Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide will almost certainly open the 2017 college football season as the No. 1 team in the Associated Press Top 25, but where will Week 1 opponent Florida State land in that poll?
Using a combination of offseason research and observations and the last several years of AP poll data as a guide—more on that information on the following slide—this is our projection of what the preseason AP Top 25 will look like when it is released in a few weeks.
If you can't wait that long for the first ranking, here's a quick preview that is also a review of recent years: Group of Five teams are almost nowhere to be found, the reigning national champion will be in a great position to defend its title and a minimum of a half dozen SEC teams made the cut.