Big Ten teams won each of the past three College Football Playoff national championships, and Ohio State will start the 2026 season as the No. 1 team in the AFCA Coaches Poll.

The Buckeyes, who will be led by a pair of Heisman Trophy contenders in quarterback Julian Sayin and receiver Jeremiah Smith, received 38 of 72 first-place votes. It’s the first time the Buckeyes will start a season No. 1 in the coaches’ poll since 2015.

Another Big Ten team, Oregon, is No. 2, followed by No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Texas and No. 5 Notre Dame.

Defending national champion Indiana, which went 16-0 last season to win its first title in school history, will start this season at No. 6. The Hoosiers brought in former TCU quarterback Josh Hoover to replace Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, who was the first overall pick of the Las Vegas Raiders in the NFL draft.

The Hoosiers were among six teams that received first-place votes and had the second most with 14. Oregon (six), Georgia (seven) Texas (two) and Notre Dame (five) also received first-place votes.

“The Big Ten is the best league in football, and a lot of really good football teams,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said at last week’s Big Ten media days. “It’s hard to win on the road [against] very physical football teams, very well-coached. It definitely prepares you for the playoffs. There’s no doubt about it; the numbers speak for themselves.”

Miami, which fell 27-21 against the Hoosiers in last season’s CFP National Championship presented by AT&T, is No. 7 in the initial poll. The Hurricanes grabbed quarterback Darian Mensah from ACC foe Duke and return star tailback Mark Fletcher and receiver Malachi Toney.

Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Ole Miss — all from the SEC — round out the top 10.

Alabama is No. 11, followed by Texas Tech, LSU, USC and BYU.

Michigan, which will play its first season under new coach Kyle Whittingham, is 16th. Penn State, which brought in coach Matt Campbell from Iowa State, is 17th.

Tennessee is 18th, Washington is 19th, and SMU is 20th.

Utah, Iowa, Clemson, Houston and Missouri complete the top 25.

The SEC had nine teams in the initial coaches’ poll, including half of the top 10. The Big Ten had eight teams in the poll, while the Big 12 had four and the ACC three.

Last season, 11 teams that were ranked in the preseason coaches’ poll weren’t included in the final one.

Three teams in the top 10 — No. 3 Penn State, No. 6 Clemson and No. 9 LSU — lost six games in 2025. The Nittany Lions fired coach James Franklin, and LSU let Brian Kelly go after eight games.

It is Clemson’s lowest preseason ranking since 2011.