Florida preseason No. 13 in AP Top 25 rankings
Florida is ranked No. 13 in the Associated Press Top 25 preseason poll released Monday.
Alabama is No. 1 in the football poll for fourth time in the past six seasons. Alabama received 47 of 63 first-place votes from the panel of sports writers and broadcasters in the poll. Oklahoma is No. 2, just ahead of No. 3 Clemson (each received six first-place votes).
Ohio State, which lost to the Tide in last season's championship game, is No. 4 after receiving a first-place vote. Georgia received three first-place votes and rounds out the top five.
No. 6 Texas A&M starts with its best preseason ranking since 1995 when the Aggies were No. 3. Coach Jimbo Fisher's team also gives the SEC three teams in the top six, joining Alabama and Georgia.
The Gators were ranked No. 11 in the USA Today Sports AFCA Coaches Poll released last Tuesday.
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Florida (8-4) was ranked No. 13 in final AP poll in 2020.
Florida, which opens its season at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 4 against visiting Florida Atlantic, is trying to bounce back defensively to assist a new quarterback in Emory Jones. Florida allowed 37, 52 and 55 points in its last three games.
First College Football Playoff ranking out Nov. 2
The College Football Playoff selection committee will announce its first of six rankings Nov. 2. The committee members will convene in person on Mondays and Tuesdays, revealing their rankings each Tuesday night (7-8 p.m. ET) on ESPN.
The final selection committee rankings of the 2021 season will be released on selection day, Sunday, Dec. 5. The committee will also announce the matchups for the Playoff Semifinals at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic and Capital One Orange Bowl, as well as the PlayStation Fiesta and Chick-fil-A Peach bowl pairings.
This season's Playoff Semifinals will take place Friday, Dec. 31 at the Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl. The College Football Playoff National Championship will be Monday, Jan. 10, 2022, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.