College Football Playoff preseason predictions

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  ESPN staffSep 2, 2026, 06:30 AM ET

Hope springs eternal, at least before the games really start. The 2026 college football season has already begun for a few Power 4 teams, but now the fun begins.

Could Indiana become a dynasty and repeat as national champions? Will 2026 be the year the Miami breaks its 25-year title drought?

Ohio State and Oregon are the top two teams in the preseason AP poll, while Georgia (No. 3 in the AP) are the top-ranked SEC team and Notre Dame start the season ranked No. 4.

The Irish have the most returning production, according to Bill Connelly's rankings. That includes quarterback CJ Carr, who threw for 2,741 yards and 24 touchdowns in his first season as a starter in 2025.

LSU, Indiana and Texas brought in the top three transfer portal classes, and USC landed the top recruiting class. LSU also has a new coach in Lane Kiffin, if you hadn't heard.

How will all that factor into the College Football Playoff race? Who knows. It's a long time until Selection Day, but our experts are laying out their top 12 teams.

Here are our experts' top 12 College Football Playoff picks:

Andrea Adelson: 1. Notre Dame 2. Ohio State 3. Oregon 4. Miami 5. Texas A&M 6. Georgia 7. Indiana 8. BYU 9. Texas 10. USC 11. Virginia 12. Memphis

Kyle Bonagura: 1. Ohio State 2. Notre Dame 3. Texas 4. Indiana 5. Georgia 6. Oregon 7. Miami 8. Texas Tech 9. Alabama 10. Ole Miss 11. BYU 12. Boise State

Bill Connelly: 1. Oregon, 2. Ohio State, 3. Notre Dame, 4. Georgia, 5. Indiana, 6. Miami, 7. Texas Tech, 8. Texas, 9. LSU, 10. Tennessee, 11. Virginia, 12. North Dakota State

David Hale: 1. Notre Dame 2. Ohio State 3. Texas 4. Oregon 5. Miami 6. Georgia 7. LSU 8. Indiana 9. BYU 10. A&M 11. Louisville 12. Boise State

Eli Lederman: 1. Notre Dame 2. Ohio State 3. Georgia 4. Miami 5. Oregon 6. Texas 7. Indiana 8. Texas Tech 9. Tennessee 10. BYU 11. SMU 12. North Dakota State

Ryan McGee: 1. Ohio State 2. Georgia 3. Notre Dame 4. Oregon 5. Texas 6. BYU 7. Miami 8. Indiana 9. Texas Tech 10. LSU 11. Tennessee 12. Boise State

Max Olson: 1. Ohio State 2. Notre Dame 3. Miami 4. Texas 5. Texas Tech 6. Georgia 7. Oregon 8. Indiana 9. Oklahoma 10. Texas A&M 11. Penn State 12. Boise State

Adam Rittenberg: 1. Notre Dame 2. Oregon 3. Texas 4. Georgia 5. Ohio State 6. Miami 7. Indiana 8. BYU 9. Ole Miss 10. Alabama 11. USC 12. Boise State

Mark Schlabach: 1. Ohio State 2. Georgia 3. Notre Dame 4. Oregon 5. Texas 6. BYU 7. Miami 8. Indiana 9. Texas Tech 10. LSU 11. Alabama 12. Boise State

Jake Trotter: 1. Texas 2. Notre Dame 3. Ohio State 4. Oregon 5. Georgia 6. Miami 7. Indiana 8. BYU 9. Oklahoma 10. Virginia 11. Houston 12. Navy

Paolo Uggetti: 1. Oregon 2. Georgia 3. Notre Dame 4. Miami 5. Ohio State 6. Texas 7. Indiana 8. LSU 9. Texas Tech 10. USC 11. Alabama 12. Boise State

Dave Wilson: 1. Ohio State 2. Texas 3. Notre Dame 4. Oregon 5. Georgia 6. Texas Tech 7. Miami 8. Indiana 9. BYU 10. LSU 11. Texas A&M 12. Boise State