At this point, it’s reasonable to wonder if the voters who determine the Associated Press Top 25 poll are even trying anymore.
It’s been a recurring problem in recent years, with the first part of the 2026 season showing once again that many poll voters are either not paying close enough attention, or are hopelessly consumed, or confused, by specific pro-conference or pro-team biases.
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That observation was even more evident with the release of this week’s poll, which has conclusively demonstrated, yet again, that preseason polls are given far too much importance and that no other conference gets the special treatment the SEC receives.
YES, THE SEC IS STILL GETTING RIDICULOUS PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT IN THE AP TOP 25 POLL
Head Coach Steve Sarkisian of the Texas Longhorns looks on during the first half against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., on Sept. 26, 2026. (Getty Images)
First? The Texas Longhorns. Texas has two poor quality losses this year, to the Oklahoma Sooners and a home loss to the Florida Gators. They have the miraculous escape over Ohio State, and a win over Ole Miss. They’re No. 10 in the country. Texas Tech has just one loss, a bad one at Cincinnati, but two “ranked” wins in a surprisingly strong Big 12 Conference. They’re No. 13.
We’ve had an entire offseason and half a season with SEC coaches, cough Lane Kiffin cough, complaining about moving to a nine-game schedule and demanding preferential treatment for their schedules, all while they’re already getting it.
Missouri is No. 19, for some reason, despite an extremely unimpressive resume of providing losses for other SEC teams. They were blown out 31-3 by Ole Miss, lost to what’s clearly a mediocre Mississippi State team, though at least that was with Kamario Taylor, but their big win over Florida now looks much less impressive considering the Gators’ collapse.
But the biggest problem? Their ridiculous handling of that Florida team and the South Carolina Gamecocks. Exclusively because of their conference affiliation.
Jon Sumrall, Head coach of the Florida Gators looks on after a game against the Campbell Fighting Camels at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on September 12, 2026 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images) (James Gilbert/Getty Images)
Florida has two impressive wins, over Ole Miss and Texas, but has three awful losses. Not one, not two, but three losses. They were blown out 45-17 at Missouri, blown out 38-19 by South Carolina, and blown out 27-8 by Georgia. That 27-8 loss was just on Saturday. Why are they ranked?
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You could make the case that the Gators deserve to be in the top 25 had their three losses been even remotely close. They weren’t. This is a deeply flawed team that is capable of flashes of brilliance against some opponents. They shouldn’t be ranked. And they wouldn’t be, if their jersey patch didn’t have the SEC logo on it.
Meanwhile, Northwestern isn’t ranked, despite having just two losses. Two close losses, to Indiana and a still-feisty Oregon Ducks team.
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South Carolina also has three losses, yet not only are they ranked, they’re No. 23. At least Florida can point to Ole Miss and Texas, but the Gamecocks jumped into the top 25 after beating a very mediocre Oklahoma team. They lost to Mississippi State, Kentucky, and were blown out 49-18 by Alabama. While they did beat Tennessee, there’s little to justify being ranked with three losses this early in the season.
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To be fair to the SEC, the voters’ handling of Notre Dame is also bizarre. The Irish have taken advantage of an easy schedule this year, going 7-1 with wins over Wisconsin, Rice, Michigan State, Purdue, North Carolina, Stanford and Navy. They lost their only “tough” game on the road at BYU. So why are they No. 4, ahead of an undefeated UCLA and one loss Indiana team? The Hoosiers, after all, lost in close fashion to Ohio State, with starting QB Julian Sayin. They’ve won everything else.
UCLA hasn’t lost at all, the only team in the Big Ten or SEC able to say that. Sure, they’ve had a pretty easy schedule, but they have wins over Wisconsin at home and Oregon on the road…how’s that any different from Notre Dame? Especially considering, again, they haven’t lost?
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Head coach Marcus Freeman of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish looks on before leading his team to the field before the college football game against the North Carolina Tar Heels on October 03, 2026 at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) (Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The reality here is that poll voters are hopelessly committed to brand names. Whether those brand names are at the team or conference level. After Kiffin and Sarkisian have spent weeks complaining about the SEC’s schedules and how they’re handled, it’s clear that the AP Poll is giving them an enormous amount of deference, likely undeservedly so.
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The reality is that the SEC this year, and the Big Ten for that matter, are filled with teams that are far less talented than in years past. NIL and the transfer portal have flattened out college football, and brand names matter less than ever. You’d think that watching Indiana win a national championship would show voters that the traditional pathways and powerhouse programs should not be given the benefit of the doubt.
Some of this will sort itself out as November plays out, but there’s no question that the AP Poll will impact the College Football Playoff selection committee rankings. The ones that actually matter. It’s clear that they shouldn’t.