NCAA Coaches Poll: Clemson edges Ohio State for No. 1 in college football's preseason top 25 rankings

Bill Bender

NCAA Coaches Poll: Clemson edges Ohio State for No. 1 in college football's preseason top 25 rankings image

The 2020 college football season might be in doubt, but that won't stop the preseason polls. 

USA Today released the Amway Coaches Preseason Top 25 on Thursday , and Clemson is ranked No. 1 for the second straight season. 

MORE: SN bowl predictions for 2020

The Tigers, which have made the College Football Playoff each of the last five seasons, led all schools with 1,589 points. Clemson returns quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who is ranked No. 1 in Sporting News Top 40 players for 2020

Ohio State, which lost to Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinals last season, is ranked No. 2. The Buckeyes have won the last three Big Ten championships. Three SEC schools round out the top five in Alabama, Georgia and LSU. Those schools have combined to win the SEC championship the last three seasons. 

NCAA Coaches Poll: Top 25 rankings for 2020 preseason

RANKSCHOOLPOINTS
1Clemson (38)1,589
2Ohio State (17)1,555
3Alabama (4)1,495
4Georgia1,345
5LSU (6)1,330
6Oklahoma1,315
7Penn State1,199
8Florida1,176
9Oregon1,164
10Notre Dame1,012
11Auburn898
12Wisconsin887
13Texas A&M807
14Texas703
15Michigan687
16Oklahoma State524
17USC521
18Minnesota494
19North Carolina415
20Utah241
21UCF232
22Cincinnati229
23Iowa204
24Virginia Tech143
25Iowa State135

Others receiving votes:  Tennessee 111; Boise State 111; Arizona State 88; Kentucky 73; Memphis 71; Baylor 66; Washington 65; Louisville 62; Miami 58; Appalachian State 31; Navy 17; Virginia 13; Air Force 12; Mississippi State 9; Texas Christian 7; Washington State 6; Tulane 5; California 5; UL Lafayette 3; Southern Methodist 3; Nebraska 3; Stanford 2; Pittsburgh 1; Kansas State 1; Indiana 1; Duke 1.

Bill Bender

Bill Bender graduated from Ohio University in 2002 and started at The Sporting News as a fantasy football writer in 2007. He has covered the College Football Playoff, NBA Finals and World Series for SN. Bender enjoys story-telling, awesomely-bad 80s movies and coaching youth sports.