Oklahoma football: Sooners No. 5 in AP 2020 Preseason Top 25
By Chip Rouse
Oklahoma football is ranked No. 5 in the Associated Press 2020 Preseason College Football Top 25, which was released on Monday.
The Sooners received one point fewer than No. 4 Georgia in the voting by 62 sports writers and broadcasters from around the country. No college team has been ranked in the top five in the AP Poll more than Oklahoma.
Clemson, Ohio State and Alabama were the top three teams in the AP Preseason Top 25, which included all teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) despite the fact that 54 teams, including all of the Big Ten and Pac-12 conferences, have elected not to play in the fall because of COVID-19 concerns.
The Sooners were ranked 6th in the 2020 Preseason Coaches Poll. When you take into account all of the college football preview publications plus the two major national polls, Oklahoma ranks between No. 5 and No. 7 in most every preseason projection, which is probably a fair assessment of where they should stand among the nation’s top teams when all of the schools are considered.
The Sooners ended the 2019 season ranked 7th in the final AP Top 25 Poll.
Three other Big 12 teams made the Coaches Poll Preseason Top 25. Texas is No. 14, Oklahoma State is right behind at 15, and Iowa State checks in at No. 23.
The Associated Press Poll, which began in 1936 is the longest running college football poll of those that award national titles at the end of the season. Three years ago, the AP published a revised version of its all-time top 25 college teams, based on their ranking history in the AP poll.
Oklahoma ranked second in the AP All-Time Top 25 behind Ohio State.