SEC Dominates Preseason Top 25 College Football Rankings

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Grant Bricker | Last updated Aug 4, 2025 3:42 PM ET

The Florida Gators were not ranked once during the 2024 season, despite finishing the year on a four-game winning streak.

That changed on Monday, as Florida was ranked No. 17 inside the top 25 of USA TODAY's Coaches Poll.

The SEC had nine teams ranked inside the top 25, with the Texas Longhorns leading the way at No. 1. The Georgia Bulldogs, Alabama Crimson Tide, LSU Tigers, South Carolina Gamecocks, Ole Miss Rebels, Tennessee Volunteers, and Texas A&M Aggies were also ranked in that order.

While Florida found its way into the preseason rankings, ESPN's Analytics did not give them a good shot of making the College Football Playoff, at 14.5%.

It has been a couple of seasons since the SEC lifted the national championship trophy, with Georgia as the last team from the conference to do so in 2022. In 2023, the Michigan Wolverines won, and the Ohio State Buckeyes took home the hardware in 2024.

For Florida, the Gators just achieved their first winning season under head coach Billy Napier after an 8-5 finish. This was partly due to the emergence of quarterback DJ Lagway, who came in for Graham Mertz after suffering a torn ACL.

However, Lagway's health has been an issue this offseason, as he started training camp in a boot because of a minor calf injury. The quarterback was later seen throwing without the boot, but ESPN's Matt Barrie believed it was a cause for concern.

Florida opens the year with Long Island on August 30.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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