Ohio State opens No. 1 in college football's preseason Amway Coaches Poll

Eddie Timanus | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Amway Coaches Poll: Ohio State No. 1 in preseason Top 25 USA TODAY Sports breaks down the preseason edition of the Amway Coaches Poll, which features the defending champion Buckeyes at No. 1.

With all the talent returning to Columbus following a national championship, there wasn’t much doubt that Ohio State would open the 2015 season with the No.1 ranking in the preseason Amway Coaches Poll. The only question: Would the vote be unanimous?

And now we have an answer — not quite. The Buckeyes were picked No. 1 on 62 of 64 ballots in the 2015 preseason Amway Coaches Poll, released Thursday. Second-ranked TCU and No .3 Alabama each claimed one first-place vote apiece. Still, it’s a strong endorsement for the Buckeyes as they try to become the first team to start and finish a season atop the rankings since Southern California in 2004. It’s the third time Ohio State will open the season at No. 1 since USA TODAY began administering the coaches poll in 1991.

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No. 2 TCU, meanwhile, starts with the highest preseason ranking in program history (and matching its all-time high). It’s a major vote of confidence for the Horned Frogs and for No. 4 Baylor, last season’s Big 12 co-champions, both of whom were left out of the inaugural four-team College Football Playoff.

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The Southeastern Conference heads the field once again in terms of number of ranked teams, a counter to the argument that the conference has taken a hit in public perception in a two-year national title drought. Paced by No. 3 Alabama, eight SEC teams begin the season in the top 25; five of them represent the West Division. Two more, Mississippi State and Texas A&M, lead the group of others receiving votes.

Other items of note:

►The Big 12 scored two teams in the top four, but the rest of the league didn’t fare as well. Oklahoma is the only other conference member in the top 25, at No. 19, its lowest starting position since 2000. Texas is unranked in the preseason for the first time since 1998.

►Perhaps the surprise member of the SEC in the poll is No. 25 Tennessee, which edged Mississippi State by a scant two poll points for its first ranking since the 2008 preseason balloting. The Vols have a returning starter at quarterback in the person of Joshua Dobbs, a luxury most of their fellow conference members don’t have.

►The Pac-12 claimed six spots in the top 25, led by No. 5 Oregon, last year's runner-up.

►The ACC and Big Ten match the Big 12 with three each. No.11 Notre Dame and No. 24 Boise State are the only ranked teams from outside the power five leagues.

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