A Preseason Poll Unlike Any Other

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The 2020 preseason AP Top 25 poll dropped Monday, with all 130 FBS teams taken into consideration — even those playing in conferences that opted out of the fall season.

Clemson became the eighth team to start No. 1 in the preseason poll for two consecutive seasons since the rankings began in 1950.

Ohio State came in at No. 2 on the list with 21 first-place votes and finished just 16 points (1,504) behind Clemson – but that's as close as the Buckeyes will get to avenging their College Football Playoff semifinal loss to the Tigers.

That's because during the season, only teams that are scheduled to play during the fall will be considered for the weekly AP poll. The Week 1 ranking is set to release Monday, Sept. 17, with 76 FBS teams to eligible.

For teams with their sights set on spring ball, the AP said it will consider ranking teams then as well.

Ohio State did extend the longest active streak of preseason Top 25 appearances with 32, followed by Oklahoma with 21, LSU with 20, Georgia with 19, Alabama with 13 and Clemson with 9.

Other notable names not playing this season that made it on the list were OSU's fellow Big Ten East counterpart No. 7 Penn State and Pac-12 champion No. 9 Oregon.

Georgia and Oklahoma, two teams with new starting QBs ready to prove their worth, rounded out the top five at No. 4 and 5.

The defending national champion LSU ranked 6th after losing a plethora of top performers to the NFL, including Heisman Trophy-winning QB Joe Burrow. The Tigers are the first reigning champion to be placed outside the top five since Auburn in 2011.

Six other teams not seeing the field this fall include, No. 12 Wisconsin, No. 16 Michigan, No. 17 USC, No. 19 Minnesota, No. 22 Utah and No. 24 Iowa.

The SEC had seven teams make the list, including six of the top 13 teams. They were followed by the Big Ten with six. The Big 12 had four, the ACC (with Notre Dame included) and Pac-12 had three each.

The AAC led the Group of Five conferences with two ranked teams, No. 20 Cincinnati and No. 21 UCF. The Bearcats make history with their first appearance on the preseason poll, after finishing ranked the last two seasons.

No. 18 North Carolina returns to the list for the first time since 2016, and No. 20 Minnesota is back after 16 years.