The Big Ten has reigned supreme in college football each of the last three years, and the coaches in the USA Today preseason college football poll expect that to happen again in 2026.

Ohio State and Oregon rank 1-2 in the poll released Tuesday.  The bad news for the Buckeyes is that teams ranked #1 in the preseason rarely actually finish in that spot. In fact, it has happened only four times since 1991,

SEC squads Georgia and Texas check into the third and fourth spots, respectively.

Notre Dame ranks 5th, just two voting points ahead of defending national champion Indiana. The Irish received five first-place votes compared to 14 for the Hoosiers, but Marcus Freeman’s squad had a more consistent top-five ranking.

Last year’s national runner-up, Miami (Fla.) ranks 7th, followed by a quartet of SEC teams…Texas A&M (8th), Oklahoma (9th), Ole Miss (10th) and Alabama (11th). Texas Tech at 12th is the highest-ranked Big 12 member.

The SEC placed nine teams in the top 25. The Big Ten secured eight spots in the poll, including Michigan at 16th.

Besides Miami, two other Notre Dame opponents — BYU and SMU — ranked 15th and 20th.