Aug 12, 2024 - Sports

Georgia ranks No. 1 on AP Top 25 preseason poll

A football quarterback wearing a white uniform and red helmet looks for a teammate to throw a pass during a daytime game — Quarterback Carson Beck looks down field at a spring game in April. Photo: Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The Georgia Bulldogs are the No. 1 college football team marching toward game day in the AP's Top 25 preseason poll.

Why it matters: The ranking marks the second year in a row that the Bulldogs have led the poll.

Catch up quick: Georgia won back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022, and appeared on their way to a third-straight championship before falling to Alabama in the SEC Championship last year.

That loss left them on the outside looking in at the four-team College Football Playoff.

The intrigue: There's more room for a misstep like that this year, because the playoffs are expanding from four teams to 12.

Zoom out: The SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC dominated the top 25 list, the AP notes. The SEC leads the pack with nine ranked teams.

Between the lines: Only 11 teams have started the season as the preseason No. 1 and won the national title since the poll launched in 1950.

The most recent was Alabama in 2017.

What's next: Georgia faces No. 14 Clemson on Aug. 31 at noon at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

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Georgia ranks No. 1 on AP Top 25 preseason poll

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