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Justanother_0 Ballot for 2026 Preseason

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Aug. 16, 2026, midnight

Overall Rationale: To start, I only consider the top half of each Power Four conference plus the independents when applicable (i.e, would Notre Dame or UConn be an upper half P4 team if they were in a P4 conference?), along with who I believe to be the four best teams from the Group of Six in that given week. I then sort the teams by conference, then rank each team from best to worst within their own conference. The best of the G6 are all grouped into the same set for determining who the best among them are. The independents are also sorted into their own group as well. Use the six groups made (4 P4 conference top 8's, 1 group of 4 for the best of the G6, 1 group for the independents) to create the top 25. Since no games have been played yet and no resume's have been made by any team, this poll instead aims to gauge the teams that have the best shot at either making the playoffs (mid to early 20's and late 10's), making or winning one of the NY6 bowls (mid to early tens and late single digits), or winning the CFP (with #1 being my preseason pick to win the national title). The closer to #1 the team is ranked, the higher their odds are in my eyes to accomplish those milestones.

Rank Team Reason
1 Miami Hurricanes Miami is my pick to win the national title this year. They have the experience in the big games, they have one of the best quarterbacks in the country coming in to reload the offense, and they have the coaching needed to both get through their lighter schedule and to beat anybody they play in the playoffs. If Miami doesn't win this year, it will likely be because they whiffed on making the dance after losing headscratchers to UNC and Boston College.
2 Oregon Ducks On paper, Oregon has everything that they need to win a national title. The returning star QB, the potent offense, the stalwart defense, and the good special teams unit. However, their performance in the postseason these last two years has been worrying enough for me to put Miami ahead of them. Sure, the ducks went 13-0 in the regular season in 2024 and shut out Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl last season. They are certainly a clear threat to win the whole thing, but the 2024 Ohio State rematch and 2025 Indiana beatdowns both are sharp reminders for me that the ducks haven't yet shown me that they can beat a team in the postseason whose talent profile is equal to them (besides, that Tech shut out to me was more due to the Red Raiders forgetting to field a quarterback than it was Oregon having a really good day). The Ducks will be stellar this year, but I can't pick them to win a trophy they haven't yet won, especially if they hadn't made the title game since 2015.
3 Indiana Hoosiers The turnaround Cignetti has pulled off at Indiana is nothing short of incredible these last few years. Though I do have questions about whether Josh Hoover will be the guy to author a repeat run at a national title, the Hoosiers return a surprising amount from last years team and will likely continue to have the best lines in the sport. I am done doubting Cignetti, and I expect them to be in the thick of it for the national title race once again this year.
4 Georgia Bulldogs Georgia to me looks to be the best of an extremely competitive SEC at seasons outset. I don't have too much to say about them, Kirby is one of those guys who you can blindly trust to keep his team in playoff contention.
5 Ohio State Buckeyes Ohio State has the best wide receiver in the country on their roster, and has a stalwart defense that has dared any opponent in 2025 to try and break them. I expect them to be really good this year, though their schedule in my eyes is the hardest in the country (like seriously, that thing looks psychotic. 11-1 or better with that schedule likely means another Buckeye natty).
6 Ole Miss Rebels Ole Miss remains this high despite the calamitous coaching carousel because of Trinidad Chambliss, the guy who I think is both the best QB in the nation going into this season and my pick to win the Heisman. As long as the offense can keep trucking the way it had during the playoff run last year, Ole Miss will be a genuine threat to win the SEC this year.
7 BYU Cougars I will admit that this might seem high for a team that could barely score against Texas Tech in two games, but I have my reasons for them being the #1 Big XII team. For one, I expect the Bear to take a step forward this year in his play, and mind you he already had over 3000 yards of combined offense last season. Despite some hits to skill positions, I expect the losses incurred by the Cougars to not be glaringly obvious on either the statsheet or in the final score of any of the games BYU plays. If the offense improves to such a level that the Bear is able to terrorize defenses of higher talent, then these guys are genuine playoff contenders, with the best shot out of anyone in the Big XII to win the national title.
8 Texas Longhorns Texas has the talent, particularly the wide receivers, to be able to beat anybody that they play. Cam Coleman in particular is gonna be something special for the Longhorns this year. Plus, Manning should be at least marginally better than he was last year now that he has a year of leading the offense under his belt. However, I cannot place them any higher than 8 because I have questions about their O-Line. If that unit continues to underperform then Texas isn't gonna be sniffing the playoffs, regardless of the talent in the WR room.
9 SMU Mustangs If Miami finds a way to fumble their ticket to Charlotte or the CFP, then SMU is my number 2 pick to win the ACC. They've got the year two starter Kevin Jennings at QB paired with a potent offense and solid defense. Add in the potential to knock off Notre Dame and SMU has serious at-large hopes this year to me.
10 Oklahoma Sooners Oklahoma's defense will without a doubt be a top 3 unit in the country, but if the offense flounders again then their ceiling is yet another first round playoff exit.
11 Notre Dame Fighting Irish While I wasn't blown away by CJ Carr last year, and I expect the departures of Love and Price to have a heavy impact on the potency of the Irish offense, there isn't much excuse for Notre Dame to miss the playoffs this year. The defense will remain stalwart and the special teams shouldn't be a liability.
12 Louisville Cardinals Yeah, 12 might seem kind high for a team that ended 8-4 in a chaotic ACC last year, but consider this: outside of their blowout loss to SMU, the Cardinals lost their other three games by a combined seven points. Two were in overtime against Virginia and Cal, and the third was a one point loss to a disappointing yet talented Clemson. Additionally, Louisville was one of three teams that beat the national title runner up Miami, and they did so at their house (however half-empty it was not-withstanding). Their QB is coming back for a second year and I expect all facets of their play to either match or exceed the 2025 team. If they do, then they might be able to wrestle their way into an at-large bid if they upset an Ole Miss team that could be a little too focused on that LSU game in week 3.
13 Texas Tech Red Raiders The Red Raiders had an insane season last year. The defense was generational, and in my opinion was the best in the nation, providing their slightly above average offense the ability to put up excellent scores thanks to advantageous field position. After the whole mess of an offseason that saw the Red Raiders go from the underdog Cinderella to the villain of the Big XII, the offense looks to have improved in all positions except QB on paper, and the defense seems to have reloaded on paper. I have Tech as my #2 Big XII team for two reasons: Will Hammond flips a coin before every game he plays in to determine if he is either going to win or lose Tech the game. Against Utah, he subbed in for an injured Morton and turned a neck and neck game in the fourth quarter into a runaway multi-score road win for the Red Raiders. Against Arizona State, he couldn't do much against one of the statistically worst secondaries in the entire Big XII. Aside from QB, I just find it hard to believe that Tech will be able field a comparable defense this year to last after having to send off as much of the defense as they had.
14 Washington Huskies I expect Washington to step firmly into the second tier of B1G teams, thanks to their QB deciding (read: being forced) to return, any team playing the Huskies will have to be on the lookout for this squad.
15 Houston Cougars The popular pick for most underrated team, Houston went a quiet 10-3 last year. Sure, actually looking at that 10-3 reveals one of the stranger end-of-season records that a 10 win team has put out, but I am both a believer in Willie Fritz and his team. Remember, only one coach has led a G6 team to a NY6 bowl win in the 2020's and that was Fritz.
16 LSU Tigers While Lane Kiffin has always put out offenses that demand the attention of any opponent on his schedule since taking on the job at Ole Miss, I have a hard time buying LSU as the national title contender that I've seen them highlighted as. Sam Leavitt, while talented, has benefited by being on the same team as Cam Skattebo and Jordan Tyson, some of the best talent the Big XII had to offer. Add that to his injury trouble and I think that this team falls apart at about the time that Leavitt does. That being said, this is still a very talented team spearheaded by one of the better offensive minds in the country, so any ranking lower than this solely based on the QB being B-tier would just be disingenuous.
17 Michigan Wolverines I am interested in seeing what Whittingham does with Michigan's resources in his time with the Wolverines. Could he win a national title? probably not in the first year. I expect this team to threaten making the playoff field, depending on whether Bryce Underwood develops into the talent that he can be.
18 Utah Utes Despite the very noticeable holes in the coaching staff left by Whittingham's departure, I expect Utah to remain one of the standard-bearers of the new-look Big XII thanks to most of their talent sticking around. That being said, they're gonna have to earn their way up this list more so than other years thanks to the uncertainty at head coach at the moment.
19 USC Trojans The only reason these guys are ranked is because their offense will be one of the best in the nation. This team could go 10-2, they could go 6-6, all of that depends on whether Lincoln Riley discovered what a defense is this offseason.
20 California Golden Bears I am very high on Cal this year. JKS returns for another year to help engineer one of the more potent offenses of the ACC, and I believe that the coaching change should enable this team to reach their potential this year (and minimize the chances of them getting shut out by an San Diego State again). Their ceiling? a playoff berth. Their floor? 4-8. That's Cal football baby.
21 Arizona Wildcats Having led his team to a spectacular season and having saved his job, I expect Brent Brennan to lead the Wildcats to yet another good season. Weather that means 8-4 or 10-2 is up in the air.
22 Alabama Crimson Tide Alabama has the highest floor and the lowest ceiling of any team in the SEC. They have serious questions at QB, their offensive line left a lot to be desired last year, and their run game was among some of the worst in the southeast. That being said, they still have some of the best talent across the board and Kalen DeBoer is a good enough coach to keep the ship steady. I don't expect a very remarkable season for the Crimson Tide this season, but they will still be a threat to those that they play.
23 Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors The Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors are my preseason pick to make the playoffs out of the G6. They have a good QB, good offense, and excellent special teams. Pair this with the fact that they get their toughest in-conference games at home and a relatively forging out of conference slate, and there is a genuine chance that Hawai'i is sitting on a 12-1 record on selection Sunday with a Mountain West title to show for it. If they do the unthinkable and go 13-0, then they're gonna be a genuine threat to whoever they play in the playoffs, especially if they host a playoff game. Granted, that defense is gonna need to show some improvement if they want to earn their way to the dance.

The next three G6 teams were: UNLV, San Diego State, Boise State.
24 Virginia Tech Hokies Virginia Tech is here because of James Franklin and the transfers that he brought in. Time will tell if the end of his stint at Penn State was a workplace accident or a sign that his best coaching days are behind him.
25 Penn State Nittany Lions Since this is essentially Iowa State's team from last year, I asked myself "would I have ranked Iowa State if their roster hadn't been raided?" I say yes, therefore Penn State is in at #25

First five out of the poll (26-30) are K-State, UCLA, ASU, TCU, and UNLV. Thank you for reading!

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