3. AP Top 25 Preseason College Football Poll: Most loaded Also Receiving Votes ever?
Every year the final rankings end up looking far different – usually from around 7 on down – than the preseason ones.
Expect this year to be epic when it comes to how different the AP poll looks at the end.
To be fair, Texas has to prove itself worthy of respect after a total meltdown over the second half of last year – but 2021 doesn’t exist. It doesn’t matter. Rankings are technically supposed to be done based on how good the teams are right now, and all that other pretentious stuff.
Talent-wise, would you rather be Texas, or Houston, Cincinnati, Wake Forest, Pitt, Miami, and be right there with a slew of other top 25 teams? Call Texas being 27th overall – and in the Also Receiving Votes category – a wait and see approach.
Tennessee being 26th is a miss. The excitement is off the charts in Year Two of the Josh Heupel era, but again, the voters seem to like a rebuilding Cincinnati, a promising BYU, and a slew of other good-record-easier-schedule (not BYU when it comes to schedule) teams more than the rising Vols.
If voters are a bit leery because Tennessee lost its bowl game last year, Purdue – who beat the Vols – should be almost as dangerous and only received 17 votes.
Cincinnati, BYU, and Kentucky get the benefit of the doubt as they’re now rock-solid programs that should produce at a high level … and Iowa is technically 28th receiving 163 votes, and Penn State and LSU are right behind the defending Big Ten West champion.
You take 15-25 in the 2022 AP preseason poll and give me 11 Also Receiving Votes teams – Tennessee, Texas, Iowa, Penn State, LSU, Minnesota, Purdue, Mississippi State, Florida, Auburn, and UCLA – and let’s roll.
And here’s the positive in that …
2022 AP Top 25 Preseason Analysis
Overrated | Underrated
Most loaded Also Receiving Votes ever?
Don’t like the Top 25, just wait
Winners & Losers
NEXT: AP Top 25 Preseason College Football Poll: So, you don’t like it? Don’t worry, because …