Alabama heads preseason AP Top 25 poll

Five teams from the SEC are in the first AP Top 25 of the season.

The Alabama Crimson Tide unsurprisingly heads the class heading into the opening weekend. The reigning CFB Playoff Champions received 47 of a possible 63 first-place votes. This is a slight change from last year when Alabama began the year No. 3 behind the Clemson Tigers and Ohio State.

The next SEC team checks in at No. 5. SEC East powerhouse Georgia comes in fifth, as expectations are high again in Athens. The Dawgs started off No. 4 last year, so this is a slight step backward from how they began a year ago. Georgia will take on preseason No. 3 Clemson in Week 1, a major matchup that will have big-time implications for the remainder of the season.

Next, we find Texas A&M right behind UGA at No. 6. A&M had a terrific year last year, capped off with an Orange Bowl victory over UNC. A&M’s expectations remain high even after losing the likes of quarterback Kellen Mond to the NFL, as well as a few others. 6th is the highest A&M has begun a year since 1995 when they started the year at No. 3 while still residing in the Southwest Conference.

Last and certainly not least, Florida and LSU round things out. UF ranks 13th to start the year while LSU begins at 16th. With their preseason ranking of 16, LSU maintains a streak that’s dated back since 2001. They have not missed a preseason poll in 21 seasons, a pretty impressive mark. Florida is in the preseason poll for the 18th time in 22 seasons.

The full preseason poll can be found here.