For the second straight year, Georgia starts the college football season as the preseason No. 1 in the US LBM Coaches Poll.

This follows two years where Alabama was ranked No. 1 in the preseason but ultimately saw Georgia, their SEC competitor, finish the season at the top and secure consecutive national titles.

This season marks the third instance where Georgia has been preseason No. 1 in the 34-year history of YSL News Sports overseeing the coaches poll. Will this be the year they can start and finish at the top?

However, history doesn’t seem to favor them. More on that later.

Georgia football’s journey from No. 1 to disappointment

Georgia reached the top of the preseason poll in 2008, but it was a fleeting moment. They were soon passed by Southern California (currently ranked No. 23). The shift occurred after Georgia’s season opener, where they won against Georgia Southern by 24 points, while USC dominated Virginia with a score of 52-7. Ultimately, Georgia ended that season with three losses and a ranking of 10th.

Winning a championship isn’t determined solely by what a group of 55 head coaches at Football Bowl Subdivision schools think in August, but a look at the last 33 years reveals interesting patterns.

How many preseason No. 1 teams have ended the season at No. 1?

Georgia and Alabama aren’t the only teams to fall short of preseason expectations. In fact, a preseason No. 1 team hasn’t clinched the top spot at season’s end since Alabama did so in 2017.

Since YSL News began tracking this poll in the 1991 season, only four preseason No. 1s have achieved postseason No. 1 status – which is just above 12% success. Only twice has a team maintained the No. 1 position all season: Florida State in 1999 and Southern California in 2004.

SEC teams dominate with weekly No. 1 rankings

In the 527 coaches’ polls recorded since 1991, a team from the Southeastern Conference or Atlantic Coast Conference has held the No. 1 rank in nearly two-thirds of those polls.

Prior to Georgia’s run in the 2021 season, only 10 schools had been ranked first for double-digit weeks: Alabama, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Miami, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Southern California.

For over seven and a half years (from Nov. 15, 2015), either Clemson or an SEC team held the top spot in the US LBM Coaches Poll. This trend continues into 2024 with nine of the Top 25 teams in the preseason poll hailing from the SEC – an increase from last year’s six, especially with Oklahoma and Texas joining the conference.

The SEC’s dominance in the rankings is closely linked to Alabama’s success, as the Crimson Tide has frequently held the No. 1 rank almost every season since 2008. Since Nov. 2, 2008, Alabama has remained first in nearly half of these polls.

Yet, it is often the years when Alabama—this year’s No. 5—begins at No. 2 or lower that they end up winning the national championship. Historically, preseason No. 2 teams have been twice as likely to finish as the eventual No. 1.

Where post-season No. 1 teams began the season

Since the College Football Playoff began in 2014, no team ranked seventh or below in the preseason has won a national championship.

Which teams are likely to be in contention this year? Here’s a look at the coaches’ poll top 10.

Current standings in the US LBM Coaches Poll top 25

This year’s initial Top 25 is mostly filled with teams from the Big Ten and SEC, with the Big 12 also making a notable appearance.

Given the various uncertainties and shifts this season, it is essential to examine the teams launching their campaigns in the rankings.