The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Football tops Associated Press preseason poll
08.11.2025 | Football
Texas is ranked No. 1 in the AP preseason poll for the first time in history.
AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Football has been ranked No. 1 in Associated Press (AP) preseason poll for the first time in program history, the AP announced Monday.
The Longhorns also debuted as the preseason No. 1 team in the Coaches Poll on Aug. 8 for the first time in history. UT has 49 overall appearances at No. 1 in the AP poll, including spending three weeks ranked No. 1 during the 2024 season. It's the first time the Horns have posted back-to-back preseason top-10 rankings since 2009-10. Texas opened the 2009 campaign as preseason No. 2 followed by a preseason No. 5 ranking in 2010. Since 2000, Texas has recorded 14 top-10 preseason rankings in the AP poll. Overall, Texas has 36 preseason top-10 rankings.
Texas received 25 first-place votes and 1,552 points, edging out No. 2 Penn State by five points in the closest preseason vote since 1998. Penn State received 23 first-place votes and 1,547 total points, followed by No. 3 Ohio State, No. 4 Clemson, No. 5 Georgia, No. 6 Notre Dame, No. 7 Oregon, No. 8 Alabama, No. 9 LSU and No. 10 Miami (FL) to round out the top-10.
It is the eighth time in the last nine seasons in which Texas has been ranked in the preseason AP Top 25. It is also Texas' second-consecutive AP Top 10 ranking after UT opened the 2024 season ranked No. 4.
The Longhorns are set to face five preseason top-25 opponents this season, including a pair of top-10 road matchups at No. 3 Ohio State on Aug. 30 and No. 5 Georgia on Nov. 15.
Texas opens the 2025 season on the road at No. 3/2 Ohio State at 11 a.m. CT Saturday, Aug. 30, inside Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. The game will broadcast as part of FOX's Big Noon Kickoff, and ESPN's College GameDay will broadcast live from the Ohio State University campus. College GameDay will air for three hours from 8-11 a.m. CT, hosted by Rece Davis, Lee Corso, Desmond Howard, Pat McAffee, Nick Saban, Kirk Herbstreit and other ESPN personalities. It will be the final show for longtime ESPN personality Lee Corso as he is set to retire following Week 1 of the 2025 season.