The Florida Gators did not claim one of the coveted spots on the preseason Associated Press Top 25 College Football Poll on Monday. UF received just 14 votes to finish an unofficial 38th overall.
A lack of support among the national media isn’t surprising, especially considering the circumstances heading into the 2022 season. Last year’s team wasn’t very good, several expected starters left the transfer portal and [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] was left to piece together a recruiting class in a matter of two months.
Napier brought in a robust transition class, ranked 10th overall by 247Sports, and added players at key positions via the portal. The big question is how long it will take for Napier’s system to work at Florida. Most of the offense is unproven, including first-year starting quarterback [autotag]Anthony Richardson[/autotag]. If the Gators gel under the new scheme early on and upset Utah in the season opener on September 3, expect Florida to have more than 14 votes in the next update.
For now, the Florida players can use this poll as yet another source of motivation for the upcoming season. Not only is UF the 11th SEC team to appear on this list, but even UCF has received more votes (27) than Florida. Miami is ranked No. 16 to lead all in-state programs.
Beating No. 7 Utah would be a big statement for Napier in his first game at the helm, and it would certainly shake up the rankings.
AP College Football Top 25
| Rank | Team | Record | Last Wk. | Points |
| 1 | Alabama | 0-0 | 2 | 1,566 (54) |
| 2 | Ohio State | 0-0 | 6 | 1,506 (6) |
| 3 | Georgia | 0-0 | 1 | 1,455 (3) |
| 4 | Clemson | 0-0 | 14 | 1,292 |
| 5 | Notre Dame | 0-0 | 8 | 1,242 |
| 6 | Texas A&M | 0-0 | UR | 1,212 |
| 7 | Utah | 0-0 | 12 | 1,209 |
| 8 | Michigan | 0-0 | 3 | 1,203 |
| 9 | Oklahoma | 0-0 | 10 | 956 |
| 10 | Baylor | 0-0 | 5 | 884 |
| 11 | Oregon | 0-0 | 22 | 831 |
| 12 | Oklahoma State | 0-0 | 7 | 814 |
| 13 | North Carolina State | 0-0 | 20 | 752 |
| 14 | USC | 0-0 | UR | 711 |
| 15 | Michigan State | 0-0 | 9 | 631 |
| 16 | Miami (FL) | 0-0 | UR | 476 |
| 17 | Pittsburgh | 0-0 | 13 | 383 |
| 18 | Wisconsin | 0-0 | UR | 365 |
| 19 | Arkansas | 0-0 | 21 | 348 |
| 20 | Kentucky | 0-0 | 18 | 332 |
| 21 | Ole Miss | 0-0 | 11 | 324 |
| 22 | Wake Forest | 0-0 | 15 | 303 |
| 23 | Cincinnati | 0-0 | 4 | 265 |
| 24 | Houston | 0-0 | 17 | 263 |
| 25 | BYU | 0-0 | 19 | 234 |
Others receiving votes:
Tennessee 180, Texas 164, Iowa 163, Penn State 160, LSU 55, Fresno State 32, Minnesota 31, UCF 27, Purdue 17, Mississippi State 15, Auburn 15, Kansas State 14, Florida 14, North Carolina 9, Boise State 5, Air Force 4, Appalachian State 4, UCLA 2, San Diego State 2, South Carolina 2, Utah State 2, Nebraska 1
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