the country. Dante Moore sits at the center of it after a strong 2025 season, and his decision to return rather than enter the NFL Draft gives the Ducks a proven starter around whom everything else can settle. For a program used to reloading at a high level, having that kind of certainty under center is a luxury that changes the tone of the offseason.
Dylan Raiola adds another layer of security and intrigue after arriving as a former Nebraska starter, giving Oregon a backup with real experience and the upside to be much more than that. Behind him, Brock Thomas and redshirt freshman Akili Smith Jr. give the Ducks more names to work with than most teams can claim anywhere on the roster. It is the kind of depth that can keep Oregon steady if the season turns volatile, while also setting up a quarterback conversation that may not be settled anytime soon. [Read more 🡒]