There's a New No. 1 Team in College Football After Latest Poll Released

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There's a New No. 1 Team in College Football After Latest Poll Released originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The college football season is weeks away from kicking off, and on Monday, the AP Poll officially released its preseason rankings. Although the now-defending champion Ohio State Buckeyes finished the 2024 season as the No. 1 team, they have already been bumped from the top spot.
As revealed in the latest AP Poll rankings, which have been taking place since 1936, the 60 journalists who vote to decide the rankings ended up bumping the Buckeyes to the No. 3 team in the country. This paved the way for a team that Ohio State actually beat last season to supplant them from being the best team in college football.
AP Poll Announces New No. 1 College Football Team
Although the Buckeyes got the best of them in their College Football Playoff Semifinal matchup, the Texas Longhorns were tabbed as college football's newest No. 1 team.
The Longhorns narrowly edged out Penn State in what the AP reported was the closest vote since 1998. In addition to being atop the AP Poll, the Longhorns were also tabbed as the No. 1 team in the Coaches Poll this past week.
Why Texas is the No. 1 Team in College Football
Despite having a program record 12 players drafted during the 2025 NFL Draft, the Longhorns have been stockpiling on talent over the past few years. Not only is former No. 1 overall recruit, Arch Manning, taking over at quarterback, but he is also joined by a roster flooded with blue-chip recruits.
The Longhorns have had a top-six class in each of the past four years, with the 2025 class coming in as the No. 1 class in the country.
2025: No. 1 Class
2024: No. 6 Class
2023: No. 3 Class
2022: No. 5 Class
The Longhorns are also coming off back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances, making it to the semifinal round in each of the past two seasons. They also have the luxury of returning 61% of their production on defense from a season ago, indicating they have a chance to field yet another dominant unit.
While it'll come down to more than just one player, many believed Manning could have led them to a title last season instead of Ewers, but now that he is at the helm, he will have the chance to do just that.
Why Ohio State Isn't the No. 1 Team in College Football
Similar to Texas, the Buckeyes sent a ton of players to the NFL, tying a program record with 14. However, while Ohio State ranks higher in returning production at No. 101 to Texas' 103, the biggest question surrounding the Buckeyes is their quarterback situation.
With Will Howard off to the NFL, Ryan Day is choosing between redshirt freshman Julian Sayin and redshirt sophomore Lincoln Kienholz. Unlike Manning who started two games and also had a significant role down the stretch for Texas, neither Sayin and Kienholz played any critical snaps last season.
Kienholz hasn't attempted a pass since 2023, while Sayin attempted just 12 in mop-up duty last season.
Week 1 Clash Between Texas and Ohio State
The No. 1 Longhorns will have to defend their ranking quickly into the season as they'll head to Columbus to take on the Buckeyes in Week 1. Both ESPN's "College GameDay," and Fox's "Big Noon Kickoff" will be in attendance for the No. 1 vs. No. 3 matchup.
The game itself will kick off at 12:00 p.m. ET and air on FOX.This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 11, 2025, where it first appeared.