---

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Preseason Coaches Poll 2020

Aug. 6, 2020 - Even as major conferences make late changes to their scheduling configurations amidst the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, the preseason coaches poll has come out. ACC juggernaut Clemson is at #1, followed by Ohio State of the Big Ten/B1G at #2. While perennial SEC juggernaut Alabama is at #3, defending national champion LSU has unceremoniously been relegated to the #5 spot, behind Georgia.

Independent Notre Dame is #10. The Irish, of course, are set to participate as a de facto ACC quasi-member for conference play, also eligibile for the ACC conference title game and ACC Orange Bowl berth.

(preseason rankings follow, with first-place votes and total voting points)

1 - Clemson (38) 1589
2 - Ohio State (17) 1555
3 - Alabama (4) 1495
4 - Georgia 1345
5 - LSU 1330
6 - Oklahoma 1315
7 - Penn State 1199
8 - Florida 1176
9 - Oregon 1164
10 - Notre Dame 1012
11 - Auburn 898
12 - Wisconsin 887
13 - Texas A&M 807
14 - Texas 703
15 - Michigan 687
16 - Oklahoma State 524
17 - USC 521
18 - Minnesota 494
19 - North Carolina 415
20 - Utah 241
21 - UCF 232
22 - Cincinnati 229
23 - Iowa 204
24 - Virginia Tech 143
25 - Iowa State 135

Others receiving votes: Boise State 111, Tennessee 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, TCU 7, Washington State 6, California 5, Tulane 5, SMU 3, Louisiana 3, Nebraska 3, Stanford 2, Indiana 1, Pittsburgh 1, Duke 1, Kansas State 1

Last year, the ACC struggled to have another ranked team other than national title contender Clemson, with Virginia barely getting ranked for their spot as the ACC team in the Orange Bowl, after, earlier in the season, getting beaten easily by Notre Dame.

In the preseason rankings, the ACC has North Carolina (#19) and Virginia Tech (#24) sneaking into the rankings. Meanwhile, the SEC has three teams in the preseason top-5, six in the top-15.

The Big Ten/B1G has six teams in the top-25. The Big 12 has four teams ranked. The PAC-12 has three ranked members. The American Athletic Conference has two teams in the top-25. As mentioned above, Notre Dame (#10) is the only ranked independent.

Another 26 teams, from a mix of conferences, were in the "also receiving votes" category.